EGBEJE
EDE
About The Game
EGBEJE EDE is a Yoruba scrabble game
EGBEJE EDE is a Yoruba
scrabble game, that is played by two or three people on a 169 square game board
with Yoruba alphabet tiles to spell Yoruba words.
EGBEJE EDE was created by Adetola
Balogun and Dayo Taiwo in the year 2018 in Nigeria. With the objective to
promote Yoruba language and enhance it’s learning through interactive gaming.
So as to address the issue of decline in Yoruba language in present day Yoruba
society.
Short Summary
EGBEJE EDE
HOW TO PLAY
Egbeje Ede is a Yoruba word game where players mention seventeen words that follow a pattern—like starting with the same letter or fitting a category. Played orally, it builds vocabulary, sharpens thinking, and promotes Yoruba language learning in schools, contests, and cultural settings.
01
Egbeje ede game can be played by two or three people.
Egbeje Ede can be played by two or three people, taking turns to list words based on a given pattern or category. Each player tries to complete the seventeen words correctly, making it both fun and educational.
02
At the start of the game players will pick 2 Aroba lifeline cards
At the start of the game, each player picks 2 Aroba lifeline cards, 1 calabash, and 1 tile rack. These items help players organize their words, use lifelines when stuck, and stay engaged throughout the game.
03
To start the game, the players will draw 4 alphabet tiles from the tile sack.
Each of the players will toss all 4 tiles at once, each player after the other. Player with highest tiles “face up” will start the game, followed by others according to outcome of “tile toss”. In a case of tie after tile toss, the tile toss will be repeated by the player who caused the tie.
04
After the tile toss, each player will draw 8 alphabets tiles from the tile sack
After the tile toss, each player will draw 8 alphabets tiles from the tile sack, then arrange it on the rack before spelling words on the game board. After each game a player must draw up tiles from the sack to reload the tiles on the rack back to 8.
Game Mode
EGBEJE EDE game can be played in two modes
- “Olóbòró”, this is a game mode where the players agree to spell Yoruba words on the game board without taking into consideration the tone notes (ami) Do, Re, Mi, on the alphabet tiles. E.g, a player can spell Bàbá as Baba in the olóbòró mode without any penalty.
II. “Alámì”, this is a game mode where the players agree to spell Yoruba words on the game board taking into consideration the tone notes (ami) Do, Re, Mi, on the alphabet tiles. E.g, a player cannot spell Bàbá as Baba in the Alámì mode, as it will be contested and a player could lose his/her lifeline card.
ARRANGEMENT OF TILES ON GAME BOARD.
Words must be arranged horizontally on the game board.
A player can play words, ranging from two to eight letters.
The first player can start the game anywhere on the board.
A player can play words, ranging from two to eight letters.
AWARD OF POINTS
1.A player is to be rewarded with cowries after a word is spelled on the board. He/she must get cowries equivalent to number of alphabets used to spell a word. The cowries earned during the game must be kept in the calabash till end of the game.
2. Whenever a player use all 8 tiles to spell a word on the board, he/she will get an ÌMÒ card, a jackpot card, that represents 30 cowries . To be added to such player’s point after the game.
3. Whenever a word is spelled on the board and any of the tiles enters a square containing word on the game board, a player will get a card that correspond with the word. The cards carries 1 point each. At the end of the game, the total number of cards earned by a player during the game shall be summed up with total cowries earned.