The Origin of "Eh Soom Boo Kawaya"

At the pinnacle of success, the background of a phenomenal star is almost forgotten. So it is with “Eh Soom Boo Kawaya”. This Nigerian folksong has become an international folksong performed by kids all over the world. A click on the internet reveals a global coloration of performances of the song by kids from different races. However, as every brand is traceable to its maker, the origin, the meaning and the composers of this internet sensation have not been attributed to any group or tribe in Nigeria. This is an attempt to investigate the origin of “Eh Soom Boo Kawaya”. 

The Lexical Composition of the Song

The song has a fusion of what looks like Efik/Ibibio and Igbo. The words used in the title “Eh Soom Boo Kawaya” suggest a muddled up reconstruction of the original words of the title by the secondary users who developed and popularized it. The words can neither be traced to Efik nor Igbo in today’s Nigeria. However, a closer look at the lexical elements in its title links the language to the Efik/Ibibio language in Cross River/Akwa Ibom States of Nigeria.          

On the other hand, the entire lyrics posted online by some bloggers (e.g. “Mama Lisa’s World”) could be likened to Igbo due to striking similarities between their lexical items. So, one may ask: Was the song composed and sung by the Efik/Ibibio people? Or was it composed and sung by the Igbo people? An analysis of comments from some linguists from the Efik, Ibibio and Igbo extractions in the Nigerian Languages Project Platform point to the real identity of the song and its origin.

The Song as posted online by Mama Lisa’s World

Eh soom boo kawaya
Kedou Kadee
Kedou Kadee
Kedou Kadee
Ahhh!
Soom Boom Kawaya,
Kadou kadee

The Song as Performed During Physical Training, (PT) by the Efik/Ibibio Kids

Eyen Ebariba (Ebariba youth)

So̹ñ ubo̹k wat inyañ (Paddle fast)

So̹ñ ubo̹k wat inyañ

Ke edim ke di! (Rain is approaching!)

Aa aa aaaaa (Aa aa aaaaa)

Sọñ ubọk wat inyañ (Paddle fast)

Ke edim ke di! (Rain is approaching)

Tim efiak usuñ iba (Prepare two mounds of fufu)

Bọk efere ekporoko (Cook stockfish soup)

Kot eyen Ebariba (Call an Abiriba youth)

Edi men do dia (To come take and eat)

Aa aa aa aaaaa (Aa aa aaaa)

Kot eyen Ebariba, (Call Abiriba youth)

Edi men do dia (To come take and eat)

Commentary

The tunes are similar, especially the part that has, “Aaaa so̧ñ ubok wat inyañ, ke edim ke di”. The Efik/Ibibio version was sung by sailors and pupils used it during Primary School PT-Physical Training. It was also popular at home during play!

“Ebariba” is an Efik/Ibibio mispronunciation of Ebiriba (currently written as Abiriba). Abriba is a major town in Ohafia Local Government Area of Abia State in Nigeria. Historically, Abiriba people sojourned extensively along the Cross River Basin, in the Calabar/Itu area. They travelled to the Spanish colony of Fernando Po also known as “Panya”. At a time when Nigeria’s Colonial government enforced the strict purchase and use of overpriced British products, the Abiriba people discovered an alternative smuggling route across the Bight into the Spanish colony of Equatorial Guinea (called Fernando-Po at the time) for the goods. Although it was a risky business, it thrived and many of the Abiriba men owned boats in this area, some of which were used by the fishermen in the area.

This history provides a possible motivation for such a sailing/fishing song. Speculations about the origin of the folksong have it that it is from the Native Americans and it spread round the world. The song could have been taken to the Americas by the slaves during the slave trade in the 18^th Century.

The words appear traceable to Nigeria. For example, the words of the internet version look like a corrupted version of the forms in the Efik/Ibibio version:

Eh soom boo kawaya (Internet version)

So̹ñ ubo̹k wat inyañ (Efik/Ibibio version)

 

Kedou kadee (Internet version)

Ke edim ke di (Efik/Ibibio version)

 

Kawaya (Internet version)

..k wat inyang (Efik/Ibibio version)

 

Findings

Considering the two versions (both audio and print), and a bit of history, it could be deduced as follows:

1.      the songs have similar tunes;

2.     Ebiriba is present day Abiriba in Ohafia LGA in Abia State, and it is a mispronunciation of Abiriba by the Efik/Ibibio people;

3.      the song involved sailors and workers from the Efik/Ibibio and Abiriba extraction;

4.     the call on Ebiriba youth to paddle fast may have been influenced by the ownership of the boat which could be traced to the business of the Abiriba men at the time, especially along the Cross River Basin and the Gulf of Guinea;

5.      the corrupted forms in the internet version look very much like Igbo words; however, a translation into Igbo misses the “paddle fast…rain is approaching” meaning;

6.      the wordings of the Efik/Ibibio version tell the straight story which form the background of the song, as a fishing folksong.

Conclusion

Having reviewed the findings above, it is convincing to conclude that “Eh Soom Boo Kawaya” is a folksong of the Efik/Ibibio people in the South South of Nigeria. And the seeming Igbo lexical fusion may have been a result of narrator’s influence. This means that an Igbo man may have taught the secondary user the song as received in his locale.

The song was very popular among sailors during fishing activities along the Cross River Basin. There was also contact between sailors and the white settlers who came to Nigeria through the Atlantic Ocean.

Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the very robust discussion and contributions of the NLP members in our Forum, and we appreciate in a special way David Etta, who compiled the NLP discussion into this write-up. We also appreciate Dr. Grace Ekong who provided the data on “Eyen Ebariba”. We will also like to acknowledge Crystal at Legends of the Staff of Musique, who motivated the investigation on this folksong and provided the music notation.

Prof. Imelda Udoh
For the Nigerian Languages Project (NLP)

December 2019.

TEXT

So̹ñ Ubo̹k Wat Inyañ

So̹ñ ubo̹k wat inyañ

So̹ñ ubo̹k wat inyañ

Ke edim ke di o!

Aa aa aaaaa

Sọñ ubọk wat inyañ

Ke edim ke di o!

Tim efiak usuñ iba

Bọk efere ekporoko

Kot eyen Ebariba

Edi men do dia

Aa aa aa aaaaa

Kot eyen Ebariba,

Edi men do dia

 

IPA

[sɔŋ ubɔk waɾ iɲaŋ]

[sɔŋ ubɔk waɾ iɲaŋ]

[ke edɨm ke di o]

[aa aa aaaaa]

[sɔŋ ubɔk waɾ iɲaŋ]

[ke edɨm ke di o]

[tɨm efiaɣ usuŋ iba]

[bɔɣ efere ekporoko]

[koɾ ejen ebariba]

[edi men do dia]

[aa aa aa aaaaa

[koɾ ejen ebariba]

[edi men do dia]

TRANSLATION

Paddle fast

Paddle fast

Rain is approaching

Aa aa aaaaa

Paddle fast

Rain is approaching

 

Prepare two mounds of fufu

Cook stockfish soup

Call Abiriba youth

To come take and eat

Aa aa aaaa

Call Abiriba youth

To come take and eat

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Note: Stop consonants are weakened in intervocalic positions:

/t → ɾ/

/k → ɣ/