Eré · Yoruba

Ònkà

Counting · 4 min

Ọ̀kan sí ẹgbẹ̀rún — one to one thousand. Vigesimal ònkà: lé, dín, ogún.

Why. Ònkà is how a child enters the market, the board, and one thousand.

1. Ìpele 1: ọ̀kan sí ẹ̀wá — gbòngbò mẹ́wàá. — Stage 1: one to ten — ten roots.
2. Ìpele 2: lá (11–14) kí o tó dín lógún (15–19). — Stage 2: add to ten, then subtract from twenty.
3. Ìpele 3: ogún, ọgbọ̀n, ogójì… ọgọ́rùn-ún. — Stage 3: the scores to one hundred.
4. Ìpele 4: lé àti dín — ọ̀kanlelogún, ẹ̀ẹ́dọ́gbọ̀n, àádọ́ta. — Stage 4: add and subtract tricks.
5. Ìpele 5–6: igba sí ẹgbẹ̀rún (200 to 1,000). — Stage 5–6: two hundred to one thousand.