The 256 Odù: A Complete Reference Table

There are 256 Odù. Sixteen of them have the same pattern in both columns and are the principal or senior Odù; the other 240 are combinations of two different patterns. This file lists all 256 with their signatures, gives the competing orders in which the principal sixteen are ranked, and is explicit about the fact that no single ordering is universal.

The confidence marker on this file is contested, and it is contested for a specific and well-documented reason rather than from caution. Bascom examined 86 separate lists of the sixteen figures drawn from 61 sources and found that while the names are standard across Yorùbáland, the Fọ̀n, the Ewe, Cuba and Brazil, the order is not. One order predominated, appearing in 42 of the 86 lists, but "twenty-one other rankings have been recorded" 1 Any source presenting one order as the correct list is overstating the record.

The two-part division

The tradition divides the 256 into two classes of unequal standing.

The sixteen figures whose two columns match are called Ojú Odù (principal Odù) or Olódù. Abimbola gives Ojú Odù for the sixteen and Ọmọ Odù or Àmúlù Odù for the remaining 240, adding that "the Ojú Odù are considered to be by far senior to the minor Odù" 2 Bascom records that all 256 are known as odù, that the paired figures "may be distinguished as olodu," and that the others are "amulumala, according to Ogunbiyi, or simply amulu or combinations, according to Ifẹ̀ informants" 1 He notes there is no specific single term separating the sixteen basic column patterns from the 256 figures 1.

Ranking follows the division absolutely: "The sixteen paired figures outrank all the combinations" 1 This matters operationally, because the yes/no procedure described in file 05 works by comparing the seniority of two casts.

Naming

The naming rule is mechanical and follows directly from the orientation convention established in file 02.

A figure whose two columns match takes the column name plus Méjì (two, both). Abimbola: "All the Odù signatures which are the same on the right and left carry the word Méjì except in the case of Ogbè where the word Èjì (a reduced form of Méjì) occurs" 2 So Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Méjì, Ìwòrì Méjì, and so on, but Èjì Ogbè rather than Ogbè Méjì, though both forms are attested and Bascom lists "Ogbe Meji, Eji Ogbe" together 1.

A figure whose columns differ takes both names, right column first. Bascom: "The name of the right side precedes that of the left side" 1 Abimbola's worked gloss: Ogbégúndá is "a combination of Ogbè on the right and Ògúndá on the left" 2

Compound names contract heavily in speech, and this is the main source of confusion when comparing lists. Ogbè plus Ọ̀yẹ̀kú is written Ogbè Ọ̀yẹ̀kú and said Ogbèyèkú. Ogbè plus Ògúndá becomes Ogbégúndá, which Abimbola notes is also known as Ogbèyọ̀nú 2. Ogbè plus Òdí appears as Ogbèdí, Ìrosùn plus Ogbè as Ìrosùngbèmí, Òwónrín plus Ogbè as Òwónrínsogbè 2. The elided forms are the ones practitioners actually use, and a list written in elided forms and a list written in full forms can look like two different systems while being identical.

The table below gives full forms throughout, because they are unambiguous.

The sixteen principal Odù: the competing orders

Bascom prints two orders side by side, and the divergence between them is the central fact of this file 1.

#	Ifẹ̀ order (Bascom Table 3A)	Signature	Southwestern order (Bascom Table 3B)	Signature
1	Ogbè	1111	Ogbè	1111
2	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	2222	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	2222
3	Ìwòrì	2112	Ìwòrì	2112
4	Òdí (Èdì)	1221	Òdí (Èdì)	1221
5	Ọ̀bàrà	1222	Ìrosùn	1122
6	Ọ̀kànràn	2221	Òwónrín	2211
7	Ìrosùn	1122	Ọ̀bàrà	1222
8	Òwónrín	2211	Ọ̀kànràn	2221
9	Ògúndá	1112	Ògúndá	1112
10	Ọ̀sá	2111	Ọ̀sá	2111
11	Ìrẹtẹ̀	1121	Ìká	2122
12	Òtúrá	1211	Òtúrúpọ̀n	2212
13	Òtúrúpọ̀n	2212	Òtúrá	1211
14	Ìká	2122	Ìrẹtẹ̀	1121
15	Ọ̀ṣẹ́	1212	Ọ̀ṣẹ́	1212
16	Òfún	2121	Òfún	2121

The two agree at positions 1-4, 9-10, and 15-16. They disagree at 5-8, where the Ọ̀bàrà/Ọ̀kànràn pair and the Ìrosùn/Òwónrín pair swap places, and at 11-14, where the Ìrẹtẹ̀/Òtúrá pair and the Òtúrúpọ̀n/Ìká pair swap places and the members within each pair reorder.

Abimbola's list, given independently in Sixteen Great Poems of Ifá, matches the southwestern order exactly: Èjì Ogbè, Ọ̀yẹ̀kú, Ìwòrì, Òdí, Ìrosùn, Òwónrín, Ọ̀bàrà, Ọ̀kànràn, Ògúndá, Ọ̀sá, Ìká, Òtúurúpọ̀n, Òtúà, Ìrẹtẹ̀, Ọ̀ṣẹ́, Òfún 2. He describes it as "accepted by most Ifa priests throughout Yorubaland" while allowing "some notable local variations," and concludes that after accounting for dialect differences the list "would appear to have universal validity and acceptability" 2

Bascom's data contradict the universality claim while supporting the majority claim. His dominant order, matching Abimbola's, appears in 42 of 86 lists, that is, in half 1. That is a plurality strong enough to call it standard and far too weak to call it universal.

The geography of the disagreement

Bascom maps the variation onto regions rather than treating it as noise, which is the most useful thing in his account.

The variants "are largely associated with the area of Ifẹ̀, Ilésà, Èkìtì, and Ìgbómìnà, in the northeast; whereas the dominant pattern is primarily associated with Lagos, Òde Rẹ́mọ near the Abẹ́òkúta border of Ìjẹ̀bú Province, and the provinces of Abẹ́òkúta and Ìbàdàn in the southwest" 1 The Ifẹ̀ order he follows in his own book was given by four Ifẹ̀ diviners and independently corroborated by Wyndham for Ifẹ̀, Odumọlayọ for Ilésà, and Clarke for Òmù in Ìgbómìnà 1.

So the split is northeast against southwest, with Ilé-Ifẹ̀ itself, the ritual centre of the Yorùbá world, on the minority side. This is worth sitting with. The town that most Yorùbá accounts treat as the origin point of Ifá does not use the order that most lists record.

Bascom is careful about how much of the variation is real: "Some of these are undoubtedly inaccurate, but others strongly suggest regional variations" 1 Twenty-one recorded alternative rankings is not twenty-one living traditions. Some are collection errors. How many is not determinable from the published record.

The Òfún and Òwónrín complication

The ranking is not even a strict linear order, and this is documented rather than inferred.

Bascom: "Although listed sixteenth, Ofun is equal in rank with Ọ̀wọ̀nrin, in the eighth position" 1 The rule is that priority alternates by which is cast first: "Ofun Meji outranks Ọ̀wọ̀nrin Meji when Ofun Meji is thrown first; but when Ọ̀wọ̀nrin Meji is thrown first, it outranks Ofun Meji" 1 The same tie propagates through every combination containing them: "Ofun Ogbe and Ọ̀wọ̀nrin Ogbe are equals, as are Ofun Ọ̀yẹ̀ku and Ọ̀wọ̀nrin Ọ̀yẹ̀ku, and so on," with "Ogbe Ofun and Ogbe Ọ̀wọ̀nrin sharing the twenty-third position, Ọ̀yẹ̀ku Ofun and Ọ̀yẹ̀ku Ọ̀wọ̀nrin tied for thirty-eighth" 1

A ranking in which one element is simultaneously sixteenth and eighth, and where ties resolve by order of casting, is not a total order. Any presentation of the 256 as a clean numbered sequence, including the one below, is a simplification of what the sources record.

The tradition explains the anomaly narratively. Bascom records a diviner's account that Òfún Méjì was the firstborn of all the figures and ruled as king, that things went badly, that Ifá sent Ogbè Méjì down to replace him, that the other figures deserted Òfún one by one for Ogbè's house, that Òfún was left alone and finally came knocking and was thrown the bones from the feast and told he ranked beneath them all, that he fought his way through every figure in turn until he reached Òwónrín Méjì, and that after the two fought without resolution Ifá ruled they should be equal in rank, taking turns in priority 1. Bascom notes the diviner's own gloss on the present arrangement: Ogbè Méjì is spoken of as father of all the figures, "though this merely refers to his present rank order" 1

A separate account has Ògúndá Méjì fighting Òfún for position and going to the very end in irritation "even though he is stronger than Ògúndá Méjì," while two other diviners said it was Òwónrín who fought Òfún 1. The tradition disagrees with itself about the reason, while agreeing on the outcome.

Òfún carries a further peculiarity: it has some of the strongest medicines attached to it, it is a taboo for a fly to alight on it, and when cast it is "closed" immediately by turning over one of the chain's seed shells so as to make a different figure 1.

Which combination is senior

Even the question of which of the 240 comes first is unsettled. Bascom: "According to some informants, Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Òtúrá, as the messenger of the paired figures, follows them immediately and outranks all other combinations; but others regard Ogbè Ọ̀yẹ̀kú as the senior combination, and one verse refers to 'Ogbe Ọ̀yẹ̀ku, father of combinations'" 1

He also notes that Epega, Ogunbiyi, and McClelland give an order in which Òfún Méjì sits in sixteenth place followed immediately by Ogbè Ọ̀yẹ̀kú, Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ogbè, Ogbè Ìwòrì, Ìwòrì Ogbè, and adds a shrewd caveat: since the Òfún figures rank last in each series there rather than tying with Òwónrín, "this may be the order in which the figures are learned, rather than their actual rank order" 1 Teaching order and seniority order are not the same thing, and lists in circulation conflate them.

Bascom's own resolution is to give up on reconstructing the true order and adopt a convention: "Because of the uncertainties and because of apparent variations from diviner to diviner, a simpler system has been followed here in numbering the verses, simply as a matter of convenience" 1

The complete table of 256

The numbering below follows Bascom's stated convention exactly: the Ifẹ̀ order of the basic figures, with the right-hand column held constant through each block of sixteen while the left-hand column runs through all sixteen. Bascom sets it out as "1-16. Ogbe Meji, Ogbe Ọ̀yẹ̀ku, Ogbe Iwori, Ogbe Edi ..... Ogbe Ofun; 17-32. Ọ̀yẹ̀ku Ogbe, Ọ̀yẹ̀ku Meji, Ọ̀yẹ̀ku Iwori, Ọ̀yẹ̀ku Edi ... Ọ̀yẹ̀ku Ofun; 240-256. Ofun Ogbe, Ofun Ọ̀yẹ̀ku, Ofun Iwori, Ofun Edi ..... Ofun Meji" 1

Read the signature as RIGHT|LEFT, each column top to bottom, 1 a single mark and 2 a double mark, per the notation fixed in file 02.

Three warnings before the table. First, these numbers are Bascom's indexing convenience and are not a seniority ranking; he says so himself 1. Second, a lineage using the southwestern order would number the same 256 figures differently. Third, the names are given in full form; practitioners use contracted forms.

#	Name	Signature (right|left)
1	Èjì Ogbè	1111|1111
2	Ogbè Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	1111|2222
3	Ogbè Ìwòrì	1111|2112
4	Ogbè Òdí	1111|1221
5	Ogbè Ọ̀bàrà	1111|1222
6	Ogbè Ọ̀kànràn	1111|2221
7	Ogbè Ìrosùn	1111|1122
8	Ogbè Òwónrín	1111|2211
9	Ogbè Ògúndá	1111|1112
10	Ogbè Ọ̀sá	1111|2111
11	Ogbè Ìrẹtẹ̀	1111|1121
12	Ogbè Òtúrá	1111|1211
13	Ogbè Òtúrúpọ̀n	1111|2212
14	Ogbè Ìká	1111|2122
15	Ogbè Ọ̀ṣẹ́	1111|1212
16	Ogbè Òfún	1111|2121
17	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ogbè	2222|1111
18	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Méjì	2222|2222
19	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ìwòrì	2222|2112
20	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Òdí	2222|1221
21	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ọ̀bàrà	2222|1222
22	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ọ̀kànràn	2222|2221
23	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ìrosùn	2222|1122
24	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Òwónrín	2222|2211
25	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ògúndá	2222|1112
26	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ọ̀sá	2222|2111
27	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ìrẹtẹ̀	2222|1121
28	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Òtúrá	2222|1211
29	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Òtúrúpọ̀n	2222|2212
30	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ìká	2222|2122
31	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Ọ̀ṣẹ́	2222|1212
32	Ọ̀yẹ̀kú Òfún	2222|2121
33	Ìwòrì Ogbè	2112|1111
34	Ìwòrì Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	2112|2222
35	Ìwòrì Méjì	2112|2112
36	Ìwòrì Òdí	2112|1221
37	Ìwòrì Ọ̀bàrà	2112|1222
38	Ìwòrì Ọ̀kànràn	2112|2221
39	Ìwòrì Ìrosùn	2112|1122
40	Ìwòrì Òwónrín	2112|2211
41	Ìwòrì Ògúndá	2112|1112
42	Ìwòrì Ọ̀sá	2112|2111
43	Ìwòrì Ìrẹtẹ̀	2112|1121
44	Ìwòrì Òtúrá	2112|1211
45	Ìwòrì Òtúrúpọ̀n	2112|2212
46	Ìwòrì Ìká	2112|2122
47	Ìwòrì Ọ̀ṣẹ́	2112|1212
48	Ìwòrì Òfún	2112|2121
49	Òdí Ogbè	1221|1111
50	Òdí Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	1221|2222
51	Òdí Ìwòrì	1221|2112
52	Òdí Méjì	1221|1221
53	Òdí Ọ̀bàrà	1221|1222
54	Òdí Ọ̀kànràn	1221|2221
55	Òdí Ìrosùn	1221|1122
56	Òdí Òwónrín	1221|2211
57	Òdí Ògúndá	1221|1112
58	Òdí Ọ̀sá	1221|2111
59	Òdí Ìrẹtẹ̀	1221|1121
60	Òdí Òtúrá	1221|1211
61	Òdí Òtúrúpọ̀n	1221|2212
62	Òdí Ìká	1221|2122
63	Òdí Ọ̀ṣẹ́	1221|1212
64	Òdí Òfún	1221|2121
65	Ọ̀bàrà Ogbè	1222|1111
66	Ọ̀bàrà Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	1222|2222
67	Ọ̀bàrà Ìwòrì	1222|2112
68	Ọ̀bàrà Òdí	1222|1221
69	Ọ̀bàrà Méjì	1222|1222
70	Ọ̀bàrà Ọ̀kànràn	1222|2221
71	Ọ̀bàrà Ìrosùn	1222|1122
72	Ọ̀bàrà Òwónrín	1222|2211
73	Ọ̀bàrà Ògúndá	1222|1112
74	Ọ̀bàrà Ọ̀sá	1222|2111
75	Ọ̀bàrà Ìrẹtẹ̀	1222|1121
76	Ọ̀bàrà Òtúrá	1222|1211
77	Ọ̀bàrà Òtúrúpọ̀n	1222|2212
78	Ọ̀bàrà Ìká	1222|2122
79	Ọ̀bàrà Ọ̀ṣẹ́	1222|1212
80	Ọ̀bàrà Òfún	1222|2121
81	Ọ̀kànràn Ogbè	2221|1111
82	Ọ̀kànràn Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	2221|2222
83	Ọ̀kànràn Ìwòrì	2221|2112
84	Ọ̀kànràn Òdí	2221|1221
85	Ọ̀kànràn Ọ̀bàrà	2221|1222
86	Ọ̀kànràn Méjì	2221|2221
87	Ọ̀kànràn Ìrosùn	2221|1122
88	Ọ̀kànràn Òwónrín	2221|2211
89	Ọ̀kànràn Ògúndá	2221|1112
90	Ọ̀kànràn Ọ̀sá	2221|2111
91	Ọ̀kànràn Ìrẹtẹ̀	2221|1121
92	Ọ̀kànràn Òtúrá	2221|1211
93	Ọ̀kànràn Òtúrúpọ̀n	2221|2212
94	Ọ̀kànràn Ìká	2221|2122
95	Ọ̀kànràn Ọ̀ṣẹ́	2221|1212
96	Ọ̀kànràn Òfún	2221|2121
97	Ìrosùn Ogbè	1122|1111
98	Ìrosùn Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	1122|2222
99	Ìrosùn Ìwòrì	1122|2112
100	Ìrosùn Òdí	1122|1221
101	Ìrosùn Ọ̀bàrà	1122|1222
102	Ìrosùn Ọ̀kànràn	1122|2221
103	Ìrosùn Méjì	1122|1122
104	Ìrosùn Òwónrín	1122|2211
105	Ìrosùn Ògúndá	1122|1112
106	Ìrosùn Ọ̀sá	1122|2111
107	Ìrosùn Ìrẹtẹ̀	1122|1121
108	Ìrosùn Òtúrá	1122|1211
109	Ìrosùn Òtúrúpọ̀n	1122|2212
110	Ìrosùn Ìká	1122|2122
111	Ìrosùn Ọ̀ṣẹ́	1122|1212
112	Ìrosùn Òfún	1122|2121
113	Òwónrín Ogbè	2211|1111
114	Òwónrín Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	2211|2222
115	Òwónrín Ìwòrì	2211|2112
116	Òwónrín Òdí	2211|1221
117	Òwónrín Ọ̀bàrà	2211|1222
118	Òwónrín Ọ̀kànràn	2211|2221
119	Òwónrín Ìrosùn	2211|1122
120	Òwónrín Méjì	2211|2211
121	Òwónrín Ògúndá	2211|1112
122	Òwónrín Ọ̀sá	2211|2111
123	Òwónrín Ìrẹtẹ̀	2211|1121
124	Òwónrín Òtúrá	2211|1211
125	Òwónrín Òtúrúpọ̀n	2211|2212
126	Òwónrín Ìká	2211|2122
127	Òwónrín Ọ̀ṣẹ́	2211|1212
128	Òwónrín Òfún	2211|2121
129	Ògúndá Ogbè	1112|1111
130	Ògúndá Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	1112|2222
131	Ògúndá Ìwòrì	1112|2112
132	Ògúndá Òdí	1112|1221
133	Ògúndá Ọ̀bàrà	1112|1222
134	Ògúndá Ọ̀kànràn	1112|2221
135	Ògúndá Ìrosùn	1112|1122
136	Ògúndá Òwónrín	1112|2211
137	Ògúndá Méjì	1112|1112
138	Ògúndá Ọ̀sá	1112|2111
139	Ògúndá Ìrẹtẹ̀	1112|1121
140	Ògúndá Òtúrá	1112|1211
141	Ògúndá Òtúrúpọ̀n	1112|2212
142	Ògúndá Ìká	1112|2122
143	Ògúndá Ọ̀ṣẹ́	1112|1212
144	Ògúndá Òfún	1112|2121
145	Ọ̀sá Ogbè	2111|1111
146	Ọ̀sá Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	2111|2222
147	Ọ̀sá Ìwòrì	2111|2112
148	Ọ̀sá Òdí	2111|1221
149	Ọ̀sá Ọ̀bàrà	2111|1222
150	Ọ̀sá Ọ̀kànràn	2111|2221
151	Ọ̀sá Ìrosùn	2111|1122
152	Ọ̀sá Òwónrín	2111|2211
153	Ọ̀sá Ògúndá	2111|1112
154	Ọ̀sá Méjì	2111|2111
155	Ọ̀sá Ìrẹtẹ̀	2111|1121
156	Ọ̀sá Òtúrá	2111|1211
157	Ọ̀sá Òtúrúpọ̀n	2111|2212
158	Ọ̀sá Ìká	2111|2122
159	Ọ̀sá Ọ̀ṣẹ́	2111|1212
160	Ọ̀sá Òfún	2111|2121
161	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Ogbè	1121|1111
162	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	1121|2222
163	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Ìwòrì	1121|2112
164	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Òdí	1121|1221
165	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Ọ̀bàrà	1121|1222
166	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Ọ̀kànràn	1121|2221
167	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Ìrosùn	1121|1122
168	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Òwónrín	1121|2211
169	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Ògúndá	1121|1112
170	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Ọ̀sá	1121|2111
171	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Méjì	1121|1121
172	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Òtúrá	1121|1211
173	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Òtúrúpọ̀n	1121|2212
174	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Ìká	1121|2122
175	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Ọ̀ṣẹ́	1121|1212
176	Ìrẹtẹ̀ Òfún	1121|2121
177	Òtúrá Ogbè	1211|1111
178	Òtúrá Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	1211|2222
179	Òtúrá Ìwòrì	1211|2112
180	Òtúrá Òdí	1211|1221
181	Òtúrá Ọ̀bàrà	1211|1222
182	Òtúrá Ọ̀kànràn	1211|2221
183	Òtúrá Ìrosùn	1211|1122
184	Òtúrá Òwónrín	1211|2211
185	Òtúrá Ògúndá	1211|1112
186	Òtúrá Ọ̀sá	1211|2111
187	Òtúrá Ìrẹtẹ̀	1211|1121
188	Òtúrá Méjì	1211|1211
189	Òtúrá Òtúrúpọ̀n	1211|2212
190	Òtúrá Ìká	1211|2122
191	Òtúrá Ọ̀ṣẹ́	1211|1212
192	Òtúrá Òfún	1211|2121
193	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ogbè	2212|1111
194	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	2212|2222
195	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ìwòrì	2212|2112
196	Òtúrúpọ̀n Òdí	2212|1221
197	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ọ̀bàrà	2212|1222
198	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ọ̀kànràn	2212|2221
199	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ìrosùn	2212|1122
200	Òtúrúpọ̀n Òwónrín	2212|2211
201	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ògúndá	2212|1112
202	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ọ̀sá	2212|2111
203	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ìrẹtẹ̀	2212|1121
204	Òtúrúpọ̀n Òtúrá	2212|1211
205	Òtúrúpọ̀n Méjì	2212|2212
206	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ìká	2212|2122
207	Òtúrúpọ̀n Ọ̀ṣẹ́	2212|1212
208	Òtúrúpọ̀n Òfún	2212|2121
209	Ìká Ogbè	2122|1111
210	Ìká Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	2122|2222
211	Ìká Ìwòrì	2122|2112
212	Ìká Òdí	2122|1221
213	Ìká Ọ̀bàrà	2122|1222
214	Ìká Ọ̀kànràn	2122|2221
215	Ìká Ìrosùn	2122|1122
216	Ìká Òwónrín	2122|2211
217	Ìká Ògúndá	2122|1112
218	Ìká Ọ̀sá	2122|2111
219	Ìká Ìrẹtẹ̀	2122|1121
220	Ìká Òtúrá	2122|1211
221	Ìká Òtúrúpọ̀n	2122|2212
222	Ìká Méjì	2122|2122
223	Ìká Ọ̀ṣẹ́	2122|1212
224	Ìká Òfún	2122|2121
225	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Ogbè	1212|1111
226	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	1212|2222
227	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Ìwòrì	1212|2112
228	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Òdí	1212|1221
229	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Ọ̀bàrà	1212|1222
230	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Ọ̀kànràn	1212|2221
231	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Ìrosùn	1212|1122
232	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Òwónrín	1212|2211
233	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Ògúndá	1212|1112
234	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Ọ̀sá	1212|2111
235	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Ìrẹtẹ̀	1212|1121
236	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Òtúrá	1212|1211
237	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Òtúrúpọ̀n	1212|2212
238	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Ìká	1212|2122
239	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Méjì	1212|1212
240	Ọ̀ṣẹ́ Òfún	1212|2121
241	Òfún Ogbè	2121|1111
242	Òfún Ọ̀yẹ̀kú	2121|2222
243	Òfún Ìwòrì	2121|2112
244	Òfún Òdí	2121|1221
245	Òfún Ọ̀bàrà	2121|1222
246	Òfún Ọ̀kànràn	2121|2221
247	Òfún Ìrosùn	2121|1122
248	Òfún Òwónrín	2121|2211
249	Òfún Ògúndá	2121|1112
250	Òfún Ọ̀sá	2121|2111
251	Òfún Ìrẹtẹ̀	2121|1121
252	Òfún Òtúrá	2121|1211
253	Òfún Òtúrúpọ̀n	2121|2212
254	Òfún Ìká	2121|2122
255	Òfún Ọ̀ṣẹ́	2121|1212
256	Òfún Méjì	2121|2121

Where the lists diverge across traditions

Three axes of variation matter, and they compound.

Within Nigeria. The northeast/southwest split documented above 1. There is also a report that the order differs between Ilé-Ifẹ̀ and Ọ̀yọ́ specifically, which is consistent with Bascom's regional mapping but which I have only from a secondary source and therefore flag as unconfirmed 5.

Names and dialect. Abimbola notes that names "are not exactly rendered in the same form from one dialect to the other," that many differences are predictable from the phonological and morphological rules of the dialects, and that some Odù simply have more than one name: the sixteenth "is sometimes known as Ọ̀rangún Méjì" 2 Òfún and Ọ̀rangún are the same Odù. Òdí and Èdì likewise. Bascom notes generally that "a number of the paired figures and combinations have alternative names" 1

Across the Atlantic and along the coast. Bascom's finding is that the names survive remarkably well: standard "with some modifications in pronunciations and spelling" among the Fọ̀n of Dahomey, the Ewe of Togo and Ghana, and in Cuba and Brazil 1. The order travels less well, though his own count found 5 of 6 Cuban lists and the single Brazilian list following the dominant order, while only 4 of 16 Fọ̀n lists did 1.

The Cuban Lucumí forms are recognisably the same names through Spanish orthography: Eyiogbe, Oyekun, Iwori, Odi, Irosun, Ojuani (Òwónrín), Obara, Okana (Ọ̀kànràn), Ogunda, Osa, Ika, Otrupon, Otura, Irete, Oshe, Ofun. Combined signs are named in the same right-then-left compound fashion, so Cuban Ogbe Yekun and Nigerian Ogbè Ọ̀yẹ̀kú are the same figure.

On the relationship between the Nigerian and Cuban systems more broadly, the Lucumí tradition was reconstituted under slavery through cabildos, with priestly councils making structural decisions, and Yorùbá language competence declined so that the verse narratives are told in Spanish as apatakís while Yorùbá survives in the chanted suyeres. I have this from a practitioner-facing source rather than peer-reviewed scholarship and mark it confidence: medium 6.

I did not find a source I can cite that tabulates a Cuban ranking order against the Nigerian ones position by position. Anyone needing that comparison should go to Bascom's own earlier articles on the relationship, cited in his bibliography 1, and to Maupoil for the Fọ̀n material 4.

None of these is the correct list. Bascom's 86 lists include diviners in active practice giving orders that contradict each other, and there is no adjudicating authority. A lineage's order is correct within that lineage.

Confidence, stated plainly

High confidence. That there are exactly 256; that sixteen are Ojú Odù and 240 are Ọmọ Odù or Àmúlù; that the sixteen outrank the 240; that naming is right column then left; that the sixteen column patterns are as tabulated in file 02; that the Méjì convention holds with Èjì Ogbè as the exception; that Ogbè, Ọ̀yẹ̀kú, Ìwòrì, Òdí occupy the first four positions in both major orders.

Contested. The order of positions 5-8 and 11-14 among the principal sixteen. Whether Òfún ranks sixteenth, eighth, or alternates. Which combination is senior among the 240. The numbering of any individual Odù beyond the first four.

Not established. That there exists a single authentic ordering recoverable from the sources. On the published evidence there is not one.

What I could not verify. A position-by-position Cuban Lucumí ranking from a scholarly source. The Ilé-Ifẹ̀ versus Ọ̀yọ́ ordering claim from a primary source. Any Odù-by-Odù thematic gloss (the short "meanings" widely circulated online) traceable to a peer-reviewed source; those lists appear mostly on practitioner and commercial sites and are omitted from this file for that reason.