Igbo proverb: Aka nri kwo aka ekpe

Igbo proverb expressing reciprocity: each hand must wash the other.

Country:Nigeria

Language:Igbo; English

Published:2025-09-21

Audience:Language learners, cultural studies

Igbo: "Aka nri kwo aka ekpe, aka ekpe akwoo aka nri." English literal: "Let the right hand wash the left, and the left hand wash the right." Meaning: People need one another; mutual help is the only way to thrive. A widely cited Igbo expression of reciprocity.

Keywords

Igbo proverb

reciprocity

cooperation

Source & licence

Source: Wikiquote

URL: https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Igbo_proverbs

Licence: CC BY-SA 3.0

Proverb is part of oral tradition documented in Wikiquote and in academic literature on Igbo. Wikiquote attribution required under CC BY-SA 3.0.

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