Ila Yara was the original kingdom founded about the 12th century by Ajagun-nla (meaning "mighty warrior or great warrior"), also nicknamed "Orangun", a legendary grandson of
Oduduwa
Oduduwa was a Yoruba divine king. According to tradition, he was the holder of the title of the ''Olofin'' of Ile-Ife, the Yoruba holy city. He ruled briefly in Ife, and also served as the progenitor of a number of independent royal dynasties ...
. The kingdom split into two after Orangun Apakiimo was installed (as the 6th Orangun) towards the end of the 15th century. A young prince Arutu, who lost the contest for the Orangun throne, led a rebellion and exodus of his supporters, and founded the
Ila, Nigeria
Ila is a local government area in Osun State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Ila Orangun.
It has an area of 303 km and a population of 62,049 at the 2006 census.
The postal code
A postal code (also known locally in variou ...
kingdom further northward (near the
Isedo
Ìsèdó (Ìsẹ̀dó or Ìsẹ̀dó-Olúmọ̀) is an ancient Igbomina kingdom in northeastern Yorubaland of Nigeria. Ìsẹ̀dó was founded as a new city-state several centuries ago (between 1250 to 1400) by Ọba'lumọ, a Prince o ...
kingdom of
Obalumo {{unreferenced, date=November 2008
The Obalúmo is a royal personage, a traditional monarch amongst the Igbomina clan of the Yorubas of West Africa. The earliest manifestation of his title dates back to the 12th century at the latest, making him a r ...
, while
Orangun Apakiimo {{Yoruba people
Orangun or Ọ̀ràngún is the title of the paramount ruler of one of the ancient Igbomina kingdoms, a sub group of the Yoruba people with its seat and capital located in Ila Orangun, central Yorubaland, presently in southwestern Ni ...
soon evacuated Ila Yara to found the
Oke-Ila
Òkè-Ìlá Òràngún (often abbreviated as Òkè-Ìlá) is an ancient city in southwestern Nigeria that was capital of the middle-age Igbomina-Yoruba city-state of the same name.
Òkè-Ìlá is a city in Ọṣun State, Nigeria. It is sit ...
kingdom further eastward (after attracting other polities including a segment of the Isedo kingdom). Both kings of the Oke-Ila and Ila kingdoms
are titled "Orangun".
{{coord missing, Nigeria
Former monarchies of Africa
States and territories established in the 12th century
Former countries in Africa