Ancient & Pre-Colonial Nigeria
Histories of Nigerian kingdoms, empires, trade routes, and cultures before colonial rule, including Nok, Benin, Oyo, Sokoto, and Kanem-Bornu.
Ifewara’s Hidden Past, How a Small Osun Town Preserved Its Deep Roots in Ile, Ife
Ifewara is one of those towns whose size can mislead the outsider. On the map, it appears as a modest community in present day...
Aduloju of Ado and the Violent World That Shaped His Power
Aduloju of Ado emerged in one of the most turbulent periods in Yoruba history. By the nineteenth century, the old stability once associated with...
How Abdulsalami Became the First Emir of Ilorin
Ilorin’s transformation in the nineteenth century stands as one of the most important turning points in Yoruba political history. What began as a frontier...
Sogidi Lake and the Making of Awe, The Sacred Landscape That Shaped a Town in Oyo State
Awe, in present day Afijio Local Government Area of Oyo State, is a Yoruba town whose history is deeply rooted in landscape and tradition....
Oba Afunbiowo Adesida I and the 1956 Royal Encounter
Oba Olofinlade Afunbiowo Adesida I stands as one of the most remarkable monarchs in the history of Akure. His reign spanned a period of...
Apomu, Aole, and the Market Scandal in Old Oyo
In the late eighteenth century, Apomu stood as one of the most active market towns within Ife territory, drawing traders from Oyo, Ife, Owu,...
Who Was Kokoro Gangan, The First Aare Ona Kakanfo and Founder of Oyo’s Military Command Tradition
Kokoro Gangan of Iwoye stands at the beginning of one of the most powerful military traditions in Yoruba history. His name is remembered as...
Awole, Afonja and the Crisis That Broke Old Oyo
The fall of Old Oyo was not the work of one angry king or one rebellious commander. It was the outcome of a long...
Oba Agunlejika II and the Restoration of the Owa Obokun Throne in 1966
In July 1963, the throne of the Owa Obokun of Ijesaland became vacant following the death of the reigning monarch. What followed was not...
The Teenage Yoruba Ruler Few Remember, The Story of Victoria Adeyosoye Omodara at Seventeen
In the mid-1960s, a remarkable story emerged from southwestern Nigeria, one that has quietly endured over the years. It tells of a teenage girl,...