HISTORY OF IFON

The people of Ifon Originated from Ile-lfe as a direct descendant of the legendary Oduduwa and as one of the first colonial administrative headquarters in Nigeria, Ifon is rich in history and contemporary developments. This spotlight will take its readers, through the origin and culture of the Ifon people. It will highlight the rich native authority, political and economic development of a land blessed in vast aspect of life.
LOCATION AND BASIC INFORMATION
Ifon is the headquarters and seal of government of
Osẹ Local Government Area of Ondo State of Nigeria.
Ifon is a junction town with two axes to Edo State and one to the rest of Ondo State. It lies at about the mid
point on the Federal Highway that connects Akurẹ
and Benin City. Located on an elevated terrain, a view
from the center of the town confirms the beauty of the surrounding vegetation and the richness of the Ifon land. Ifon is an ancient town with European settlement as divisional/district headquarters as far back as 1903. The town is blessed with a large landmass and large-scale production of both cash and food crops, which
encouraged the influx of both traders and workers.
This has led to an explosion in the population of the town. From about Thirty One Thousand (31,000)
inhabitants in the 1963 census, the population rose to
over Forty Six Thousand (46,000) in the 1991 census.
This represents over (50%) of the total population of
the entire Ose Local Government Area, which by 1991
census is put at above 91,000. ORIGIN The Ifon people migrated from lIe-lfẹ, the cradle of Yorubas. Olufon in turn had two sons who contested for the throne after his death. The elder son was invariably crowned Olufon by the Arawa. The younger brother then left the town in protest with his supporters to found Ifon lIobu - about twelve Kilometers to Oshogbo. The senior brother then sent the Chief War Minister known as Sẹpẹtẹri to go
with his warriors and bring back the people for the
fear that they might launch a surprise attack on Ifon-
liamopo. The Olufon instructed Sẹpẹtẹri to ensure
that his junior brother was not killed. Sẹpẹtẹri was made to swear to this promise. On their way, he
realized that this journey would most certainly cost
him his life since there was no way he could guarantee the life of the Olufon's junior brother. He therefore went to settle in the place still known today as Sẹpẹtẹri. Meanwhile, the Olufon expected his War Minister in
vain and feared that he had teamed up with junior
brother to attack him. The Olufon therefore moved
with his people and settled at the place called Imese
Atare, now in present day Ifon Forest Reserve. They
had to migrate from there to the present site of Ifon because the place was unfavorable. Olufon is a
descendant of Oduduwa and he brought his crown from Ile Ifẹ. In the course of moving to the present day site, he left his mark in every town he passed through or met. This is evidenced by the fact that he instituted the Obalufon Goddess Shrine at Ifẹ, Oşogbo, and Ifon-Ilamopo etc.

THE OBASHIP / NATIVE AUTHORITY SYSTEM
Upon its settlement at its present location, the people
of Ifon quickly established a traditional rulership
system starting with Iradodo. Although some hitches
were experienced along the line, the Obaship system has survived until today. Under the Colonial
Administration, the Olufon of Ifon was the District 1 lead of Ifon District consisting of Ifon and neighboring towns and villages. The Olufon is proud of the staff of office presented to him by the then British Government as a symbol of his status as a native authority. The Olufon is even more proud of his "Ade Okikon" (Crown) given to the first Olufon by his father Obalufon Alayemore the then King of Ifẹ. The "Ade Okikon" is an epitome of the artistry of our people from the beginning of time as it has retained its shape, beauty and mythology for centuries. Other Paraphernalia of the Olufon Include:- A crown made of cowries, beaded crowns (Several including "Ade Sese Efun" with "irere ọkin", leopard skin seat and fan, tiers of beads worn on the neck, writs and ankles, beaded horsetail, beaded walking stick, beaded shores, traditional trumpet, ada and umbrella. In recognition of his bravery, the leopard is the oba's symbol. The Olufon past and present have continued to ensure peace and stability within their kingdom. They have also continued to promote the development of the town. POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT In recent history, Ifon occupied a prominent position in the administrative set up of the country. Ifon had its first contact with the British in the later part of the nineteenth century. As early as 1903 Ifon experienced its first status as an administrative headquarters when the old Ifon Division was established comprising Ifon and Ọwọ districts together with certain parts of Kukuruku, Ishan and Benin Division out of the then Benin Province. On January 1, 1919, the Ọwọ Division with its headquarters at Ifon was established consisting of Ọwọ, Ifon and Akoko districts. This was sequel to the decision that the River Ọssẹ, the Ọgbẹssẹ, south of Okelusẹ, should form the boundary between the Benin and Ondo provinces. In 1987, Ifon became a Local Government headquarter
with the creation of the Ọsẹ Local Government Area.
Today the Ọsẹ Local Government council effectively
functions at Ifon with the usual support of the Ifon
people. Economically, the people of Ifon were traditional farmers, cultivating both food and cash crops. Ifon
land is so vast to the extent that it accommodates
many settlements made up of predominantly farmers
and traders from different parts of the country. These
settlers include the Ebiras, the Ọkas, the Igogos, the
Ishans, the Ikwalẹs, the Ijeshas and the Urhobos just to mention a few. Ifon land also accommodates part
of the Ifon/Sobe Farm Settlement and the Ifon Forest
Reserve, and other villages who’s Baalẹs are
appointed by the Olufon of Ifon. The people of Ifon were
privileged to receive the Western Education early due to the contact with the British Colonial Masters at that time. Today the Ifons both home and abroad are highly educated and enlightened as evidenced with the various Nursery, Primary and Secondary Schools in Ifon. More specifically, at present, Ifon is blessed with twenty (20) Nursery and Primary Schools out of which fifteen (15) are J government owned primary schools. The other five (05) are privately owned. In addition to
these, there are four secondary schools, out of which
two (2) are government owned and the other two (02)
are owned by private individuals. In addition, the Town
can boast of two banks Viz Co- operative Bank (Nig.) PLC. And Ifon Community Bank, with a very big and modern Post Office with Postal Office Box and Private Mail Bag Services which takes care of postal services within the town, a major international telephone exchange unit is based in Ifon capable of linking any part of the world. Ifon is blessed with many minerals resources e.g. Kaolin, granite etc. There are also abundant forest resources like timber and games reserve. Ifon games reserve is one of the well-known reserves in Nigeria. There are four surface and four pit quarries in Ifon, in addition to the ceramic industry and some other privately owned small-scale industries. Today Ifon serves as the main link between the traders in Aba and Onitsha on the one hand, Ondo, and Ọsun States on the other. Although the population of Ifon is a little bit higher than fifty percent (50%) of the entire population of the Local Government but today accounts for more than eighty percent (80%) of the total revenue generated by Osẹ Local Government. SOCIO-CULTURAL
DEVELOPMENT The Ifons have a social life akin to that of other Yorubas, they live together in harmony and are well known, for assisting each other at times of need (like Chieftaincy Conferment). There is also the age group system (the "Olus" for carrying out tasks and
socializing within the town. The people celebrate with
traditional beats like "Pẹgbu Pẹgbu" "Ọlọmaişe". The Ifons have many festivals some of which are religious and others purely social. These festivals include the "agbuke", the "Egungun" the "Ugba", the "Ogun", the "Ọbaloro" etc.
The people relax with traditional games like "Ayo"
“Ẹgẹ” "Ẹpẹ” etc. Although few of Ifons are still traditional, religious practitioners but the coming of the British converted most of them into Christianity very early. The early missionaries also helped in no small way in the educational development of the people. Today most Ifons are Christians and as a mark of the tolerant nature of the Ifons that they coexist peacefully and in harmony with people of other tribes, and religions that settle within the town.