Ijebu Igbo (

Yoruba The Yoruba people (, , ) are a West African ethnic group that mainly inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo. The areas of these countries primarily inhabited by Yoruba are often collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute ...

: Ìjẹ̀bú-Igbó) is a town in

Ogun State Ogun State is a state in southwestern Nigeria. Created on 3 February 1976 from the former Western State. Ogun State borders Lagos State to the south, Oyo State and Osun State to the north, Ondo State to the east, and the Republic of Benin to the ...

, Nigeria. It is approximately a 15-minute drive north of

Ijebu Ode Ijebu-Ode is a town in Ogun State, South Western geopolitical zone in Nigeria, close to the A121 highway. The city is located 110 km by road north-east of Lagos; it is within of the Atlantic Ocean in the eastern part of Ogun State and p ...

. Ijebu Igbo, also written as Ijebu-Igbo, is the headquarters of

Ijebu North Ijebu North is a Local Government Area in Ogun State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Ijebu Igbo at . It has an area of 967 km² and a population of 284,336 at the 2006 census. The postal code of the area is 120. The local ...

Local Government Authority of Ogun State, Nigeria. The town's primary economic activities are

timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

cocoa Cocoa may refer to: Chocolate * Chocolate * ''Theobroma cacao'', the cocoa tree * Cocoa bean, seed of ''Theobroma cacao'' * Chocolate liquor, or cocoa liquor, pure, liquid chocolate extracted from the cocoa bean, including both cocoa butter and ...

, and exploitation of mineral resources and it is home to many

saw mill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ( dimens ...

s and also a developed quarry. Like all other Ijebus, the people of Ijebu Igbo speak the Ijebu dialect, which is distinct from but similar to the

Yoruba language Yoruba (, ; Yor. '; Ajami script, Ajami: ) is a language spoken in West Africa, primarily in South West (Nigeria), Southwestern Middle Belt, and Central Nigeria. It is spoken by the Ethnic group, ethnic Yoruba people. The number of Yoruba speake ...

History

It is said that the founder, Onayelu, was a great hunter who hunted the northern parts of Odo-Oluiwa; the present

, where he was a

prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

. Following the sudden demise of his father and the subsequent controversial accession to the throne of his younger brother, the Ofiranoye while Onayelu was away hunting, he decided to migrate from

to settle permanently on the large expanse of land where he had been hunting and known today as Ijebu Igbo. Ijebu Igbo forest reserve which is called the Omo forest reserve is among the 12 biggest forest reserves in Nigeria among which are: * Ijebu igbo forest reserve * Queen Elizabeth forest reserve * J1 forest reserve * J2 forest reserve * J3 forest reserve * J4 forest reserve * Apoje forest reserve and many more.

Classification

Ijebu Igbo is divided into five clans; Oke-Sopin, Oke-Agbo, Ojowo, Atikori, and Japara. An Oba (king) is enthroned to govern each of these clans. These Obas are classified as "second-class" and they all submit to the headship of the Orimolusi of Ijebu-Igbo. The Orimolusi is a first-class and he is the supreme head of Ijebu-Igbo.

Traditional Rulers in Ijebu-Igbo and its Environment

* The Orimolusi of Ijebu-Igbo * The Ebumawe of Ago-Iwoye * The Limeri of Awa * The Alaporu of Ilaporu * The Oloru of

Oru-Ijebu Oru-Ijebu is a semi-urban town located in Ijebu North local government area of Ogun State, South-Western Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal ...

* The Sopenlukale of Oke Sopin * The Bejeroku of Oke-Agbo * The Olokine of Ojowo * The Keegbo of Atikori * The Abija Parako of Japara * The Lowa of Asigidi .

Government

Orimolusi is the traditional ruler of ijebu Igbo land and presides over four local government areas and 10 Local Community Development Area (LCDA) in Ogun state Nigeria, which is the largest kingdom in Ogun state in term of land mass with more than 300 villages.

Local Government Areas

Ijebu North local government iIebu North East local government Ijebu East local government Ogun Waterside local government

Local Community Development Areas

The local governments and LCDA are all under the authority of the Orimolusi of Ijebu Igbo( Oloja Igbo). The last Orimolusi of Ijebu-Igbo was late Oba Samuel Adetayo Onasanya (Ikupakude IV), who died in 1994. Ijebu East Ogbere Ijebu East Central Ojowo Ijebu North Ijebu Igbo Ijebu North Central Oru Ijebu Igbo West Ojowo Ago Iwoye Ibipe Ijebu North East Atan Yemoji Ilese

Geography

Ijebu Igbo is the second largest town in Ogun State and the largest among Ijebus in terms of land mass, there are arable land for farming. Also there are hundreds of villages and hamlet under Ijebu Igbo. The town is bordered by

Ibadan Ibadan (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano, with a total population of 3,649,000 as of 2021, and over 6 million people within its me ...

Ikire Ikire is a town in Osun State, Nigeria. Historical background Prince Akinere, a renowned elephant hunter founded the Ikire Township. Geographical feature Irewole Local Government, Ikire is highly blessed with a conducive climate. The availability ...

, and

Ondo Ondo may refer to: Japan * Ondo, Hiroshima * Ondo (music), a style of folk music * ''Ondo'' class oiler, ships of the Imperial Japanese Navy Nigeria * Ondo City * Ondo State * Roman Catholic Diocese of Ondo * Ondo Kingdom (c. 1510–1899) People ...

High Schools & Colleges

Ijebu Igbo boasts of many

secondary schools A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

, amongst which are two of the foremost secondary schools in Nigeria, Molusi College & Abusi Edumare Academy founded on January 28, 1949 and in January 1971 respectively. Ijebu Igbo is also home to some higher institutions, such as
Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic
(AAPOLY) Which is owned by Ogun State government, established 2004 and Nigeria Prison Service Academy a first of its kind institution in

sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. These include West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the List of sov ...

Notable People from Ijebu Igbo

Ijebu Igbo is the political headquarter as well as the commercial nerve centre of Ijebu North local government with many of its indigenes playing actively on the national political stage. Ijebu igbo has also produced prominent politicians and business men in the history of Nigeria like

Mike Adenuga Michael Adeniyi Agbolade Ishola Adenuga Jr (born 29 April 1953) is a Nigerian billionaire businessman, and the fourth richest person in Africa. His company Globacom is Nigeria's second-largest telecom operator and also has a presence in Ghana ...

Abraham Adesanya Chieftain, Chief Abraham Aderibigbe Adesanya (24 July 1922 in Ijebu Igbo – 27 April 2008) was a Nigerian politician, lawyer, activist, welfarist, and liberal progressive. He was the son of a famous and powerful traditional healer, the late ...

, Olanrewaju Kassim (shokas), Olabiyi Durojaiye,

Buruji Kashamu Buruji Kashamu (19 May 1958 – 8 August 2020) was a Nigerian politician who served as a Senator representing Ogun East in the 8th National Assembly. Ogun East covers eleven local government areas: Ijebu North East, Ijebu North, Ijebu-Ode, Ijebu ...

, Hon. Bankole, Olalekan Mustapha, Abraham Adesanya, Sefiu Adegbenga Kaka and Oluwatosin Oluyemi. and more

References

{{Yoruba topics Populated places in Ogun State Towns in Yorubaland