History of Ibadan

According to the literature, creation of Ibadan was circumstantial. The history of Ibadan had long been preserved through oral history but written record says it was formed in 1829. After the collapse of the Yoruba Empire towards the end of the 18th century, ‘Eba Odan’ had been populated by Yoruba rebels. ‘Eba Odan’ means between the forests and the plains and it was surrounded by seven hills, it functioned as a sacred area for the fighters that fled the war. Before the existence of Ibadan, Oyo, a very powerful empire, was long established and govern larger part of Yoruba land, many fierce independent warriors emerged from Oyo such as Bashorun Gaa.

Bashorun Gaa was the head of the Oyo Mesi, He was a monster in the kingdom. While on the throne as prime minister between 1750 and 1774, Bashorun Gaa was a classical tyrant ruler. He instrumental the killing of four kings or forced them to commit suicide (Faleti,1972). Alaafin Labisi 1750 after 17 days on the throne; Alaafin Awonbioju 1750 after 130 days on the throne; Alaafin Agboluaye 1750-1772 (Agboluaje submitted to Bashorun Gaa’s dictation but was later forced to commit suicide under the command of Bashorun Gaa) and also executed Alaafin Majeogbe 1772-1773. He also instructed the murder of the daughter of Alaafin Abiodun and later used the victim for money ritual. Bashorun Gaa, unconstitutionally hijacked all the political power and machinery of Oyo kingdom.

The elimination of Bashorun Gaa was a difficult task. It cost the old Oyo kingdom lots of both human and natural resources. Alaafin Abiodun and Oyo warriors in
collaboration with Aare-Ona-Kaka-N-fo Oyalabi, arrested Gaa. He was tied to a stake at Akesan market and Alaafin Abiodun ordered that every citizen should cut a pound of flesh from his body and drop it in a huge fire in front of him. He was made to smell the odour of his own flesh, his nose was not allowed to be cut. The remains of his body were later burnt in fire to prevent his re-incarnation. His embarrassing death led to the popular Yoruba saying that “Bi o ba la’ya O si’ka; bi’o ba ri’ku Gaa, O sooto” which means (if you are wicked and pigheaded when you see the death of Gaa, try to be good and speak the truth)

Before 1829 Lagelu, the Jagun (commander-in-chief) of Ife and Yoruba's generalissimo, left Ile Ife with some people from Ife, Oyo and Ijebu to found a new city, at Eba Odan, the first city was destroyed due to an incident at an Egungun (masquerade) festival when an Egungun was accidentally disrobed and mocked by women and children in an open marketplace. Meanwhile, In Yorubaland, it was an abomination for women to have eye-to-eye contact with Egungun, Egungun was considered to be the dead forefathers who returned to the earth each year to bless their descendant. When this news reached Sango, the then Alaafin of Oyo, he commanded that Eba-Odan be destroyed for committing such abominable act.

Lagelu and some of his people fled to a nearby hill for protection (sacred place). On the hill they survived by eating Oro fruit and Igbin (snails); later, they cultivated the land and made corn and millets into pap meals (eko), which they ate with roasted snails. They improvised a bit by using the snail shells (Ikarahun Igbin) to drink the liquefied eko. This eating habit formed part of the ancestral praise (Oriki) of Ibadan people today. Later, Lagelu and his people came down from the hill and founded another city called Eba'dan on the same spot.

They began to welcome more people to expand. Eba’dan became a refugee center. Various people, such as warriors, war escapee, escaped slaves, people in exile etc from various parts of other Yoruba cities. They developed more flexible laws because of the diverse nature of the people. Ibadan grew into an impressive and sprawling urban centre so much that by the end of 1829, Ibadan dominated the Yorùbá region militarily, politically and economically. Shortly, Lagelu died, leaving behind a politically oriented people and a very stable community.
Around 1826/27, Afọnja of Ilorin, who was the Arẹ-Ọna-Kankan-Fo of old Ọyọ Empire, refused to carry out the order of Alaafin, when told to wage war against Iwere-Ile, a Yoruba town in modern day (Kwara).

An unresolved rivalry brewed between Alaafin and Afọnja. Afọnja formed alliance with Alimi, the head of Fulani warriors (who are settlers in Ilorin) against Ọyọ, and Oyo kingdom was destroyed. Unfortunately, Fulani supporters turned against Afonja as well and killed him on the order of Alimi. Ilọrin also lost its independence and became Fulani controlled territory. Therefore, whenever Yoruba says Ilorin is afonja’s city, Fulani will say ‘’it is Alimi’s city. This led to the present saying of ‘Ilorin afonja-Geri alimi’. In 1840, Fulani Caliphate began to raid towards Ibadan, Oyo indigenes begin to retreats towards Ibadan, a well developed Ibadan army confronted them and pushed Fulani back to Ilorin. Few people later moved back to Oyo to form new Oyo Kingdom, but a weaker one, and many decided to stay in Ibadan.

Ibadan kept growing economically and politically and become a safer zone for all Yoruba people. During this booming era of Ibadan, one of the powerful business woman was Efunsetan Aniwura, an Egba descendant (who became Iyalode of Ibadan). Efunsetan Aniwura (owner of Gold) was a wealthy business woman at Oja-Oba in Ibadan, she owns lots of landed property and hundreds of slaves. Oral evidence reveals that she had three large farms with no less than 100 slaves working on each at a time. She extended credit facilities as form of ammunition to the various Ibadan warriors (Ajagun’ta) when they were going on their military expeditions in 1872.

She had a terrible sense of loss. Her only daughter died in 1860 during childbirth. Therefore, with the stigma of not having a progeny to inherit her legacies, she blamed God for her tragedy and vent anger on her slave and the society, becoming wicked, cruel and heartless. Her slaves are usually identified in the market with signs of cane stripes all over their body. Efunsetan kicked against the military expansion of Aare Latoosa and stopped extending credit facilities to Latoosa when Latoosa set out for another war in 1874 (Osewa, 2005; Ilesanmi, 2010). After returning from battle field, Latoosa levied three charges against Efunsetan which led to plot of death against her around 1874.

In 1893 Ibadan area became a British Protectorate after a treaty signed by Fijabi, the Baale of Ibadan with the British acting Governor of Lagos, George C. Denton on 15 August. By then the population of Ibadan had grown to round 120,000 which made Ibadan the third most populated City in the whole of Africa after Cairo and Johannesburg. The British developed the new colony to facilitate Ibadan commercial activities and Ibadan shortly grew into the major trading center that it is today

Long live Ibadan…Long live Yoruba...

By: Raymond Ayinla Ajeigbe

old ibadan

https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-frc1/577297_414804778625516_930836783_n.jpg

:p:p

odua boy: Very rich history,i need igbos history

you dey look for trouble o! you go wound o!

odua boy: Very rich history,i need igbos history

Singing palava you dey want

Does this mean ibos dont any history,so they were just pulled out from the forest in 1914

odua boy: Very rich history,i need igbos history

odua boy: Does this mean ibos dont any history,so they were just pulled out from the forest in 1914

^^^Bros, dem take Ndigbo swear for you!?

Someone posted a history of Yorubas, and you're agonizing over Ndigbo; wanting to see theirs as well! Of all the 200+ ethnicities in Nigeria, you zero in on Ndigbo, demanding they post theirs!

Bros, you see your life!?

odua boy: Does this mean ibos dont any history,so they were just pulled out from the forest in 1914

Haba ehn, wetin be ur problem self, leave dis people (Ndigbo) alone now!
@OP, dis is sweet, I like the way it connects some of the scattered histories I have. But I know fit see d picture o!
Noo wonder, d place to go for all Yoruba people is Ibadan, b4 d emergence of mordern Lagos and even up till today! Ibadan is a 'no man's land' of the Yorubas! I wish to settle there one day!

cogitoErgo: Haba ehn, wetin be ur problem self, leave dis people (Ndigbo) alone now!
@OP, dis is sweet, I like the way it connects some of the scattered histories I have. But I know fit see d picture o!
Noo wonder, d place to go for all Yoruba people is Ibadan, b4 d emergence of mordern Lagos and even up till today! Ibadan is a 'no man's land' of the Yorubas! I wish to settle there one day!

Apologies not attaching the picture, i have not been a able to figure out why the pix refuse to be attached, i hope i will do that soon.

War seemed to be so consistent in yoruba history. It seems so many cities and sub groups were formed off people fleeing or running form war. There are large groups of displaced Yoruba tribes are far as delta state

odua boy: Does this mean ibos dont any history,so they were just pulled out from the forest in 1914

Dud, why must u pick only d ibo tribe among. Hundreds of tribes to know their history in a very rude insulting way without any provocation

I think u are suffering from a very serious inferiority complex.

odua boy: Does this mean ibos dont any history,so they were just pulled out from the forest in 1914

Dud, why must u pick only d ibo tribe among Hundreds of tribes to know their history in a very rude insulting way without any provocation

I think u are suffering from a very serious inferiority complex.

Ikengawo: War seemed to be so consistent in yoruba history. It seems so many cities and sub groups were formed off people fleeing or running form war. There are large groups of displaced Yoruba tribes are far as delta state

Yes war is very prominent in Yoruba history because we don't use wrestling to settle our disputes especially on land and trade powers tussle.

odua boy: Very rich history,i need igbos history

odua boy: Does this mean ibos dont any history,so they were just pulled out from the forest in 1914

Very unnecessary. Your comments will likely detract from the main purpose of the thread.

Ikengawo: War seemed to be so consistent in yoruba history. It seems so many cities and sub groups were formed off people fleeing or running form war. There are large groups of displaced Yoruba tribes are far as delta state

So u want to join Odua Boy to start nonsense, abi?
who no get war dat time? Fulani get war, war dey Tuareg, Mali, Sudan, even Europe and America get wars. If ur people na d only people wey no get war dat time, den lucky you!

Lol seems am getting on many ibos nerves
Was only joking ooo before una go eat me

T8ksy:


yes o, as it was the theme in those days. Anyway, it still hasn't stopped you guys from calling us "cowards" and "war-shy" even when we have proof of having fought a 17yrs war among ourselves which you guys impishly refers to, as a wrestling contest.

If we yorubas are not prone to fighting over little issues, its not due to our lack of intestinal fortitude but rather because we have learnt the cost of gratuitous war where simple diplomacy and dialogue would have suffice.

I think what he's saying is that Yorubas have many sub-groups displaced in other parts across Naij as a result of those running away from the fight/war/wrestling match or whatever you guys call it.

Horus:

is that the old Ibadan? which year is that pic taken? couldn't help but notice the metal roofing sheets!

lovely piece

cogitoErgo:
is that the old Ibadan? which year is that pic taken? couldn't help but notice the metal roofing sheets!

i beleive ibadan is a beautiful city depending on which way you see it,i have lived there for a year.
Most of my relations from ibadan cant stay in lagos 4 1 week they will run back 2 ibadan.
i'm hoping to establish a foundation,that will fund the re-roofing of this city and building of little walkways with street lights
Im from ondo,bt IB and ABK are 2 cities i love with passion.
When ever i see early pictures of ibadan. I see what AWO beleived in.

warlei:
i beleive ibadan is a beautiful city depending on which way you see it,i have lived there for a year.
Most of my relations from ibadan cant stay in lagos 4 1 week they will run back 2 ibadan.
i'm hoping to establish a foundation,that will fund the re-roofing of this city and building of little walkways with street lights
Im from ondo,bt IB and ABK are 2 cities i love with passion.
When ever i see early pictures of ibadan. I see what AWO beleived in.

Yeah, Ibadan is good place to live.

I lived in Ilorin but stayed in Ibadan for some months. It was a good, nice and cool place to live.

nigerian buildings are too backward and not up to standard.

No to one nigeria.

Ikengawo: War seemed to be so consistent in yoruba history. It seems so many cities and sub groups were formed off people fleeing or running form war. There are large groups of displaced Yoruba tribes are far as delta state

after the war you form a nation and live happily. From their you create a monolithic system that embraces all.
check world history.

T8ksy:


yes o, as it was the theme in those days. Anyway, it still hasn't stopped you guys from calling us "cowards" and "war-shy" even when we have proof of having fought a 17yrs war among ourselves which you guys impishly refers to, as a wrestling contest.

If we yorubas are not prone to fighting over little issues, its not due to our lack of intestinal fortitude but rather because we have learnt the cost of gratuitous war where simple diplomacy and dialogue would have suffice.

u shd remind him of ogendengbe's statement. that after the kiriji war there would never be a single war again in and on yoruba land. all were involved and suffered.
thats why the igbos are struggling to create a monolithic system in the east.

T8ksy:


Ibadan is not the only town that owes its creation to yorubas internal conflicts. Abeokuta is another classical example. They were WARS. Even the colonialists witnessed some of them and they recorded it as WARS but you guys who have no recorded history of having participated in any major war (save the biafran war which you lost, woefully) demeans it in your usual malicious trait by calling it "wrestling contest". Yet you guys have not been able to show us any culture that created an empire as big as the Oyo empire from wrestling contests.

u shd let him realise no one studied igbo empire in sec school?

kunlekunle:

u shd remind him of ogendengbe's statement. that after the kiriji war there would never be a single war again in and on yoruba land. all were involved and suffered.
thats why the igbos are struggling to create a monolithic system in the east.

Aare Latoosa is responsible for that statement. His belief was that he was going to defeat all other sub-groups and that after that, there wouldn't be other wars. He meant he was going to crush them. But it was quite prophetic nonetheless.

cogitoErgo:
is that the old Ibadan? which year is that pic taken? couldn't help but notice the metal roofing sheets!

I don't know which year that picture was taken

Horus:

I don't know which year that picture was taken

I was just thinking of how mordernization came to Ibadan while many part of Nigeria could still be under their grass roofs!

Ibadan - running splash of gold and rust, flung among seven hills, like broken china in the sun. J.P. Clark