obia
English
Pronunciation
- Rhymes: -əʊbiə
Noun
obia (uncountable)
- Alternative form of obeah
Anagrams
- BOIA, Biao, Bo'ai, abio-
Sranan Tongo
Etymology
Possibly from Awutu obire (“charm”) and/or Efik ubio (“charm to cause sickness or death”).[1] Cognate of Aukan obiya, Saramaccan obia, and English obeah.
Adjective
obia
- magical
Noun
obia
- a spirit that operates in a healing way
- a magic medicine
- a charm
- 1977, Happy Boys (lyrics and music), “Veanti”, in Akoeba:
- Dan den poti den wisi fu kiri mi / Èn den poti den obia fu broko mi / Ma den lei, den no sa man
- They even arranged charms to kill me / And they arranged charms to break me / But they're lying, they won't be able to
-
Verb
obia
- to perform magic
Derived terms
- obiaman
References
- G. Huttar (1985), “Sources of Ndjuka African vocabulary”, in New West Indian Guide, ISSN 1382-2373, page 59