Akinwande Oluwole Babatunde "Wole" Soyinka is a Nigerian playwright, novelist, poet, and essayist in the English language. He was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature for his "wide cultural perspective and... poetic overtones fashioning the drama of existence", the first sub-Saharan African to win the Prize in literature.
Oduduwa was a Yoruba divine king, legendary founder of the Ife Empire and a creator deity (orisha) in the Yoruba religion. His earthly origins are from the village of Oke Ora According to tradition, he was the holder of the title of the Olofin of Ile-Ife, the Yoruba holy city. He ruled briefly in Ife, and also served as the progenitor of a number of independent royal dynasties in Yorubaland.
Ifẹ̀ is an ancient Yoruba city in south-western Nigeria founded sometime between the years 500 BC-1000 BC. By 900AD, the city had become an important West African emporium producing sophisticated art forms. The city is located in present-day Osun State. Ifẹ̀ is about 218 kilometers northeast of Lagos with a population of over 500,000 people, which is the highest in Osun State according to population census of 2006.
Oba Sir Titus Martins Adesoji Tadeniawo Aderemi, alias Adesoji AderemiKCMG, KBE, was a Nigerian political figure and Yoruba traditional ruler as the Ooni (King) of Ife from 1930 until 1980. He served as the governor of Western Region, Nigeria between 1960 and 1962.
Efon-Alaaye is a town in the Ekiti State of southwestern Nigeria, inhabited by the Yoruba people. The population in 1983 was over 100,000. It belongs to Efon Local Government, one of the largest local governments in Ekiti State.
Ọ̀rànmíyàn, also known as Ọranyan, was a legendary Yoruba king from the kingdom of Ile-Ife, and the founder of the Oyo Empire. Although he was the youngest of the descendants of Oduduwa, he became the prime heir of Oduduwa upon his return to claim his grandfather's throne.
Ado-Odo is the metropolitan headquarters of the ancient kingdom of Ado, renowned for its Oduduwa/Obatala temple, the ancient fortress of the traditional practice of Ifá. Oodu'a is also regarded by traditionalists as the mother of all other deities. All of these made Ado an inviolate territory in western Yorubaland—the same "father-figure" status accorded to Ile-Ife. Unlike the other kingdoms, which had at one time or the other engaged in the internecine wars that ravaged Yorubaland in the nineteenth century, Ado stood out as an unconquered sanctuary city-state throughout the period.
Nigerian traditional rulers often derive their titles from the rulers of independent states or communities that existed before the formation of modern Nigeria. Although they do not have formal political power, in many cases they continue to command respect from their people and have considerable influence in their community.
Alayeluwa Oba Okunade Sijuwade CFR was the fiftieth traditional ruler or Ooni of Ife from 1980 to his death in 2015, taking the regnal name Olubuse II. He was the traditional ruler of the Yoruba Kingdom of Ile-Ife a traditional Yoruba state based in the town of Ife in Osun State, Nigeria. He was crowned on 6 December 1980 in a ceremony attended by the Emir of Kano, Oba of Benin, Amayanabo of Opobo and Olu of Warri, as well as by representatives of the Queen of the United Kingdom.
Adelekan Olubuse I was the 46th Ooni of Ife, a paramount traditional ruler of Ile Ife, the ancestral home of the Yorubas. He succeeded Ooni Derin Ologbenla and was succeeded by Ooni Adekola.
Ooni Adekola was the 47th Ooni of Ife, a paramount traditional ruler of Ile Ife, the ancestral home of the Yorubas. He succeeded Ooni Adelekan Olubuse I and was succeeded by Ooni Ademiluyi Ajagun.
Abayomi Adebayo Barber was a Nigerian contemporary artist who was the mentor of the Abayomi Barber Art School in Lagos, Nigeria. He is an important modern art figure in Nigeria but less well known in the Western World. He is best known for the application of naturalism and surrealism methods in his art works. Some of his signature works include life sized busts of former Nigerian president, Murtala Mohammed and the former Oba of Ile-Ife, Adesoji Aderemi, another famous work is an oil painting of Shehu Shagari.
Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi is the 51st and current Ooni of Ife. He is the traditional ruler and monarch of the Yoruba kingdom of Ile-Ife. He ascended to the throne after the passing of Oba Okunade Sijuwade in August 2015.
Ronke Ademiluyi-Ogunwusi is a Nigerian fashion entrepreneur. She is a British-Nigerian Olori (queen) of the Ife Kingdom, born to a scion of the royal family. She is the great-granddaughter of the late Ooni Ajagun Ademiluyi, 48th King of the Ile-Ife Kingdom in Southwest Nigeria. She is married to Ooni Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, the 51st Ooni of Ife.
The Yoruba Names Project is a documentation project set up to ensure the transfer of language and cultural resources of Yoruba language into a publicly accessible online format. It was launched on February 19, 2016.
Alara is the royal title of the king of Ilara-Mokin land in Nigeria. The Alara may be addressed as Oba, like rulers in other Yoruba kingdoms, or as His Royal Majesty. Alara is also known to be unquestionable, with an authority that is said to be next to the gods.
Ogiame Atuwatse III is a Nigerian traditional king of the Kingdom of Warri in the Delta State. He was born Utieyinoritsetsola Emiko, also known as Tsola Emiko, on April 2, 1984 to Olu Atuwatse II, the 19th Olu of Warri, and Gladys Durorike Emiko. He is also a descendant of Olu Akengbuwa.
Lowa Ajani Anibijuwon Omisore was a Yoruba aristocratic chief in Ife, British Nigeria who founded the town of Ayepe-Olode and founded the Omisore dynasty. He was granted the title of Lowa by Ooni (King) Adelekan Olubuse I of Ife, making him second-in-command to the Ooni. He subsequently served as a regent and a kingmaker in Ife, crowning Ademiluyi Ajagun and Adesoji Aderemi as Ooni. He led and managed the construction of Ife's major road networks under the wishes of Ooni Ajagun and later founded the town of Ayepe-Olode, which he transformed from a desolate jungle that was previously used by animal hunters.
The 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Nigerian writer Wole Soyinka "who in a wide cultural perspective and with poetic overtones fashions the drama of existence." He is the first African recipient of the prize.
