History of the Yoruba people
Encyclopedia
The history of the Yoruba is not yet well established. Based to a large extent on the dynastic tradition of Oyo
it is presently in the process of reevaluation.
, although they shared a common ethnicity and language group. Both archeology and traditional Yoruba oral historians confirm the existence of people in this region for several millennia.
The Yoruba spiritual heritage maintains that the Yoruba ethnic groups are a unique people who originally settled at Ile-Ife
. Legend holds that Oduduwa
created the world at this place by delegation from the high God, Eledumare. The name "Yoruba" is said to be an adaptation of "euroba" (or arabism). Yoruba civilization remains one of the most technologically and artistically advanced in West Africa to this time.
Some contemporary historians contend that the leading Yoruba are not indigenous to Yorubaland, but are descendants of immigrants from the ancient Near East to the region. According to the dynastic tradition of Oyo
, the people left Mecca, under the leadership of Oduduwa
, and reached Yorubaland towards 600 BCE where they established the kingdom of Ife. Oduduwa's relatives established kingdoms in the rest of Yorubaland. One of Oduduwa's sons, Oranmiyan, took the throne of Benin and expanded the Oduduwa Dynasty eastwards. Further expansion led to the establishment of the Yoruba in what are now Southwest Nigeria, Benin
, and Togo
, with Yoruba city-states acknowledging the spiritual heritage primacy of the ancient city of Ile Ife. The southeastern Benin Empire
, ruled by a dynasty that traced its ancestry to Ifẹ and Oduduwa but which was largely populated by the Edo and other related ethnicities, also held considerable sway in the election of nobles and kings in eastern Yorùbáland
.
), revolves around the mythical figure of Oduduwa
. The name may be translated as "the spiritual one ("O/Ohun") who created the knowledge ("odu") of character ("iwa")."
Many Yoruba believe in one God, Olodumare, but also believe that the only way to reach Him is through His subordinate divinities.
Some say that the making of land is a symbolic reference to the founding of the Yoruba kingdoms and that this is why Oduduwa is credited with the achievement.
Recently, historians have attributed this cosmological mythology to a pre-existing civilization at Ilė-Ifę which was invaded by a militant band of immigrants from the east, led by a king named Oduduwa
. Oduduwa
and his group had been persecuted on the basis of religious differences and forced out of their homeland. They came to Ilé-Ifè, where they came across Oreluere and his people. Other informants are convinced that Oduduwa and his followers were subjugated by the pre-existing Igbo whom local informants relate to the present Igbo people
, though this claim has not been supported by competent historians.
, there was a dispersal of his children from Ilé-Ifè to found the kingdoms Owu, Ketu
, Benin, Ila
, Sabe, Popo
, Awori
, (Ondo) and Oyo
). Each made a mark in the subsequent urbanization and consolidation of what became the Yoruba confederacy of kingdoms, with each kingdom tracing its origin to Ile-Ife.
. It was then surpassed by the Oyo Empire
as the dominant Yoruba military and political power between 1600 CE and 1800 CE. The nearby kingdom of Benin
was also a powerful force between 1300 and 1850 CE.
Most of the city states were controlled by Obas
(elected monarchs) and councils made up of Oloyes, recognised leaders of royal, noble and, often, even common descent, who joined them in ruling over the kingdoms through a series of guilds and cults. Different states saw differing ratios of power between the kingship and the chiefs' council. Some such as Oyo
had powerful, autocratic monarchs with almost total control, while in others such as the Ijebu
city-states, the senatorial councils were supreme and the Ọba served as something of a figurehead.
In all cases, however, Yoruba monarchs were subject to the continuing approval of their constituents as a matter of policy, and could be easily compelled to abdicate for demonstrating dictatorial tendencies or incompetence. The order to vacate the throne was usually communicated through an aroko or symbolic message, of parrot
s' eggs delivered in a covered calabash bowl by the senators.
, located on the Northern fringes of Yorubaland
in the savanna
plains between the forests of present Southwest Nigeria and the Niger
River.
Following a Jihad
led by Uthman Dan Fodio and a rapid consolidation of the Hausa city states of contemporary northern Nigeria, the Fulani Sokoto Caliphate invaded and annexed the buffer Nupe
Kingdom and began to advance southwards into Ọyọ lands. Shortly afterwards, they overran the Yoruba city of Ilorin
and then sacked and destroyed Ọyọ-Ile, the capital city of the Ọyọ Empire
.
Following this, Ọyọ-Ile was abandoned and the Ọyọ retreated south to the present city of Oyo
(formerly "Ago d'Oyo", or "Oyo Atiba") in a forested region where the cavalry of the Sokoto Caliphate was less effective. Further attempts by the Sokoto Caliphate to expand southwards were checked by the Yoruba
who had rallied in defence under the military leadership of the City State of Ibadan
which rose from the old Oyo Empire
, and of the Ijebu city-states.
However, the Oyo hegemony had been dealt a mortal blow. The other Yoruba city-states broke free of Oyo dominance, and subsequently became embroiled in a series of internecine conflicts. These wars weakened the southern Yorubas in their resistance to British colonial and military invasions. In 1960, greater Yorubaland was subsumed into the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The historical records of the Yoruba, which became more accessible in the nineteenth century with the more permanent arrival of the Europeans, tell of heavy Jihad raids by the mounted Fulani warriors of the north as well as of endemic intercity warfare amongst the Yoruba themselves. Archaeological evidence of the greatness of their ancient civilization in the form of, amongst other things, extensive city fortifications that are centuries old, nevertheless abound.
or Yariba came into wider use, first confined to the Ọyọ. The term is often believed to be derived from a Hausa
ethnonym for the populous people to their south, but this has not been substantiated by historians.
As an ethnic description, the word first appeared in a treatise written by the Songhai scholar Ahmed Baba (16th century) and is likely to derive from the indigenous ethnonyms Ọyọ (Oyo)
or Yagba, two Yoruba-speaking groups along the northern borders of their territory. However, it is likely that the ethnonym was popularized by Hausa
usage and ethnography written in Arabic and Ajami. Under the influence of Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther
, a Yoruba clergyman, subsequent missionaries extended the term to include all speakers of related dialects.
Before the abolition of the slave trade, some Yoruba groups were known among Europeans as Akú
, a name derived from the first words of Yoruba greetings such as Ẹ kú àárọ? ‘good morning’ and Ẹ kú alẹ? ‘good evening.’
Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire of what is today southwestern Nigeria. The empire was established before the 14th century and grew to become one of the largest West African states encountered by European explorers. It rose to preeminence through its possession of a powerful cavalry and wealth...
it is presently in the process of reevaluation.
Ancient history
The African peoples who lived in Yorubaland, at least by the seventh century BC, were not initially known as the YorubaYoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
, although they shared a common ethnicity and language group. Both archeology and traditional Yoruba oral historians confirm the existence of people in this region for several millennia.
The Yoruba spiritual heritage maintains that the Yoruba ethnic groups are a unique people who originally settled at Ile-Ife
Ife
Ife is an ancient Yoruba city in south-western Nigeria. Evidence of inhabitation at the site has been discovered to date back to roughly 560 BC...
. Legend holds that Oduduwa
Oduduwa
Oduduwa Omoluabi, Olofin Adimula, Emperor of the Yoruba, phonetically written by his people as Odùduwà and sometimes contracted as Odudua or Oòdua, is generally held among the Yoruba to be the reigning ancestor of the crowned Yoruba kings....
created the world at this place by delegation from the high God, Eledumare. The name "Yoruba" is said to be an adaptation of "euroba" (or arabism). Yoruba civilization remains one of the most technologically and artistically advanced in West Africa to this time.
Some contemporary historians contend that the leading Yoruba are not indigenous to Yorubaland, but are descendants of immigrants from the ancient Near East to the region. According to the dynastic tradition of Oyo
Oyo
- Places :In Nigeria* The Oyo Empire or Kingdom, a former West-African empire that covered parts of modern-day Nigeria and Benin* Oyo State, a present-day state of Nigeria named after the Oyo Empire...
, the people left Mecca, under the leadership of Oduduwa
Oduduwa
Oduduwa Omoluabi, Olofin Adimula, Emperor of the Yoruba, phonetically written by his people as Odùduwà and sometimes contracted as Odudua or Oòdua, is generally held among the Yoruba to be the reigning ancestor of the crowned Yoruba kings....
, and reached Yorubaland towards 600 BCE where they established the kingdom of Ife. Oduduwa's relatives established kingdoms in the rest of Yorubaland. One of Oduduwa's sons, Oranmiyan, took the throne of Benin and expanded the Oduduwa Dynasty eastwards. Further expansion led to the establishment of the Yoruba in what are now Southwest Nigeria, Benin
Benin
Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
, and Togo
Togo
Togo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...
, with Yoruba city-states acknowledging the spiritual heritage primacy of the ancient city of Ile Ife. The southeastern Benin Empire
Benin Empire
The Benin Empire was a pre-colonial African state in what is now modern Nigeria. It is not to be confused with the modern-day country called Benin, formerly called Dahomey.-Origin:...
, ruled by a dynasty that traced its ancestry to Ifẹ and Oduduwa but which was largely populated by the Edo and other related ethnicities, also held considerable sway in the election of nobles and kings in eastern Yorùbáland
Yorùbáland
Yorubaland, or Yorùbáland , is a cultural region in Nigeria, Benin, and Togo that includes the indigenous territory and cultural reach of the Yoruba people.- History :-Settlement:Oduduwa is regarded as the legendary progenitor of the Yoruba...
.
Yoruba origin mythology
The mythology of the origin of the Yoruba, who refer to themselves as "Omo O'odua" (or Children of OduduwaOduduwa
Oduduwa Omoluabi, Olofin Adimula, Emperor of the Yoruba, phonetically written by his people as Odùduwà and sometimes contracted as Odudua or Oòdua, is generally held among the Yoruba to be the reigning ancestor of the crowned Yoruba kings....
), revolves around the mythical figure of Oduduwa
Oduduwa
Oduduwa Omoluabi, Olofin Adimula, Emperor of the Yoruba, phonetically written by his people as Odùduwà and sometimes contracted as Odudua or Oòdua, is generally held among the Yoruba to be the reigning ancestor of the crowned Yoruba kings....
. The name may be translated as "the spiritual one ("O/Ohun") who created the knowledge ("odu") of character ("iwa")."
Many Yoruba believe in one God, Olodumare, but also believe that the only way to reach Him is through His subordinate divinities.
Some say that the making of land is a symbolic reference to the founding of the Yoruba kingdoms and that this is why Oduduwa is credited with the achievement.
Recently, historians have attributed this cosmological mythology to a pre-existing civilization at Ilė-Ifę which was invaded by a militant band of immigrants from the east, led by a king named Oduduwa
Oduduwa
Oduduwa Omoluabi, Olofin Adimula, Emperor of the Yoruba, phonetically written by his people as Odùduwà and sometimes contracted as Odudua or Oòdua, is generally held among the Yoruba to be the reigning ancestor of the crowned Yoruba kings....
. Oduduwa
Oduduwa
Oduduwa Omoluabi, Olofin Adimula, Emperor of the Yoruba, phonetically written by his people as Odùduwà and sometimes contracted as Odudua or Oòdua, is generally held among the Yoruba to be the reigning ancestor of the crowned Yoruba kings....
and his group had been persecuted on the basis of religious differences and forced out of their homeland. They came to Ilé-Ifè, where they came across Oreluere and his people. Other informants are convinced that Oduduwa and his followers were subjugated by the pre-existing Igbo whom local informants relate to the present Igbo people
Igbo people
Igbo people, also referred to as the Ibo, Ebo, Eboans or Heebo are an ethnic group living chiefly in southeastern Nigeria. They speak Igbo, which includes various Igboid languages and dialects; today, a majority of them speak English alongside Igbo as a result of British colonialism...
, though this claim has not been supported by competent historians.
After Oduduwa
Upon the "disapearing act" of OduduwaOduduwa
Oduduwa Omoluabi, Olofin Adimula, Emperor of the Yoruba, phonetically written by his people as Odùduwà and sometimes contracted as Odudua or Oòdua, is generally held among the Yoruba to be the reigning ancestor of the crowned Yoruba kings....
, there was a dispersal of his children from Ilé-Ifè to found the kingdoms Owu, Ketu
Ketu
*In Vedic astrology, Ketu is the Moon's South node. Ketu is generally referred to as a "shadow" planet.*Ketu is a historical location in present day Benin.*Ketu is another name for the mountain K2....
, Benin, Ila
Ila
ILA or Ila may refer to:* MV Ila, ship in service 1947-52Places:* Ila, Georgia, community in United States* Ila, Trondheim, borough in Norway* Ila, Nigeria, townPersonal names:...
, Sabe, Popo
Popo
Popo may refer to:* El Popo, an active volcano in Mexico* Mr. Popo, a character in the manga and anime series Dragon Ball* Popo , a 1951 jazz album by Shorty Rogers and Art Pepper* A slang term for a police officer-Places:...
, Awori
Awori
The Awori are a tribe of the Yoruba people speaking a distinct dialect of the Yoruba language.Traditionally, Awori are found in Ogun State and Lagos State, Nigeria. The Awori people migrated from Ile Ife and occupy present day Lagos state, with a comsiderable section of the Awori clan occupying...
, (Ondo) and Oyo
Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire of what is today southwestern Nigeria. The empire was established before the 14th century and grew to become one of the largest West African states encountered by European explorers. It rose to preeminence through its possession of a powerful cavalry and wealth...
). Each made a mark in the subsequent urbanization and consolidation of what became the Yoruba confederacy of kingdoms, with each kingdom tracing its origin to Ile-Ife.
Golden age
Between 1100 CE and 1700 CE, the Yoruba Kingdom of Ife experienced a golden ageGolden Age
The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology and legend and refers to the first in a sequence of four or five Ages of Man, in which the Golden Age is first, followed in sequence, by the Silver, Bronze, and Iron Ages, and then the present, a period of decline...
. It was then surpassed by the Oyo Empire
Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire of what is today southwestern Nigeria. The empire was established before the 14th century and grew to become one of the largest West African states encountered by European explorers. It rose to preeminence through its possession of a powerful cavalry and wealth...
as the dominant Yoruba military and political power between 1600 CE and 1800 CE. The nearby kingdom of Benin
Benin
Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
was also a powerful force between 1300 and 1850 CE.
Most of the city states were controlled by Obas
Oba (ruler)
Oba is a West African synonym for monarch, one that is usually applied to the Yoruba and Edo rulers of the region. It is also often used by their traditional subjects to refer to other kings and queens, such as Elizabeth I of England, in their native languages.-Edo account of the word's origin:The...
(elected monarchs) and councils made up of Oloyes, recognised leaders of royal, noble and, often, even common descent, who joined them in ruling over the kingdoms through a series of guilds and cults. Different states saw differing ratios of power between the kingship and the chiefs' council. Some such as Oyo
Oyo
- Places :In Nigeria* The Oyo Empire or Kingdom, a former West-African empire that covered parts of modern-day Nigeria and Benin* Oyo State, a present-day state of Nigeria named after the Oyo Empire...
had powerful, autocratic monarchs with almost total control, while in others such as the Ijebu
Ijebu
Ijebu was a Yoruba kingdom in pre-colonial Nigeria. It formed around the fifteenth century. According to legend, its ruling dynasty was founded by Obanta of Ile-Ife...
city-states, the senatorial councils were supreme and the Ọba served as something of a figurehead.
In all cases, however, Yoruba monarchs were subject to the continuing approval of their constituents as a matter of policy, and could be easily compelled to abdicate for demonstrating dictatorial tendencies or incompetence. The order to vacate the throne was usually communicated through an aroko or symbolic message, of parrot
Parrot
Parrots, also known as psittacines , are birds of the roughly 372 species in 86 genera that make up the order Psittaciformes, found in most tropical and subtropical regions. The order is subdivided into three families: the Psittacidae , the Cacatuidae and the Strigopidae...
s' eggs delivered in a covered calabash bowl by the senators.
Modern history
The Yoruba eventually established a federation of city-states under the political ascendancy of the city state of OyoOyo
- Places :In Nigeria* The Oyo Empire or Kingdom, a former West-African empire that covered parts of modern-day Nigeria and Benin* Oyo State, a present-day state of Nigeria named after the Oyo Empire...
, located on the Northern fringes of Yorubaland
Yoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
in the savanna
Savanna
A savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some...
plains between the forests of present Southwest Nigeria and the Niger
Niger
Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
River.
Following a Jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
led by Uthman Dan Fodio and a rapid consolidation of the Hausa city states of contemporary northern Nigeria, the Fulani Sokoto Caliphate invaded and annexed the buffer Nupe
Nupe
The Nupe, traditionally called the Tapa by the neighbouring Yoruba, are an ethnic group located primarily in the Middle Belt and northern Nigeria, and are the dominant group in Niger and an important minority in Kwara State.-History:...
Kingdom and began to advance southwards into Ọyọ lands. Shortly afterwards, they overran the Yoruba city of Ilorin
Ilorin
Ilorin is one of the largest cities in Nigeria and is the capital of Kwara State. As of 2007 it had a population of 847,582.-History:Ilorin was founded by the Yoruba, one of the three largest ethnic groups in Nigeria, in 1450...
and then sacked and destroyed Ọyọ-Ile, the capital city of the Ọyọ Empire
Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire of what is today southwestern Nigeria. The empire was established before the 14th century and grew to become one of the largest West African states encountered by European explorers. It rose to preeminence through its possession of a powerful cavalry and wealth...
.
Following this, Ọyọ-Ile was abandoned and the Ọyọ retreated south to the present city of Oyo
Oyo
- Places :In Nigeria* The Oyo Empire or Kingdom, a former West-African empire that covered parts of modern-day Nigeria and Benin* Oyo State, a present-day state of Nigeria named after the Oyo Empire...
(formerly "Ago d'Oyo", or "Oyo Atiba") in a forested region where the cavalry of the Sokoto Caliphate was less effective. Further attempts by the Sokoto Caliphate to expand southwards were checked by the Yoruba
Yoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
who had rallied in defence under the military leadership of the City State of Ibadan
Ibadan
Ibadan is the capital city of Oyo State and the third largest metropolitan area in Nigeria, after Lagos and Kano, with a population of 1,338,659 according to the 2006 census. Ibadan is also the largest metropolitan geographical area...
which rose from the old Oyo Empire
Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire of what is today southwestern Nigeria. The empire was established before the 14th century and grew to become one of the largest West African states encountered by European explorers. It rose to preeminence through its possession of a powerful cavalry and wealth...
, and of the Ijebu city-states.
However, the Oyo hegemony had been dealt a mortal blow. The other Yoruba city-states broke free of Oyo dominance, and subsequently became embroiled in a series of internecine conflicts. These wars weakened the southern Yorubas in their resistance to British colonial and military invasions. In 1960, greater Yorubaland was subsumed into the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The historical records of the Yoruba, which became more accessible in the nineteenth century with the more permanent arrival of the Europeans, tell of heavy Jihad raids by the mounted Fulani warriors of the north as well as of endemic intercity warfare amongst the Yoruba themselves. Archaeological evidence of the greatness of their ancient civilization in the form of, amongst other things, extensive city fortifications that are centuries old, nevertheless abound.
Etymology
During the 19th century, the term YorubaYoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
or Yariba came into wider use, first confined to the Ọyọ. The term is often believed to be derived from a Hausa
Hausa language
Hausa is the Chadic language with the largest number of speakers, spoken as a first language by about 25 million people, and as a second language by about 18 million more, an approximate total of 43 million people...
ethnonym for the populous people to their south, but this has not been substantiated by historians.
As an ethnic description, the word first appeared in a treatise written by the Songhai scholar Ahmed Baba (16th century) and is likely to derive from the indigenous ethnonyms Ọyọ (Oyo)
Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba empire of what is today southwestern Nigeria. The empire was established before the 14th century and grew to become one of the largest West African states encountered by European explorers. It rose to preeminence through its possession of a powerful cavalry and wealth...
or Yagba, two Yoruba-speaking groups along the northern borders of their territory. However, it is likely that the ethnonym was popularized by Hausa
Hausa language
Hausa is the Chadic language with the largest number of speakers, spoken as a first language by about 25 million people, and as a second language by about 18 million more, an approximate total of 43 million people...
usage and ethnography written in Arabic and Ajami. Under the influence of Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther
Samuel Ajayi Crowther
Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther was a linguist and the first African Anglican bishop in Nigeria. Born in Osogun , Rev. Dr...
, a Yoruba clergyman, subsequent missionaries extended the term to include all speakers of related dialects.
Before the abolition of the slave trade, some Yoruba groups were known among Europeans as Akú
Aku
Aku can refer to:*Aku, Nigeria, a town in Enugu State*The word for "me" or "I" in the Malay language*The word for "evil" in the Japanese language*The name of a god of the moon, meaning "moon", in Babylonian mythology...
, a name derived from the first words of Yoruba greetings such as Ẹ kú àárọ? ‘good morning’ and Ẹ kú alẹ? ‘good evening.’