Pronunciation Guide
Names follow Achebe's spelling — the form in your book. Each entry also shows the name in modern Ọnwụ orthography, which marks open vowels with an underdot (ị ọ ụ). The respelling below uses everyday English syllables; the stressed syllable is marked in terra.
Igbo is a tonal language: the pitch of a syllable can change a word's meaning. The respellings below approximate the sounds and stress for English readers, but they cannot capture tone. Where audio is available, trust the recording over the respelling.
Okonkwo's household
Okonkwo
A respected wrestler, farmer, and titled man of Umuofia, driven by a fear of resembling his father.
Unoka
Okonkwo's late father; a gifted flute-player and a poor, indebted provider.
Nwoye
Okonkwo's eldest son; sensitive and quietly questioning.
Ekwefi
Okonkwo's second wife, who left a previous husband for him.
Ezinma
Ekwefi's only surviving child; sharp, spirited, and her father's favorite.
Ikemefuna
A boy from a neighboring village who comes to live in Okonkwo's compound.
Obiageli
A girl of Okonkwo's household.
Kin & community
Obierika
Okonkwo's closest friend; a thoughtful man who weighs custom against conscience.
Ezeudu
The oldest and one of the most honored men in Okonkwo's village.
Nwakibie
A wealthy, titled man of Umuofia who helps Okonkwo get his start.
Chielo
A village woman who serves as priestess of the Oracle, Agbala.
Uchendu
Okonkwo's maternal uncle; an elder who offers hard-won counsel.
The mission
Enoch
A zealous Igbo convert to the new church.
Mr. Kiaga
The Igbo interpreter and catechist who leads the mission congregation.
Mr. Brown
English missionary · no respelling neededThe first missionary in the Umuofia district; favors patience and accommodation over confrontation.
Mr. Smith
English missionary · no respelling neededMr. Brown's uncompromising successor, whose approach sharpens the conflict between the church and the clan.
Key terms — Igbo
chi
A person's personal god or spirit, assigned at birth.
Agbala
The Oracle of the Hills and the Caves; also a word for a man who has taken no title.
egwugwu
A masked dancer who embodies an ancestral spirit of the village.
Ala (Ani)
The earth goddess, source of morality and law; offences against her are the gravest.
osu
An outcast dedicated to a god, set apart from the freeborn.
obi
The large living quarters of the head of a family.
ndichie
The elders of the village.
ogbanje
A child believed to die and return to its mother to be born again and again.
iyi-uwa
The buried stone linking an ogbanje to the spirit world.
ọjị (kola)
The kola nut, broken and shared as a rite of welcome and communion.
ozo
One of the titles a man may take; a mark of rank and achievement.
Umuofia
Okonkwo's clan — the union of nine villages where the novel is set.