ABSTRACT
The death of the founder of the family, presumably the grandfather, caused a great impression on the father, mother and son who were left, and I think I have said enough to show that the Yoruba reveres and beatifies his dead. The family that once was composed of three, i.e. father, mother and son, now became one of four, i.e. the Orisha (the departed father), and the father, mother and son. The father fished, the mother gathered vegetables, and the son hunted. It was the duty of each one of this little family to see that the Orisha was fed. In this way perhaps commenced the Yoruba first division of time into weeks of four days, the Orisha’s day, the father’s day, the mother’s day, the son’s day, and it was probably rather owing to the necessity of supplying the needs of the Orisha than their own humble wants that the necessity to exchange products first arose, hence the Orisha’s day became the market day.
