It’s been a while since I’ve shared what I’m learning in Jula with you, so here is a new fun word – tigi.
“Tigi” could be translated as “possessor of.” So someone with tomatoes can be called “tomati tigi.” Someone with maps (“carti” in Jula) is “carti tigi.” If someone is walking down the street selling something and you want to get their attention, you can call them by this name. Gee, if you don’t know the name for what they have or are selling, you can even call out “fɛnw tigi,” which means “possessor of things” and see if they hear you and respond.
But recently I learned two new idiomatic uses of the word “tigi” in the Joseph story. When Joseph went to work for Potiphar he worked hard because he was a “dusutigi.” “Dusu” is heart, so he had a heart. A “dusutigi” is someone who is willing to work hard. When Joseph’s older brothers went to Egypt with Benjamin, Judah promised his father that nothing would happen to Benjamin and that he’d watch out for him and bring him back safe and sound. Benjamin was told that he had to stay as a servant in Egypt, at which time Judah spoke up and said that he’d go in Benjamin’s place. We can see at that point that Judah was a “kantigi,” or “one with a neck.” It means that he kept his word. May we all be dusutigis and kantigis as we shine for Jesus!