Oríkì jé ...?

As with any question on this genre, oríkì is Yoruba oral poetry composed to praise a person, family, town, or object by celebrating its qualities and achievements. That core purpose is captured in ìyìn ẹni, the praising of a person.

Oríkì should not be confused with pleading or begging, with a formal accusation, or with a picture-based story; those describe entirely different kinds of speech or narrative, none of which share oríkì's function of celebrating and honouring its subject.

Whenever oríkì appears in a question, anchor your answer to the idea of praise; every correct description of the genre will point back to that single function.