gbaju-ẹ

Yoruba

Alternative forms
  • gbájúẹ̀, gbájú ẹ̀

Etymology

From gbá ojú ẹ̀ (“slap his/her face”). It could have been influenced by an older phrase gbájú ìgan, used in the 1960s to describe magicians who deceptively rob people of their belongings at motor parks and other locations, while also comparing the sting of a slap to being frauded.

Pronunciation

IPA(key): /ɡ͡bá.d͡ʒú.ɛ̀/

Noun

gbájú-ẹ̀

  1. (neologism) fraudster
    Synonyms: yàúyàúù, màgòmágó, oníjìbìtì
  2. (neologism) fraud; 419
    Synonyms: yàúyàúù, màgòmágó, jìbìtì, èrú
    • 2001, Lerè Adéyẹmí, Àkùkọ Gàgàrà:
      ...igbó mímu àti gbájú ẹ̀ tí wọ́n ń pè ní 419 ti jàrábà àwọn ará ìlú Ẹ̀tànlókù.
      ...marijuana and fraud, also called 419 have become a way of life of the people of Ẹ̀tànlókù.

References
  • Dayọ̀ Àkànmú (2017) “A Communicative and Stylistic Adaptability of New Idioms and Idiomatic Expressions in Yorùbá Literary Texts”, in Journal of Comparative Literature and Aesthetics, volume 40.1
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