There are but a handful of narratives regarding the origin of the Yorùbá parlance: “GUDU GUDU MÉJE, YÀÀYÀ MẸ́FÀ”.

In one of the popular narratives, a delegate of Ibadan High Chiefs once had a meeting with one Mr. Hezekiah Shunklebottom, a British District Officer (in the colonial days), who was famous for his stern, uncompromising mien.

During the meeting, which was held in his Lagos office, Mr. Shunklebottom, by the aid of an interpreter, apparently pleased with the oral reports brought before him by the Ibadan chiefs, kept nodding and saying:

“Good, good, good, good, good, good, good; yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.”

One of the chiefs counted the ”goods” which turned out to be 7 and the “yeahs” counted as 6.
On their return to Ibadan, they reported to Ibadan folks that the “Èèbó ṣe gudu gudu méje àti yààyà mẹ́fà”.

In another separate narrative, it was told that during the colonial era, in the old Ọ̀yọ́ province, the Provincial Administrator wanted to execute 7 developmental projects and had invited the Governor from Lagos to commission these remarkable projects.

On the appointed day, folks trooped out en masse, singing, drumming and dancing to welcome the Governor.

While commissioning the 1st project, the Governor had commented “Good!” And the Provincial Administrator replied “Yeah!”

The cavalcade moved to commission the 2nd project, and while at it, the Governor again hailed the project by saying “Good!” And the Provincial Administrator replied “Yeah!”

The same process was repeated at the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th projects.

However at the commissioning of the 7th, when the Governor said “Good!” The Provincial Administrator could not reply with “Yeah”, because someone was whispering into his ears, aside.

Subsequently, and unknown to the Oyinbos, the overly excited Ọ̀yọ́ folks, who were mostly illiterates, had only counted the number of “good” and “yeah” heard from the two men.

In total, 7 “goods” and 6 “yeahs” were counted. They went home rejoicing and saying: “Èèbó ṣe gudu gudu méje àti yààyà mẹ́fà”.

And since then, the parlance has been figuratively used in the Yorùbá community, to applaud outstanding achievements or breakthroughs.

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