Ejigbo
Encyclopedia
Ejigbo is a prominent town in Yoruba Land
and the headquarters of Ejigbo Local Government Area, one of the oldest local government area of Osun State
in Nigeria
. Ejigbo is strategically placed in the middle position of 35 km to the North-East of Iwo, 30 km from Ogbomoso in the North and 24 km from Ede in the South East. It is about 40 km North-West of Osogbo
, the capital of Osun State
and about 95 km North-East of Ibadan
. It is part of the Ede North/Ede South/Egbedore/Ejigbo
federal constituency. The population is 138,357 according to the GeoNames geographical database. The average elevation is 426 meters.
It has an area of 373 km² and a population of 132,641 at the 2006 census. The main annual rainfall is 52.35ins though there are great deviations from this mean value from year to year. Usually, the rainy season lasts from April to October.
The postal code
of the area is 232.
of Nigeria
. It is about 40 kilometers to Oshogbo, the Capital of Osun State
of Nigeria
. The 2006 Nigerian census estimated its population to be 132,641 with a landmass of 373 square kilometers.
According to oral history, Ejigbo is an ancient settlement. Founded by Akinjole Ogiyan (abbreviation of 'Ogiriniyan), right after the old Oyo
. Ogiyan has a rich pedigree been a descendant of Oduduwa
and the ruling family of Ile-Ife. Together with his brothers, particularly the Akire, the founder of Ikire-Ile, left Ile ife with Oranya (Oranmiyan)-- the founder of old Oyo, to establish their own town. The fact that the Ogiyan,is from Ile-Ife is confirmed by ‘Ejigbo Mekun” the name of a market in Ile-Ife. Akinjole settled many other villages—spread around Yorubaland. He is the paramount ruler and prescribed authority over many if not all of them. The following town and villages, among others, were under him: Ika, Igbon, Olosinmo, Ologede, Inisa, Aato, Ijimoba, Afake, Ilawo, Inisa Edoro, Isundunrin, Olla, Ado Ori-Oke, Ayegunle, Idigba, Ibogunde, Songbe, Olorin, Osuntedo and Iwata.
Around 1835, Ejigbo came under Ibadan
-- when the Ibadan army moved to protect Osogbo
from Ilorin
invaders. In fact, detachments from Ejigbo assisted the Ibadan
army in the Ijaye, Jalumi, and Kiriji wars between 1860 and 1866. Ajayi Ogboriefon, Balogun and leader of the Ibadan army in the Jalumi war circa 1860 and 1878 was native of Ejigbo from the Akala compound and his mother, Alagbabi was the daughter of an Ogiyan of Ejigbo
. In 1934, when the then government returned to the terms of the 1893 Treaty which recognized Ibadan’s independence and gazettes the Baale and Divisional Council of Ibadan as an Independent Native Authority, five District Obas including the Ogiyan were made members of the divisional Council.
The Ogiyan and council were also gazetted as subordinated Native Authority under Ibadan for Ejigbo District Council. Although, changes were made enlarging the membership of the Council between 1937 and 1938, the five districts Obas that included the Ogiyan retained their membership of the said Divisional Native Authority.
since the 30s till present, indigenes of Ejigbo local Government area made up of more than 50% of that population. This has been drastically affecting the population of Ejigbo due to continuous migration of Ejigbo people to some neighbouring West African countries, notably, Benin Republic, Burkina Faso
, Côte d'Ivoire
, Ghana
, Liberia
, Niger Republic, and Togo
. Whereas, the international exposure of Ejigbo people is evident in Ejigbo township.
Wherever Ejigbo people are found, they live communal lifestyle. This is done in order to maintain the unity and cordial relationship they enjoy before travelling out of the country. They believed to be so established and organized in each big city and town they find themselves. For example, In Côte d'Ivoire, the Ejigbo people have a community leader they refer to as Oba of that area, such as 'Oba Bouake', 'Oba Abobo', 'Oba Dabou', 'Oba Grand Bassam', 'Oba Treichville' etc. while the 'Oba' who reside in Adjame, suburb of Abidjan is called the Oba Abidjan. He is regarded as the paramount Ejigbo community leader of Côte d'Ivoire. All those so designated Ejigbo community leaders are all recognized back home by HRM, the Ogiyan of Ejigbo.
The origin of this tradition centers on a medicine-man, or an Ifa Priest, who, in Owonri Elejigbo and Ifa divination verse is known as Sawoleje. The man helped the town in time of crisis. He was caught sleeping with the wife of an Oginyan, and was severely beaten almost to death. He then cursed the town’s people saying that unless they regularly beat themselves as they had beaten him, the town would face some calamity. The tradition goes that there must be fights in every festival, otherwise, the town would not be at peace and the health of its people would be endangered. Ejigbo in recent times, now remains one of the most peaceful of Yoruba towns; tradition says Ejigbo is never overtaken by war. The festival has now turn to annual carnival.
, cocoyam,
potato etc.), grains (maize, guinea corn,), and cowpea; cash crops like cocoa, oil palm, kola-nut, coconut and varieties of fruits.
In the ancient time, the women help in harvesting and selling of farm produce in the local markets. In some cases, such as palm oil they engage in processing by extracting oil and the kernels from their shells. The land on which they farm is tropical dry forest and savanna
which has not been very much useful in the cultivation of cash crops like cocoa and others in large quantities as obtains in other forested parts of Yoruba land. Kolanut is grown, but not in any large quantity. The farmlands are not very far from the town; therefore the people have always been urban dwellers.
Modernization has taken farming activities in Ejigbo to a world level. There are large poultry
, fisheries and animal husbandry
farms, (Ogidiolu Farms, Worgor Farms, etc.) in Ejigbo. In 2008, Ejigbo was ranked highest producer of life Cat fish in Osun State
. Mechanized Palm Oil processing plants has taken the place of manual method, and land cultivation has been greatly improved.
More so, modern commercial banks and micro-finance banks are available in the town.
. Its people and culture change with the flow. For example, many people have been converted to Christianity and Islam. The Baptist, being the dominant Christian mission in the town, now has a number of churches and it was through its efforts that the people of the town established the first full-fledged secondary Grammar School, the Ejigbo Baptist High School, followed the Answer Ud Deen Grammar School. Ejigbo is tolerant of it diverse faiths. This is demonstrated in the join celebration of the annual Orisa Ogiyan festival and other inter-religious and inter-denominational programs.
College of Agriculture
is located at Ejigbo. and a lot of other tertiary institutions in the southwest operate distance learning center at Ejigbo.
Yoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
and the headquarters of Ejigbo Local Government Area, one of the oldest local government area of Osun State
Osun State
Ọṣun State is an inland state in south-western Nigeria. Its capital is Osogbo. It is bounded in the north by Kwara State, in the east partly by Ekiti State and partly by Ondo State, in the south by Ogun State and in the west by Oyo State. The state's current governor is Rauf Aregbesola, who was...
in Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. Ejigbo is strategically placed in the middle position of 35 km to the North-East of Iwo, 30 km from Ogbomoso in the North and 24 km from Ede in the South East. It is about 40 km North-West of Osogbo
Osogbo
Osogbo is a city in Nigeria, the capital of Osun State and a Local Government Area.The Local Government Area has an area of 47 km² and a population of 156,694 at the 2006 census; the postal code of the area is 230.-Infrastructure and demographics:Osogbo lies on the railway line from Lagos to...
, the capital of Osun State
Osun State
Ọṣun State is an inland state in south-western Nigeria. Its capital is Osogbo. It is bounded in the north by Kwara State, in the east partly by Ekiti State and partly by Ondo State, in the south by Ogun State and in the west by Oyo State. The state's current governor is Rauf Aregbesola, who was...
and about 95 km North-East of Ibadan
Ibadan
Ibadan is the capital city of Oyo State and the third largest metropolitan area in Nigeria, after Lagos and Kano, with a population of 1,338,659 according to the 2006 census. Ibadan is also the largest metropolitan geographical area...
. It is part of the Ede North/Ede South/Egbedore/Ejigbo
Ede North/Ede South/Egbedore/Ejigbo
Ede North/Ede South/Egbedore/Ejigbo is a National Assembly constituency in Osun State. The constituency has been represented by Falade Ajibade since 2007.It covers the Local Government Areas of Ede South, Ede North, Egbedore and Ejigbo....
federal constituency. The population is 138,357 according to the GeoNames geographical database. The average elevation is 426 meters.
It has an area of 373 km² and a population of 132,641 at the 2006 census. The main annual rainfall is 52.35ins though there are great deviations from this mean value from year to year. Usually, the rainy season lasts from April to October.
The postal code
Postal code
A postal code is a series of letters and/or digits appended to a postal address for the purpose of sorting mail. Once postal codes were introduced, other applications became possible.In February 2005, 117 of the 190 member countries of the Universal Postal Union had postal code systems...
of the area is 232.
Brief History of Ejigbo
Ejigbo is a major Yoruba town in Osun StateOsun State
Ọṣun State is an inland state in south-western Nigeria. Its capital is Osogbo. It is bounded in the north by Kwara State, in the east partly by Ekiti State and partly by Ondo State, in the south by Ogun State and in the west by Oyo State. The state's current governor is Rauf Aregbesola, who was...
of Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. It is about 40 kilometers to Oshogbo, the Capital of Osun State
Osun State
Ọṣun State is an inland state in south-western Nigeria. Its capital is Osogbo. It is bounded in the north by Kwara State, in the east partly by Ekiti State and partly by Ondo State, in the south by Ogun State and in the west by Oyo State. The state's current governor is Rauf Aregbesola, who was...
of Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. The 2006 Nigerian census estimated its population to be 132,641 with a landmass of 373 square kilometers.
According to oral history, Ejigbo is an ancient settlement. Founded by Akinjole Ogiyan (abbreviation of 'Ogiriniyan), right after the old Oyo
Oyo
- Places :In Nigeria* The Oyo Empire or Kingdom, a former West-African empire that covered parts of modern-day Nigeria and Benin* Oyo State, a present-day state of Nigeria named after the Oyo Empire...
. Ogiyan has a rich pedigree been a descendant of Oduduwa
Oduduwa
Oduduwa Omoluabi, Olofin Adimula, Emperor of the Yoruba, phonetically written by his people as Odùduwà and sometimes contracted as Odudua or Oòdua, is generally held among the Yoruba to be the reigning ancestor of the crowned Yoruba kings....
and the ruling family of Ile-Ife. Together with his brothers, particularly the Akire, the founder of Ikire-Ile, left Ile ife with Oranya (Oranmiyan)-- the founder of old Oyo, to establish their own town. The fact that the Ogiyan,is from Ile-Ife is confirmed by ‘Ejigbo Mekun” the name of a market in Ile-Ife. Akinjole settled many other villages—spread around Yorubaland. He is the paramount ruler and prescribed authority over many if not all of them. The following town and villages, among others, were under him: Ika, Igbon, Olosinmo, Ologede, Inisa, Aato, Ijimoba, Afake, Ilawo, Inisa Edoro, Isundunrin, Olla, Ado Ori-Oke, Ayegunle, Idigba, Ibogunde, Songbe, Olorin, Osuntedo and Iwata.
Around 1835, Ejigbo came under Ibadan
Ibadan
Ibadan is the capital city of Oyo State and the third largest metropolitan area in Nigeria, after Lagos and Kano, with a population of 1,338,659 according to the 2006 census. Ibadan is also the largest metropolitan geographical area...
-- when the Ibadan army moved to protect Osogbo
Osogbo
Osogbo is a city in Nigeria, the capital of Osun State and a Local Government Area.The Local Government Area has an area of 47 km² and a population of 156,694 at the 2006 census; the postal code of the area is 230.-Infrastructure and demographics:Osogbo lies on the railway line from Lagos to...
from Ilorin
Ilorin
Ilorin is one of the largest cities in Nigeria and is the capital of Kwara State. As of 2007 it had a population of 847,582.-History:Ilorin was founded by the Yoruba, one of the three largest ethnic groups in Nigeria, in 1450...
invaders. In fact, detachments from Ejigbo assisted the Ibadan
Ibadan
Ibadan is the capital city of Oyo State and the third largest metropolitan area in Nigeria, after Lagos and Kano, with a population of 1,338,659 according to the 2006 census. Ibadan is also the largest metropolitan geographical area...
army in the Ijaye, Jalumi, and Kiriji wars between 1860 and 1866. Ajayi Ogboriefon, Balogun and leader of the Ibadan army in the Jalumi war circa 1860 and 1878 was native of Ejigbo from the Akala compound and his mother, Alagbabi was the daughter of an Ogiyan of Ejigbo
Ejigbo Palace Organization
Ejigbo is a town in Osun State, Nigeria. It is the headquarters of Ejigbo Local Government Area in Osun North-West Division, of Osun State.The presence of French oriented Bakery, popularly referred to as “Oba Abidjan Bakery” meaning – “the king of Abidjan Bakery”; is a testament to the town’s...
. In 1934, when the then government returned to the terms of the 1893 Treaty which recognized Ibadan’s independence and gazettes the Baale and Divisional Council of Ibadan as an Independent Native Authority, five District Obas including the Ogiyan were made members of the divisional Council.
The Ogiyan and council were also gazetted as subordinated Native Authority under Ibadan for Ejigbo District Council. Although, changes were made enlarging the membership of the Council between 1937 and 1938, the five districts Obas that included the Ogiyan retained their membership of the said Divisional Native Authority.
Travelling
Ejigbo indigenes are international people. Out of about a million and two hundred thousand Nigerians residing in Côte d'IvoireCôte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
since the 30s till present, indigenes of Ejigbo local Government area made up of more than 50% of that population. This has been drastically affecting the population of Ejigbo due to continuous migration of Ejigbo people to some neighbouring West African countries, notably, Benin Republic, Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso – also known by its short-form name Burkina – is a landlocked country in west Africa. It is surrounded by six countries: Mali to the north, Niger to the east, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the south, and Côte d'Ivoire to the southwest.Its size is with an estimated...
, Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire
The Republic of Côte d'Ivoire or Ivory Coast is a country in West Africa. It has an area of , and borders the countries Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso and Ghana; its southern boundary is along the Gulf of Guinea. The country's population was 15,366,672 in 1998 and was estimated to be...
, Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
, Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
, Niger Republic, and Togo
Togo
Togo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...
. Whereas, the international exposure of Ejigbo people is evident in Ejigbo township.
Wherever Ejigbo people are found, they live communal lifestyle. This is done in order to maintain the unity and cordial relationship they enjoy before travelling out of the country. They believed to be so established and organized in each big city and town they find themselves. For example, In Côte d'Ivoire, the Ejigbo people have a community leader they refer to as Oba of that area, such as 'Oba Bouake', 'Oba Abobo', 'Oba Dabou', 'Oba Grand Bassam', 'Oba Treichville' etc. while the 'Oba' who reside in Adjame, suburb of Abidjan is called the Oba Abidjan. He is regarded as the paramount Ejigbo community leader of Côte d'Ivoire. All those so designated Ejigbo community leaders are all recognized back home by HRM, the Ogiyan of Ejigbo.
Languages
Apart from Ejigbo peoples' mother tongue (Yoruba Language) and Nigeria official Language (English), some of the other foreign languages spoken today in Ejigbo include, French (second to Yoruba), Dioula (Mali) Eve (Togo), and Asante (Ghana). In Ejigbo today, along the street, hardly can you find people speaking English. They speak and transact in French instead, because they are part and parcel of the Francophone world. The Ejigbo people are found in both West African and European Francophone Cities.International Personalities
Descendants of Ejigbo people have the opportunity of having dual-nationality in every Francophone country where they dwell. In Côte d'Ivoire, for example, they are found in local and national administrative positions such as inspector of education, health administration and local government councils. The case of Togo is unique. Ejigbo descendants born in Togo before 1991 are fully integrated and have full citizenship. Among them can mention the twin-brothers Tidjani; while one was the Chief of Army Staff of late General Ghansimgbe Eyadema (former Togolese President who ruled for up to 40 years), the second brother was the Rector of the only federal University. He is currently an economic adviser to the government of Togo (the twin-brothers have Ejigbo royal family tribal marks). The parents of the Togolese international footballer, Adebayor and that of the Ivorian N°1 featherweight boxer as at 1986/87, Wahabi Spider, are from Ejigbo.Ogiyan Carnival
The festival of Orisa Ogiyan is still the most spectacular annual event in the town. During the festival, the Ogiyan, the ruler of the town is confined to his home for three months. The Orisa Oginyan festival is held at the beginning of the harvest of new yams, usually in the rainy season. The spectacular aspect of the festival is Ewo, the practice in which the people of the town divide themselves into two groups—the Isale Osolo and the Oke Mapo. They face each other in a daylong whipping fights as though in real battle.The origin of this tradition centers on a medicine-man, or an Ifa Priest, who, in Owonri Elejigbo and Ifa divination verse is known as Sawoleje. The man helped the town in time of crisis. He was caught sleeping with the wife of an Oginyan, and was severely beaten almost to death. He then cursed the town’s people saying that unless they regularly beat themselves as they had beaten him, the town would face some calamity. The tradition goes that there must be fights in every festival, otherwise, the town would not be at peace and the health of its people would be endangered. Ejigbo in recent times, now remains one of the most peaceful of Yoruba towns; tradition says Ejigbo is never overtaken by war. The festival has now turn to annual carnival.
Farming
Farming is the traditional source of economy in Ejigbo. It is based on production of food crops such as tubers (yam, cassavaCassava
Cassava , also called yuca or manioc, a woody shrub of the Euphorbiaceae native to South America, is extensively cultivated as an annual crop in tropical and subtropical regions for its edible starchy tuberous root, a major source of carbohydrates...
, cocoyam,
potato etc.), grains (maize, guinea corn,), and cowpea; cash crops like cocoa, oil palm, kola-nut, coconut and varieties of fruits.
In the ancient time, the women help in harvesting and selling of farm produce in the local markets. In some cases, such as palm oil they engage in processing by extracting oil and the kernels from their shells. The land on which they farm is tropical dry forest and savanna
Savanna
A savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4 grasses.Some...
which has not been very much useful in the cultivation of cash crops like cocoa and others in large quantities as obtains in other forested parts of Yoruba land. Kolanut is grown, but not in any large quantity. The farmlands are not very far from the town; therefore the people have always been urban dwellers.
Modernization has taken farming activities in Ejigbo to a world level. There are large poultry
Poultry
Poultry are domesticated birds kept by humans for the purpose of producing eggs, meat, and/or feathers. These most typically are members of the superorder Galloanserae , especially the order Galliformes and the family Anatidae , commonly known as "waterfowl"...
, fisheries and animal husbandry
Animal husbandry
Animal husbandry is the agricultural practice of breeding and raising livestock.- History :Animal husbandry has been practiced for thousands of years, since the first domestication of animals....
farms, (Ogidiolu Farms, Worgor Farms, etc.) in Ejigbo. In 2008, Ejigbo was ranked highest producer of life Cat fish in Osun State
Osun State
Ọṣun State is an inland state in south-western Nigeria. Its capital is Osogbo. It is bounded in the north by Kwara State, in the east partly by Ekiti State and partly by Ondo State, in the south by Ogun State and in the west by Oyo State. The state's current governor is Rauf Aregbesola, who was...
. Mechanized Palm Oil processing plants has taken the place of manual method, and land cultivation has been greatly improved.
Economic Activities
The central traditional market, popularly known as Oja Ejigbo, is located at the center of the town, in the front of palace. The market is fixed for every Saturday as is the case in many Yoruba towns, and attracts merchants from all over Yoruba town. There are also handful of other such markets. Due to commercial/agrarian nature of the town, the market is also the most favored for night shopping and other social activities. In the past, it was used as recreational center for the town, and therefore was attended by many whom even had nothing to buy or sell.More so, modern commercial banks and micro-finance banks are available in the town.
Religion Activities
Ejigbo did not escape the influence especially the nineteenth century events that permeated NigeriaNigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. Its people and culture change with the flow. For example, many people have been converted to Christianity and Islam. The Baptist, being the dominant Christian mission in the town, now has a number of churches and it was through its efforts that the people of the town established the first full-fledged secondary Grammar School, the Ejigbo Baptist High School, followed the Answer Ud Deen Grammar School. Ejigbo is tolerant of it diverse faiths. This is demonstrated in the join celebration of the annual Orisa Ogiyan festival and other inter-religious and inter-denominational programs.
Educational facilities
The readily available and affordable educational facilities is placing Ejigbo and her indigenes among the well-educated in the country. All levels of Nigerian educational facilities is available in Ejigbo. Ranging from well-equipped kindergartens, Nursery schools, Primaries schools, secondry and grammar schools and tertiary institutions. Osun State UniversityOsun State University
Osun State University is a multi-campus university established by the Osun State of Nigeria. The university currently operates six campuses distributed across the six administrative/geopolitical zones of the state...
College of Agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
is located at Ejigbo. and a lot of other tertiary institutions in the southwest operate distance learning center at Ejigbo.