AnnaKareninaFan:
Following the statement credited to the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo that the Oba of Benin is the third in the ranking of kings in the South-West region, the Palace of the Oba of Benin has dismissed this as untrue. The Esogban of Benin and Odionwere of the Kingdom (traditional head), Chief David Edebiri, yesterday, made this disclosure, adding that the Ooni of Ife was a son of the Oba of Benin, and the stool of the Oba of Benin could not be compared with that of any Yoruba King.


Esogban,who is third in command in the palace of the Oba of Benin, said: “We wanted to discard this report as something that was not necessary at all. We do not see how the Alake of Egbaland suddenly woke up to think that the Oba of Benin is also a Yoruba Oba. There is no basis for such classification; Oba of Benin has nothing to do with the Yoruba Obas. It is simply unnecessary, unless they simply want to stir up an unnecessary controversy.


“We are not in Yorubaland. To be frank, it is because many of them are not willing to come up with the truth, the word Oba is alien to Yoruba monarchy; it is not part of their title from time immemorial. For instance, the one they call the Oba of Lagos, these are recent adaptations. In the 50s, there was no Oba of Lagos, what we had was the Eleko of Eko. That is the title of the King there. In Ibadan, you have the Olu Ibadan. You come to Abeokuta, you have the Alake of Egbaland. You come to Oyo, you have the Alaafin of Oyo. In Ilesha, you have the Owa-Obokun of IIesha. So no Yoruba monarch had as part of his titles the word Oba except the Oba of Benin.


“That word Oba is indigenous to Benin. It is only in recent times you find everybody bearing Oba. When the Western Regional conference of traditional rulers took place in Benin City in 1942, go and check the attendance, there was no other monarch in the whole of the Western Region then that bore the title of Oba, except the Oba of Benin. So it is an unnecessary excursion, an unnecessary attempt to turn history upside down by the Alake by classifying the Oba of Benin as third in the hierarchy of kings. Our own traditional history says that the Ooni of Ife was a Benin Prince who wandered from here to Ife, settled there and became the ruler there. That is the position, if they don’t know, they should send people here; we will teach them.


“We will show them landmarks. So this is unnecessary misrepresentation of history. Maybe the Alake wanted to mention a different place and not Benin. The monarchical rulership in this part of the world started from Benin during the era of the Ogisos. It was the son of the last Ogiso, Owodo, that wandered from here to Ife and he became a ruler there, carrying everything about the Benin monarchical system to that place. There is no basis for such classification. The Ooni of Ife by historical facts, is a son of the Oba of Benin, so they are not in the same class. The Oba of Benin is the only one that answers Oba, the rest don’t. But today, we hear Oba here and there, they are all recent adaptations. I am saying categorically that the word Oba is indigenous to Benin and not to Yoruba nation.”


http://dawntodusknews.com/ooni-of-ife-is-oba-of-benins-son-bini-palace-reply-alake-of-egbaland/

This old man is mixing things up. There is a difference between Name and Title. The kings in yorubaland are generally(all) called Oba while they all have individual titles. Even God or creator is a king (Oba Ayeraye) but his name is Jehova. Jesus Christ is a king ( He was even called Oba Awon Jew).

YonkijiSappo:


And the Owa Obokun of Ilesha?
Ewi of Ado?
Orangun of Ila?
I take it you are Ijebu....... cool though.

When you're a vassal of a superior entity, you can't be ranked higher than independent states that were never vassals. And the Ijebu crown isn't an Oduduwa crown. All those folks were under Oyo and had to fight for independence. Heck, even Ibadan almost subjugated them. The same can't be said about Ijebu cos Oyo never troubled the kingdom and the relationship between Ibadan and Ijebu was a symbiotic one before it went sour due to business decisions.

Yes, Owo was a vassal as well but it had a thriving kingdom and its great artworks of yore are some of the best out of naij that represent a great civilisation.

ProfShymex:


When you're a vassal of a superior entity, you can't be ranked higher than independent states that were never vassals. And the Ijebu crown isn't an Oduduwa crown. All those folks were under Oyo and had to fight for independence. Heck, even Ibadan almost subjugated them. The same can't be said about Ijebu cos Oyo never troubled the kingdom and the relationship between Ibadan and Ijebu was a symbiotic one before it went sour due to business decisions.

Yes, Owo was a vassal as well but it had a thriving kingdom and its great artworks of yore are some of the best out of naij that represent a great civilisation.

Say what?
Ijesha and Ekiti were never under Oyo but fiercely independent kingdoms.
So what criteria are you basing your rankings on? Even Olubadan lol..... Olubadan is a baale , not an Oba.

no time for this kinda stories...

it no concern me.

sybarite7:
YOU ARE TOTALLY WRONG, OMO N' OBA MEANS THE CHILD THAT IS OBA(KING)

Then, the child of who? Abi e no get parent?

[quote author=AnnaKareninaFan post=42750487]Following the statement credited to the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo that the Oba of Benin is the third in the ranking of kings in the South-West region, the Palace of the Oba of Benin has dismissed this as untrue. The Esogban of Benin and Odionwere of the Kingdom (traditional head), Chief David Edebiri, yesterday, made this disclosure, adding that the Ooni of Ife was a son of the Oba of Benin, and the stool of the Oba of Benin could not be compared with that of any Yoruba King.


Esogban,who is third in command in the palace of the Oba of Benin, said: “We wanted to discard this report as something that was not necessary at all. We do not see how the Alake of Egbaland suddenly woke up to think that the Oba of Benin is also a Yoruba Oba. There is no basis for such classification; Oba of Benin has nothing to do with the Yoruba Obas. It is simply unnecessary, unless they simply want to stir up an unnecessary controversy.


“We are not in Yorubaland. To be frank, it is because many of them are not willing to come up with the truth, the word Oba is alien to Yoruba monarchy; it is not part of their title from time immemorial. [b]For instance, the one they call the Oba of Lagos[/b], these are recent adaptations. In the 50s, there was no Oba of Lagos, what we had was the Eleko of Eko. That is the title of the King there. In Ibadan, you have the Olu Ibadan. You come to Abeokuta, you have the Alake of Egbaland. You come to Oyo, you have the Alaafin of Oyo. In Ilesha, you have the Owa-Obokun of IIesha. So no Yoruba monarch had as part of his titles the word Oba except the Oba of Benin.


“That word Oba is indigenous to Benin. It is only in recent times you find everybody bearing Oba. When the Western Regional conference of traditional rulers took place in Benin City in 1942, go and check the attendance, there was no other monarch in the whole of the Western Region then that bore the title of Oba, except the Oba of Benin. So it is an unnecessary excursion, an unnecessary attempt to turn history upside down by the Alake by classifying the Oba of Benin as third in the hierarchy of kings. Our own traditional history says that the Ooni of Ife was a Benin Prince who wandered from here to Ife, settled there and became the ruler there. That is the position, if they don’t know, they should send people here; we will teach them.


“We will show them landmarks. So this is unnecessary misrepresentation of history. Maybe the Alake wanted to mention a different place and not Benin. The monarchical rulership in this part of the world started from Benin during the era of the Ogisos. It was the son of the last Ogiso, Owodo, that wandered from here to Ife and he became a ruler there, carrying everything about the Benin monarchical system to that place. There is no basis for such classification. The Ooni of Ife by historical facts, is a son of the Oba of Benin, so they are not in the same class. The Oba of Benin is the only one that answers Oba, the rest don’t. But today, we hear Oba here and there, they are all recent adaptations. I am saying categorically that the word Oba is indigenous to Benin and not to Yoruba nation.”





Did anyone see what I saw?(the bolded) The lagoon Obama was referred to as"THAT ONE"

pankere:
This is a fallacy! Then how come the heads of Benin kings are are always taken to ife for burial? Foolish old men distorting history

You Yorubas are the ones distorting history while some of you are liars some are very honest with the truth.

What evidence do you have that the heads of dead bini kings were taken to ile-ife for burial. It's actually the other way round.

Anayordike:


The Chief said the "adaptation" started in the 1950s. So the question is did any body bear Obafemi, Obayomi, Obasanjo, Obaseki before the 50s? Lolz!

Obafemi Awolowo was born when?
Obasanjo Olusegun was born when?

willibounce1:


He is not cursed you Idi..ot. He is has stated the fact and ain't mocking your OBA'S . Get that into your Edo skull.

since you're confused assumptious and a dullard I'd advice you to go back to basic 1. the Edo people are not from Yorubaland. But those of you who has refused to accept it can go ahead and kill themselves. I think that will pass the message across.

YonkijiSappo:


Say what?
Ijesha and Ekiti were never under Oyo but fiercely independent kingdoms.
So what criteria are you basing your rankings on? Even Olubadan lol..... Olubadan is a baale , not an Oba.

Lol. Ijesha, Ekiti, and all other Yoruba groups - apart from Ijebu - and the ones under Bini, were all Oyo vassals. If Afonja hadn't used his treacherous hands with his Fulani slaves to sack Oyo, with the Egbas, Dahomey, and Bariba subsequently using that opportunity to fight for independence - they would've been Oyo vassals till the colonial Brits got to the shores of Nigeria.

Yes, Ibadan has no proper king and it's a conglomerate of all Yorubas, hence I put it in that position. However, if it had been a proper Yoruba subgroup with a royalty, I believe Ibadan should be ranked next to Oyo. That was the new kid of the block back then with a great military might that took on everyone almost by itself - with little support from what's left of Oyo, Ife, and Modakeke (weak states), while protecting Yorubaland from invaders at the same time. Ibadan was the warriors den back then and it almost took Oyo's place.

Anyway, there's no need for rankings but if we're to go by the historical facts, my ranking is the true ranking.

OPCNAIRALAND:


Lmao...

You people and adoption, na wah!

Yoruba adopted Oba and then you adopted Omo n'Oba...please hush if you have nothing cogent to contribute.

One thing u need to knw about d Edo Monarchy is dat evry reigning Oba upon assumptn of d throne creates his own choice of royal praise or appellatn to boost his prestige. E.g., for d present Oba it is "Omo N' Oba" (meaning "d child/son is king", for Oba Ovoranmwe in d 19th century it was "Nogbaisi" (meaning "glory/fame spread abroad" or "all-round powerful", nd for Oba Ewuare d Great in d 15/16th century d appellatn was "Ogidigan" (meaning "d strong/great" or "d overcomer of troubles".

kunlej2:
I learned from history that the Edo people were subject (slaves; they are been used for farming activities by the Yorubas.) to the Yoruba Kingdom and due to the large expense of the Kingdom, that was what necessitated Yoruba King in Bini.

Lol very funny please who ever wrote the version of Yoruba history you read has a demented brain.

WE EDOS WERE NEVER SLAVES TO YORUBAS,Y'ALL WERE UNDER OUR CONTROL. WHO DASH UNA.

Enahi:


You Yorubas are the ones distorting history while some of you are liars some are very honest with the truth.

What evidence do you have that the heads of dead bini kings were taken to ile-ife for burial. It's actually the other way round.

Read for yourself..... small Bini girl.

[size=14pt]Heads of Former Benin Monarchs Were Actually Buried in Ile- Ife, Says Prince Isede[/size]

PRINCE Michael Isede, a grand son of the last Ogiso of Benin Kingdom and deputy national chairman, Community Development Committee of Oil Producing Communities in Delta State, says heads of former Benin monarchs were buried in Ife.

"The Ooni is very right in saying that Oduduwa came from heaven. Nobody can doubt it because we have it here in Benin too. The Bini people believe that God usually comes down to decide issues. What actually happened is this- the last Ogiso who was my great grand father was an autocratic ruler, he could tell Benin people that nobody should meet any woman for three months or eat for three days and nobody will dare contrevene his order. So the people were not happy with his dictatorship, they held a meeting and called the seven Uzamas to remove him. Evian was the brother to Ogodomigodo, both Oliha' sons.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200405100888.html

There you have it folks...... actual history corroborated by a true son of an Ogiso... Not all these modern born Benin history twisters that know nothing of their actual past.

the person on top me nail it

elyna:
since you're confused assumptious and a dullard I'd advice you to go back to basic 1. the Edo people are not from Yorubaland. But those of you who has refused to accept it can go ahead and kill themselves. I think that will pass the message across.

Whoever called u Yorubas. Ya'll bunch of confused, low self esteemed mo'phuckerz from a tiny village called benin. You guys are irrelevant.

I'm waiting for the obas of the yorubas to come and counter oba of benin's statement.

The binis is trying to rewrite history but no way

DeRay98:


Yorubas and all their lies, always seeking attention, with contorted history that can not stand reasonable logic.
This history of Binis has always been consistent and thorough even with what the early European explorers wrote. The yorubas have always been wanting to own what is bigger than them. Since their early professors wrote historical lies that are all different from obtains in reality.
YORUBAS SHOULD STOP LYING TO THE WORLD AND TRYING TO OWN A LAND THEY NEVER CONQUERED IN HISTORY. THEY HAVE ALWAYS BEEN TRYING TO OWN BINI KINGDOM AND TELL THEIR COCK AND BULL STORIES OF HOW THE KINGDOM WAS PART OF THEIRS YET NO HISTORY TO SHOW WHEN THEY FOUGHT AND WON A WAR WITH THE BINI KINGDOM, WHICH WAS HOW KINGDOMS WERE CONQUERED AND RULED IN ANCIENT TIMES.

Thank you so very much, Yorubas are the most self-centered people I know. Their histroy is full of loopholes with different versions written by different hungry proffesssors.
Reading about their histroy alone is disgustingly irritating, even their version of Lagos histroy is trash

ProfShymex:
Looool.

I don't know why folks are arguing over. The Alake asked for it after stirring the hornet's nest and I alluded to it on that thread.

The Ooni has visited other kings and no one talked about hierarchy. And the visit is about Yoruba unity, not for throne superiority contest. I don't why he decided to include Bini and/or start causing troubling by talking about hierarchy, especially for a group with four different kings that never had a kingdom and had to fight so many wars to be independent - till the 19th century. I guess it is cos he can't stand the fact the Ooni visited the Awujale before him. But if he had problem with that, he should spoken to the Ooni privately about it or speak only about the "superiority" of his throne compared to the Ijebu throne which pre-existed it, with a kingdom that was never a vassal to anyone.

Anyway, he is lucky both the Alaafin of Oyo and Awujale didn't take any offence to what he said. You just can't fault the Oba of Benin for reacting the way he did, regardless of what you think about the revisionism. The Alake asked for it.

In fact, i was very disappointed in him. How, can't he understand that Oni was just trying to unit the Yorubas eh?

Well, i don't blame him i blame those who made Abeokuta the capital. Maybe that deceived him to believe he is higher in hierarchy than Awujale.

Kirigidi:
One thing u need to knw about d Edo Monarchy is dat evry reigning Oba upon assumptn of d throne creates his own choice of royal praise or appellatn to boost his prestige. E.g., for d present Oba it is "Omo N' Oba" (meaning "d child/son is king", for Oba Ovoranmwe in d 19th century it was "Nogbaisi" (meaning "glory/fame spread abroad" or "all-round powerful", nd for Oba Ewuare d Great in d 15/16th century d appellatn was "Ogidigan" (meaning "d strong/great" or "d overcomer of troubles".

lol, other Edo Kings also bore Omo N'oba .....

This is Akenzua II whose reign ended in 1978.... was also an Omo N'Oba
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akenzua_II

Nothing is permanent in political supremacy struggles. To talk of ranking kings based on military conquests in one era is funny. It is like saying who won the League in 1999. That is meaningless! That A was a vassal of B does not mean B was not or cannot be a vassal of A. Unless there is total assimilation then we move on to the next season ,the next cup. Not just Yorubaland but the world over. Empires come and go and what matters is NOW. Ife and Oyo are inconsequential in the scheme of things. How many Yorubas have been or will go there in their lifetimes?
If Odua was a nation today Lagos is the most important city or town. Even Abeokuta is more relevant than Oyo or Ife politically whose main value is sentimental
Thankfully OYO was never able to impose their tribal marks across the whole of "Yorubaland"

walezy14:
The binis is trying to rewrite history but no way

You probably think the Binis has a confused useless histroy like yours right?

We don't need to re-write history to please people who don't know where they came from,remember you are offsprings of the masquerade that fell from the sky and so we can't be part of you lots. Omo Oduduwa

Enahi:


Thank you so very much, Yorubas are the most self-centered people I know. Their histroy is full of loopholes with different versions written by different hungry proffesssors.
Reading about their histroy alone is disgustingly irritating, even their version of Lagos histroy is trash

Stop it, Enahi. Yoruba history is very straight-forward and interesting. You lot are our distant cousins, hence Yorubas and binis never fought any wars despite living side by side. It's a symbiotic relationship without respect but the bini crown is a Yoruba crown.

You can be proud of ya heritage without disrespecting Yorubas. Regardless, I don't blame ya king - I blame the Egba king for trying to cause unnecessary trouble.

OPCNAIRALAND:


It is indisputable that Oba is a titular position and belongs to Yoruba culture, not Benin.

So why is King of Benin a titular Omo n'Oba (the descendant of Oba), can the Benin palace give us clarity on this?

dnt mind those benin chiefs, they know nothing abt history.

The day anyone in Oba of Benin's palace can answer these questions, I will take them serious:

1. Why were you taking permission for installation of your kings from Ife, up till the 20th century.

2. Why were you burying you dead kings in Ife, even up till the 20th century.

3. What is the name of the father of Eweka I.

4. What was the name of the dynasty that went into extinction before Eweka dynasty started.

5. When did the following words sneaked into your lexicon - Oba, Benin.

6. Why are you worshipping the Yoruba deities despite the fact that they have no link to your place eg Olokumi, Ogun Osun, Sango and even Ifa.

7. Why was Yoruba language the official language of the palace until recently.

8. As powerful as Oyo Empire and Benin Kingdom were, why was there no attempt by any to conquer the other?


Let me stop here for now.

I will take the drunk Chief serious when the Oba of Benin is bold enough to utter same, when he knows the ancestral curse he will be placing on himself and lineage.


At least one Yoruba Oba was bold enough to voice who Oba of Benin, he should be man enough to utter the contrary himself, if he can.

Mi o r'aye oshi jare.

forgiveness:


In fact, i was very disappointed in him. How, can't he understand that Oni was just trying to unit the Yorubas eh?

Well, i don't blame him i blame those who made Abeokuta the capital. Maybe that deceived him to believe he is higher in hierarchy than Awujale.

Lol.

No comment.

aribisala0:
Nothing is permanent in political supremacy struggles. To talk of ranking kings based on military conquests in one era is funny. It is like saying who won the League in 1999. That is meaningless! That A was a vassal of B does not mean B was not or cannot be a vassal of A. Unless there is total assimilation then we move on to the next season ,the next cup. Not just Yorubaland but the world over. Empires come and go and what matters is NOW. Ife and Oyo are inconsequential in the scheme of things. How many Yorubas have been or will go there in their lifetimes?
If Odua was a nation today Lagos is the most important city or town. Even Abeokuta is more relevant than Oyo or Ife politically whose main value is sentimental
Thankfully OYO was never able to impose their tribal marks across the whole of "Yorubaland"

Lmao.

Milan is more relevant than Rome then based on ya logic.

tinkinjow:

I agree with u but this trend were others are always pronounced to be of lesser pedigree by the yorubas must stop.This argument hv gone for too long and is always sparked by the yorubas. Yet every historical logic lean more to the binis.

In ur dream ba?

willibounce1:



Whoever called u Yorubas. Ya'll bunch of confused, low self esteemed mo'phuckerz from a tiny village called benin. You guys are irrelevant.

Shush you idiots that has inferiority complex written all over them must be s tupidd to think people want to be part of you fools.

It doesn't matter how small bini is but binis will never accept to be part of you touts.

sybarite7:
MY NAME IS OSABUOHIEN IDUROBO,AM A BENI BY TRIBE, EDO STATE BORN,AM NO DESCENDANT OF YORUBA'S AND I WONT BEG TO BE ONE,I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO BENIN EMPIRE ,PROMISE TO PROMOTE THE GROWTH OF OUR CULTURE AND GREAT HERITAGE...I stand with what the esogban of Benin kingdom has said...proud to be from Edo,proud to be a Benin,OBA GHA TOR KPERE, ISEE ,LONG LIVE OMO N'OBA NEE EDO ,UKU AKPOLOKPOLO, OBA EREDIAWA

Olodo

What is the meaning of OMO N'OBA = DESCENDANT OF THE KING.
IN CONCLUSION, WE YORUBAS ARE THE REAL KING.
THE BENIN KINGDOM IS OUR descendant

ProfShymex:


Lmao.

Milan is more relevant than Rome then based on ya logic.

Did you comprehend what you read? I doubt it ....
Go back and read again because you have written nonsense. With Respect!!

YourNemesis:


Exactly.
If one looks closely at the Yoruba and Bini Cultures, One sees that The etymology and Use of the word Oba is more enmeshed/Ingrained in the Yoruba culture that that of the Binis, which can only point to one thing.... the group and direction from which the word came into Benin's vocabulary.

Take for Example, ALL KINGS in YORUBALAND are known as OBA ALADE........ In the areas ruled by Benin, who else is called Oba, apart from the ruler of Benin city and Benin alone?
Even Auchi, Ekpoma, Urhomi that are other towns in the same Edo state, etc DO NOT call their kings Oba. I think original words for royalty in Edo languages are Ogiso, then Enogie, Ogie, Ovie, Enojes etc....

You've said it all, bro.