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Igbo Etymology: What does Nile/Nine mean? If we dare to etymologise a little sometimes ...

/// it sort of looks to me like n'ile is a word that comes across to us from the way it is employed to describe absolutes /the e tremity of all that's seen.

!iterally" all that the eye can see are included in the sense of what's captured. #y mum's people ha$e a turn of a turn of phrase: they say ... d% s% eles% anya anya ... or they say n&r& na'ile anya. ' which means: to look or looking steadfastly with the eye. (ther Igbo also say 'ebe & b)la n'ile la' ... where'e$er you care to look.

*nd I think that when you del$e into origins and break it down/ e$erything really did mean for the Igbo +all that the eye can see, Eye sight being one of our keener senses ... words in Igbo like If)nanya -lo$e. or" anya'ukwu -greed and co$etousness./ show 0ust how our use of this primary sense sometimes helped us shape our words and thoughts. *nya'mmee -for a $iolent tendency is another one. / *nya'uhie -down south. is another one.

1he l and the n's are in free $ariation among our populations. 1he farther out north you proceed you hear the 'n' . E.g in the North ... 2e ife i na'enene? Ife nii'ine'na -Whate$er else you look at.. *nd the lower or 'further out in the other direction that you proceed across Igbo land -i.e the southern direction. ... you hear the l.

3o n'ile when you etymologise -not a word." you really do get the sense of the compound word's meaning. Nine/Nile ' is a going phrase which suffered some contraction from N'ile -in seeing or to see. to mean: 'all that one sees' ... when you tack on 'Ife" or Ihe' ... it becomes: e$ery 'thing' that one sees or can see.

4.45p $iew /1hinking the language.

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