Brain Snacks: Tasty Tidbits of Knowledge
The yam, a staple food in West Africa, is not the same thing as the sweet potato. They are not even closely related to each other. Although the terms are often use the terms interchangeably in the U.S., that's an error. Yams only recently showed up in the U.S. – before that, grocery stores sometimes used the word "yams" when selling sweet potatoes, perhaps because it made them sound more exotic. The word yam may come from the word "nyami" or similar variations of the verb "to eat" in West African languages. (Source)
In traditional Igbo religion, the supreme god is Chukwu. Gods under Chukwu are lesser gods, occupying various levels of power and status, down to an individual's personal god, known as one's chi. According to Theophilus Okere, "The Igbo Chi is the divine double or personal guardian and protector that is variously conceived as part of God in man, or a divine part of man, but presiding essentially over the individual as he or she works out his or her destiny. Considered as a personal deity, Chi is distinguishable from the self since the self can pray to it, honor and worship it, blame or praise it. He can persuade it, manipulate, coax and negotiate with it. But Chi is not only a religious entity; it is also a philosophical concept. As such, it is also part of the individual's identity and is seen as the prime moving force and principle of individualism in Igbo culture." (Source)