Cotonou is a city in Benin. Its official population count was 679,012 inhabitants in 2012; however, over two million people live in the larger urban area.
Porto-Novo, also known as Hogbonu and Ajashe, is the capital of Benin. The commune covers an area of 110 square kilometres (42 sq mi) and as of 2002 had a population of 223,552 people.
The Kwa languages, often specified as New Kwa, are a proposed but as-yet-undemonstrated family of languages spoken in the south-eastern part of Ivory Coast, across southern Ghana, and in central Togo. The name was introduced 1895 by Gottlob Krause and derives from the word for 'people' (Kwa) in many of these languages, as illustrated by Akan names.
Ewe is a language spoken by approximately 20 million people in West Africa, mainly in Ghana, Togo and Benin, and also in some other countries like Liberia and southwestern Nigeria. Ewe is part of a cluster of related languages commonly called the Gbe languages. The other major Gbe language is Fon, which is mainly spoken in Benin. Like many African languages, Ewe is tonal as well as a possible member of the Niger-Congo family.
Fon is spoken in Benin, Nigeria, Togo, Ghana and Gabon by approximately 1.7 million speakers, and is the language of the Fon people. Like the other Gbe languages, Fon is an isolating language with an SVO basic word order.
The Aja also spelled Adja are an ethnic group native to south-western Benin and south-eastern Togo. According to oral tradition, the Aja migrated to southern Benin in the 12th or 13th century from Tado on the Mono River, and c. 1600, three brothers, Kokpon, Do-Aklin, and Te-Agbanlin, split the ruling of the region then occupied by the Aja amongst themselves: Kokpon took the capital city of Great Ardra, reigning over the Allada kingdom; Do-Aklin founded Abomey, which would become capital of the Kingdom of Dahomey; and Te-Agbanlin founded Little Ardra, also known as Ajatche, later called Porto Novo by Portuguese traders and the current capital city of Benin.
The Gbe languages form a cluster of about twenty related languages stretching across the area between eastern Ghana and western Nigeria. The total number of speakers of Gbe languages is between four and eight million. The most widely spoken Gbe language is Ewe, followed by Fon. The Gbe languages were traditionally placed in the Kwa branch of the Niger–Congo languages, but more recently have been classified as Volta–Niger languages. They include five major dialect clusters: Ewe, Fon, Aja, Gen (Mina), Gun and Phla–Pherá.
The Phla–Pherá (Xwla–Xwela) languages form a possible group of Gbe languages spoken mainly in southeastern and southwestern Benin; some communities are found in southeastern Togo and southwestern Nigeria. The group, comprising about ten varieties, was introduced by H.B. Capo in his 1988 classification of Gbe languages as one of the five main branches of Gbe. Additional research carried out by SIL International in the nineties corroborated many of Capo's findings and led to adjustment of some of his more tentative groupings; in particular, Phla–Pherá was divided in an eastern and a western cluster. Phla–Pherá is one of the smaller Gbe branches in terms of number of speakers. It is also the most linguistically diverse branch of Gbe, due partly to the existence of several geographically separated communities, but mainly because of considerable influence by several non-Gbe languages in the past. Some of the Phla–Pherá peoples are thought to be the original inhabitants of the region having intermingled with Gbe immigrants.
The Ewe people are a Gbe-speaking ethnic group. The largest population of Ewe people is in Ghana, and the second largest population is in Togo. They speak the Ewe language which belongs to the Gbe family of languages. They are related to other speakers of Gbe languages such as the Fon, Gen, Phla Phera, Gun, Maxi, and the Aja people of Togo, Benin and southwestern Nigeria.
Ouémé is one of the twelve departments of Benin, containing the capital of the country Porto Novo. It is subdivided into nine communes, each centred at one of the principal towns: Adjarra, Adjohoun, Aguégués, Akpro-Missérété, Avrankou, Bonou, Dangbo, Porto-Novo and Sèmè-Kpodji. In 1999, the northern section of Ouémé was split off to form the department of Plateau.
Benin is a diverse country linguistically. Of those, French is the official language, and most of the indigenous languages are considered national languages.
Zangbeto are the traditional voodoo guardians of the night among the Ogu people of Benin, Togo and Nigeria. A traditional police and security institution, the Zangbeto cult is charged with the maintenance of law and order, and ensures safety and security within Ogu communities. They are highly revered and act as an unofficial police force patrolling the streets, especially in the night, watching over people and their properties, and tracking down criminals and presenting them to the community to punish. Originally created to scare the enemy away, Zangbeto will wander the streets to detect thieves and witches, and to protect law and order.
Badagry, also spelled Badagri, is a coastal town and Local Government Area (LGA) in Lagos State, Nigeria. It is quite close to the city of Lagos, and located on the north bank of Porto Novo Creek, an inland waterway that connects Lagos to the Beninese capital of Porto-Novo. The same route connects Lagos, Ilaro, and Porto-Novo, and shares a border with the Republic of Benin. As of the preliminary 2006 census results, the municipality had a population of 241,093.
Eleme is a language spoken by Eleme people in the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria. Eleme language was originally divided into two mutual dialects of Nchia and Odido. Nchia spoken in six communities of Agbonchia, Akpajo, Alesa, Aleto, Alode and Ogale, while Odido dialect was spoken at Ebubu, Ekporo, Eteo and Onne, today, both dialects have submerged, with a few varying pronunciations.
Waci is a Gbe language of Togo and Benin. It is part of a dialect continuum which also includes Ewe and Mina also known as Gɛn. It is scattered in an area Capo designates as Ewe speaking.
Alada (Arba) is a Gbe language of Nigeria and Benin that has proven difficult to classify. Ethnologue counts Alada and Tɔli as dialects of Gun, but Capo (1988) considers it one of the Phla–Pherá languages. Kluge (2000) found elements of both Fon–Gun and Phla–Pherá.
The Gun people, also rendered Ogũ, Ogun and Egun, are an ethnic group located majorly in Lagos and Ogun State in southwestern Nigeria, and Ouémé Department in the southeast of the Republic of Benin, who speak the Gun language. The Ogu account for about 15% of the indigenous population of Lagos State and 6% of the total population of the Republic of Benin.
The Ohori are a subgroup of the Yoruba people of West Africa. The local domain of the Ohori is South-eastern Benin north of Pobè town expanding westwards to and west of the Ouémé River. Often, Ohoris, together with groups of Ifonyis, Aworis and Ketus are known collectively as 'Nagos" in Benin.
Hounkpati B Christophe Capo is a Beninese linguist, and professor of linguistics at the Université d'Abomey-Calavi in the Republic of Benin.
The Idaasha also spelt Idaaca, Idaaṣa and Idaaitsa are a group of the Yoruba people, situated in the central portions of the Collines Department of Benin, West Africa. They are based in and around the communities of Glazoué and Dassa both situated west of the Oueme River. Every year, the Idaasha organize a festival of arts and culture known as FACI to celebrate their culture and heritage, themed Àshà Ìbílẹ̀.
Benin 
