A-i-ú appears to be a close variant of Oware that was played in Brazil. Its name is the Portuguese spelling of Ayo, a mancala game in Nigeria from where many slaves were deported to South America. A-i-ú was last observed in 1916 by the historian Manuel Raimundo Querino in Bahia. He wrote about the game: Nas horas de descanso entretinham-se a jogar o a-i-ú, que consistia num pedaço de tábua, com doze partes côncavas onde colocavam e retiravam os a-i-ús, pequenos frutos cor de chumbo, originários de África e de forte consistência. Entretinham-se largo tempo nessa distracção. Free translation: