Naming Ceremony In Yoruba Land By Olalekan Oduntan

When a child is born in Yoruba land, the father of the child approaches an Ifa priest to know about the destiny of the child known as "Akosejaye" . 

Consultation will first of all be made with the Ifa priest to know what and what to bring to enhance their findings. On the day of the divination, the parents of the child must have provided all the necessary requirements for the divination of Ifa to be smooth. 

What is Akosejaye? It is finding out about the destiny with which the child has brought to the world. Akosejaye means the destiny of the child. The Ifa priest will not only find out about the destiny of the child, Ifa will also delve into the kinds of food that the child should or should not eat when he or she grows up. 

Findings will also be revealed from Ifa to the parents about the colours of cloths that the child should or should not wear when he or she grows up. Ifa will as well talk about the kind of works the child should or should not do when he or she grows up. 

Ifa talks about successes, failures, marriage, children and the places that the child will be during his or her journey in lifetime. It may also be revealed that the parents of the child should keep Ifa for the child and that they should be using certain things to appease it on behalf of the child until he or she grows up. 

So before the child is grown up, the parents will be responsible for taking care of the Ifa for their child from time to time. Mention must also be made about the negative things which the child will experience in the course of growing up in life as time goes on. 

After findings from the Ifa priest, the christening of the child will now properly take place. It is the Ifa that will bring out the name with which to christen the child. Salt, honey, kola nuts, bitter kola and wine will be used to pray for the child by the elders present at the ceremony. 

And showers of blessing in form of prayers will be rained on the child from the Ifa priest and the parents of the child. The Ifa Corpuses with which the child has been born will be revealed to the parents of the child and this is the path which the child will follow when he or she grows up till death.