The Otin River is a river in

Osun State Osun State (; yo, Ìpínlẹ̀ Ọ̀ṣun), occasionally known as the State of Osun by the state government, is a state in southwestern Nigeria; bounded to the east by Ekiti and Ondo states, to the north by Kwara State, to the south by Ogun S ...

, Nigeria. It is impounded by the Eko-Ende Dam.

Legend

According to

Yoruba mythology 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 constitu ...

, the

orisha Orishas (singular: orisha) are spirits that play a key role in the Yoruba religion of West Africa and several religions of the African diaspora that derive from it, such as Cuban, Dominican and Puerto Rican Santería and Brazilian Candomblé. T ...

Otin is personified in the Otin River. She once protected the town of

Inisa Inisa is a city in Osun State in the south-western Nigeria. It is in the Yoruba cultural and ethnic region of the country, and is a trading center for cocoa and other agricultural products grown in the surrounding area. Its population as of 2007 w ...

from invasion by its enemies, and the townspeople now worship her as a result. Otin was originally from the town of Otan, but came to Inisa to help fight against invasions by its neighbors.

Region

The Otin River crosses the

Odo Otin Odo Otin is a local government area in Osun State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Okuku. It has an area of 294 km and a population of 134,110 as of the 2006 Nigerian census. The LGA takes its name from the Otin River The Oti ...

Local Government Area in the northeast of Osun state, and gives it its name. The river flows through rugged country, with elevations ranging from above sea level. Rainfall in the area is about , with the rainy season lasting from April to November. Land cover is partly tropical rainforest, but there is also widespread rotational bush farming and cash crops like cocoa, kola and plantain are grown around the settlements.

Course

The Otin River is long, with a peak discharge of per second. The drainage basin covers . It is a tributary of the

Erinle River The Erinle River is a river in Osun State, Nigeria, a right tributary of the Osun River, which it enters from the north near Ede just below the Ede Dam. Another reservoir, the new Erinle Dam, lies higher up the river. Water from the two dams sup ...

. The Eko-Ende Dam in the Irepodun LGA on the Otin River was impounded in 1973 to form a reservoir with a capacity of 5.5 MCM. The headworks were designed to supply potable water to the communities of

, Oba,

Eko-Ende Eko-Ende (or Eko Ende, Eko-Ende) is a community in the Ifelodun Local Government Area of Ọṣun State, Nigeria. Location Eko-Ende has a tropical climate, with an average temperature of . Average annual rainfall is , with peaks in July and Se ...

, Eko-Ajala,

Ikirun Ikirun is a town in Osun State, Nigeria. It is the headquarters of the Ifelodun Local Government Area. It is an historical city that derived its name from the first ruler of the town called Akinorun. Basetan was the first settler and founder ...

Iragbiji Iragbiji (also Ira-gba-iji) is a town and capital of Boripe Local Government Area, Osun State, Nigeria, sharing borders with many towns especially Ikirun and is inhabited by the Yoruba people. The population of Iragbiji people is about 164,172. ...

and Okuku. When the dam was built it flooded farmlands of the Oba people. As a quid-pro-quo, piped water was supplied to Oba. Downstream, the Erinle Dam in the

Olorunda Olorunda is a Local Government Area in Osun State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in Igbona, on the outskirts of the state capital Osogbo. It has an area of 97 km and a population of 131,761 at the 2006 census. The postal code A posta ...

LGA is an extension of the old Ede Dam on the Erinle River. The reservoir behind the Ede-Ernle dam extends about north along the Ernle River and covers the lowest portion of the Otin River.

References

Citations Sources * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Otin River Rivers of Nigeria Osun State Rivers of Yorubaland