The Yoruba proverb Oja Oyingbo ko mo' p'enikan o wa' ("The Oyingbo market never finds out a certain person did not even turn up") means that the market is "ever bustling" or always busy. The proverb can be found on page 60 of the novel. When Mr Bepo was said to have gone there to purchase some food items that his wife instructed him to bring along with him.