Notes

Chapter 1 Introduction

1 In February 1976 the Nigerian government announced its intention to relocate the capital in a new Federal Capital Territory near Abuja in Niger State.

2 The Itsekiri (Ijekri) of Warri in Bendel State also speak a Yoruba dialect, but are not normally classified as a Yoruba subgroup because of cultural differences.

3 A similar hierarchy of administrative divisions developed in the French colonies. Initially the units corresponding to province, division and district in French Yorubaland were 'cercle', 'subdivision' and 'canton'. The more recent terms are 'prefecture', 'sous-prefecture', and 'arrondissement' (Benin Republic); and 'region', 'circonscription', and 'souscirconscription' (Togo) (Asiwaju, 1976a: 59;1gué and Yai, 1973: 11).

4 The number is conventionally put at sixteen. Akintoye (1971: 6) lists seventeen: Otun, Ikole, Ado, Oye, Ijero, Ido, Ikere, Akure, Ise, Emure, Efon, Imedi-Igbodo, Ara, Isan, Itaji, Obo and Ogotun. An eighteenth ñ Aiyede ñ was founded in the 19th century.

5 Namely the rulers of Ijebu Igbo, Ago Iwoye, Idowa, Owu and Ijebu-lfe.

6 The Alake was first elected in Abeokuta in 1854; the Olowu in 1855, the Agura in 1870, and the Osile in 1897. A fifth oba, the Onibara, has been recognised since the 1950s.

7 The names of many Yoruba rulers are derived from the names of their towns by the addition of a prefix, the most common being Oni or Ol-, ('owner of' . . . ) as in Onimeko of Meko, Onikoyi of Ikoyi, Olowo of Owo, etc.

Chapter 2 The pre-colonial period

1 For a recent survey of the resources available to the historian in this area, see Biobaku (ed.) (1973).

2 The oriki are praise poems recited on ritual or festive occasions. Many oriki of famous individuals or descent groups contain references to historical events passed on over several generations. For examples, see Awe (1974).

3 After 1836 the seven chiefs were the Basorun, Agbakin, Samu, Alapini, Laguna, Akiniku, and Asipa. If, as Atanda suggests, the Ona Modeke was also a member in Oyo-lle, the main question is whether there were eight Oyo Mesi before 1836, or whether the Asipa took the place of the Ona Modeke on the evacuation of the capital (cf. Atanda, 1973a: 16; Morton-Williams, 1967a: 67ñ8; Law, 1977: 73).

4 Oluyole was a member of the Basorun's descent group, and his mother was a daughter of Alafin Abiodun. He was the first of a succession of military leaders in the successor states to assume Oyo titles during the 19th century.

5 The role of Ilorin in the 19th century is due for re-evaluation. Historians from Johnson onwards have tended to see the 19th century as a period of 'Yoruba-Fulani' confrontation, a view perhaps reinforced by the later division of Nigeria into regions and subsequent political events. In this view the battle of Osogbo 'saved' the Yoruba from Fulani domination. In fact, the other Yoruba kingdoms showed few inhibitions about alliances with Ilorin, when expedient, during the 19th century, and the bulk of the Ilorin population, together with two of its principal chiefs, were Yoruba. As Law points out (1977: 5ñ7) a 'Yoruba identity' itself was a late development which owed much to the work of Saro intellectuals like Johnson.

6 In 1865, Lagos was incorporated into the West African Settlements with a Lieutenant-Governor responsible to the Governor of Sierra Leone. After 1874 it was administered as part of the Gold Coast.

Chapter 3 Kinship and the Yoruba town

1 This is also the compound described as 'lle Olowo' in Eades (1975b).

2 For detailed accounts of Yoruba kinship terminology, see Bascom (1942; 1969a: 49ñ54), Schwab (1958).

3 Isihun = 'in response to a voice'. Ijohun = 'in response to a voice' (Fadipe, 1970: 72), the 'voice' in each case being the favourable response of an Ifa. On Ifa divination see Chapter 6 and Bascom (1969b).

4 In the wake of the disturbances and massacres, mainly of Eastern Region migrants, in the northern areas of Nigeria in May and October 1966, other migrants from all over Nigeria returned to their regions of origin. In Ghana, the 'compliance order' of December 1969, which gave migrant aliens two weeks either to obtain a residence permit or to leave the country, resulted in the return of perhaps 200,000 Yoruba to Nigeria.

Chapter 4 The structure of economic opportunity

1 Western State Digest of Agricultural Statistics. The difficulties of sampling and the enormous fluctuations recorded in these statistics from year to year probably mean that they should be treated with caution.

2 Onilu = 'drummer', olola = 'surgeon', from ila, 'facial marks' or 'scars'.

3 These included most small- and medium-scale trading enterprises. A major result of the Decree was the transfer of many Lebanese-owned businesses to wealthy Nigerian entrepreneurs.

Chapter 5 Local and national politics

1 The alternative title for the Orunto is Obalufe, 'Oba of Ife town'.

2 Following Lloyd (1977). For alternative accounts, see Ayandele (1970) and Ayantuga (1965). Lloyd stresses the difficulties of reconstructing the Ijebu system, and there are important differences in these three accounts. Ipampa (= pampa) according to Lloyd were age sets. According to Ayandele they were a group of officials initially in charge of defence and military matters, and, later, of trade. According to Ayantuga (1965: 53) Pampa was a graded association which young men could join on payment of fees and on the recommendation of other members. This is similar to the Ifore described by Lloyd. Both Ayandele and Ayantuga call the age sets regberegbe. Ayantuga excludes the pampa chiefs from the Ilamuren (1965: 42), but includes the senior Osugbo chiefs, the Oluwo, Apena and Agbon.

Chapter 6 Belief systems and religious organisation

I Law, on the other hand, suggests that the early Alafin were 'humanised gods rather than deified mortals' (1977: 50).

2 Cf. Idowu (1962: 112). Idowu is using the Yoruba method of reckoning time. A market taking place every four days by English reckoning is said in Yoruba to take place 'every five-five days'ñboth the first and second market days being counted. Thus 'every ninth day' corresponds to two four-day cycles, and 'every seventeenth day' corresponds to four four-day cycles. The use of either English or Arabic names for the days of the week is now almost universal.

3 In his account of Oyo cosmology (1964a) Morton-Williams argues for a three-fold division between orun, aiye and ile, the earth associated with the Ogboni and Oro cults and the ancestors. In other accounts (Bascom, 1960a; Abimbola, 1973) the ancestors are placed in orun. There is a frequent association between orisa, also located in orun, and ancestors (e.g. Bascom, 1944: 21). Even if we accept Morton-Williams tripartite division, the opposition between orun and aiye in Yoruba thought remains important.

4 Recent accounts include Bascom (1960a), Idowu (1962), Verger (1973) and Abimbola (1973). In Oyo at least, ori is largely synonymous with other terms including eleda, ipori and olori (Bascom, 1960a: 407).

5 The Oro or bullroarer festival is a major event in many towns up to the present. Male masqueraders roam the streets, and it is believed to be fatal for a woman to see one. The masqueraders in Igbeti in 1971 only appeared after dark, though formerly they used to appear during the daytime as well. The women still observed a strict curfew. In many kingdoms, the Oro cult was formerly responsible for the execution of witches.

6 From the Arabic al-Hajj. Alhaji and the female form, Alhajiya, are the most widely used spellings throughout Nigeria.

Chapter 7 Inequality and ethnicity

1 At first sight, these figures suggest that the percentage of children in primary school in the Western State dropped in the period 1954ñ70. However, education statistics are based on official government estimates of the population. In the 1950s these were based on the 1952-3 census which was generally thought to have been an under-count. The 1970 figures were based on the inflated 1963 figures for the Western Region. The estimated population of the Western State in 1972 according to the Western State Annual Digest of Statistics was 11.8 million. The 1973 census figure, which in this case may well have been correct, was only 8.9 million. These figures therefore only give a very rough indication of relative educational performance.

2 Western State Annual Digest of Education Statistics,1972.

3 For the main patterns and their names see Johnson (1921: 104ñ9).

4 Baker (1974: 242) makes a similar point concerning the Lagos market women. Despite their numbers and political potential during the period of civilian rule, the range of issues with which they concerned themselves remained surprisingly limited. As one reason for this, Baker gives their 'traditional conception of politics as a face-to-face relationship in which individual favours are distributed by recognised authorities with whom they can identify personally'. In other words, the market women rely on network strategies to solve their problems.

5 Third National Development Plan, 1975-1980 11: 299-300.