#BBB NEWS| Iyalaya Anybody: Pencils, Nigerian Innovation, & Africa’s Path In The 21st Century By Pius Adesanmi

You must excuse the obscenity, “iyalaya anybody”, in my title. When you invite a well-known scholar of African popular cultures to address such a distinguished assembly of actors and professionals in Nigeria’s corporate and entrepreneurial world, you must be prepared to be illuminated by the philosophical nuggets always hidden in the lingos and cultures of the African street. You must be prepared for some discomfiture.

In its pristine cultural background in the Yoruba world, “iyalaya” is an obscenity hurled at your opponent in a brawl to display contempt for his or her maternal lineage. It is usually accompanied by the insulting palm and five-finger flash we call “waka” in the face of your opponent. The consequence, as you all know, is often a bloody nose and an unscheduled trip to the hospital. However, as cultures evolve across generations, new meanings emerge and old words or expressions and are sent on new errands by the human imagination.

Thus, in its contemporary usage in Nigerian popular culture, “iyalaya anybody” speaks directly to the spirit and theme of Verdant Zeal’s 5th Innovention Series: “The Next Big Thing: Identifying Africa’s Untapped Potential.” Within this broad thematic framing around the African continent, I was further mandated by the organizers of this event to try and think through the particular issue of a path for Nigerian innovation in the 21st century.