The Yoruba tribe is
probably the largest ethnic group in West Africa and has approximately
30 million individuals, and most of them can be found in Nigeria.
There is
evidence to prove that people of the same ethnic
group have shared the region of Yorubaland, at least since the seventh century BC.
The origin of
the Yoruba has to do with mythology and revolves around
the mythical figure of Oduduwa (which means "the
special one who created the knowledge of character”). There are several
theories about how Oduduwa created the people of Yoruba,
but all of them agree that it was Him that “planted the seed” for the construction
of this community.
According to
many sources "after the disappearance of Oduduwa" a
phenomenon of the scattering of the children occurred. This resulted in the "conquest"
of various kingdoms - Owu, Ketu, Benin, Ila, Sabe, Popo, Awori, Ondo and Oyo.
From there was occurred the development, urbanization and consolidation of what would become the Yoruba confederacy of kingdoms.
Between the twelfth and eighteenth century, Ife kingdom experienced its "boom" (economic
and social). While that from the seventeenth century to the nineteen was
the Oyo kingdom that dominated the political and military level. It was
followed by the proliferation of other kingdoms, but these were
those that got the biggest improvement.
At this time
(between twelfth and nineteenth century), as it would be expected in these kingdoms, the
most common form of government is a monarchy, where the monarch
has total power. But we have also observed cases in which the
kingdom is ruled by a council of notable elders, where decisions are
taken by a group of people, which is formed by the older
men of the kingdom.
In the near
times of modernity was formed a federation of
city-states under the political control of the city-state of Oyo.
This did not last long, since the remaining Yoruba states have freed
themselves of the Oyo state dominance. Such change resulted
in a civil war.
At the same time,
Europeans (mostly British) came to these lands for the
purpose of colonization, and Yoruba people could not resist because they were weakened due
to civil war. After that, around 1960, Yorubaland was subjugated to
the Federal Republic of Nigeria. And it remains that way until today.
As a curiosity:
On a religious
level - Yoruba people began to venerate one God
(Oludumare) and believe that there are also subordinate divinities (the orishas). Today most
of them are Christian or Muslim.
On a social level - The twins who are born in a Yoruba community have always been loved and became a symbol of this culture.
On a social level - The twins who are born in a Yoruba community have always been loved and became a symbol of this culture.
Researches made at:
http://www.lmp.ucla.edu/Profile.aspx?menu=004&LangID=22
– on January 14
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoruba_people
- on January 14
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Yoruba_people - on January 14
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Yoruba_people - on January 14
Text written by the authors of the Blog
Cristiana & Margarida
