Oyo is a city in
Oyo State
Oyo is a States of Nigeria, state in South West (Nigeria), southwestern Nigeria. Its capital is Ibadan, the List of Nigerian cities by population, third most populous city in the country and formerly the second most populous city in Africa. Oyo ...
,
Nigeria
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
. It was founded as the capital of the remnant of the historic
Oyo empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba people, Yoruba empire in West Africa. It was located in present-day western Nigeria (including the South West (Nigeria), South West zone, Benin Republic, and the western half of the North Central (Nigeria), North Cent ...
in the 1830s, and is known to its people as 'New Oyo' (Ọ̀yọ́ Àtìbà) to distinguish it from the former capital to the north, '
Old Oyo
Old Oyo, also known as Oyo-Ile, Katunga, Oyo-Oro, and Eyo is the site of a ruined medieval city that was once the capital of the Oyo Empire in what is now modern-day Nigeria. It has been abandoned since 1835.
It was a major cultural and politic ...
' (Ọ̀yọ́-Ilé), which had been deserted as a result of the
Yoruba Civil Wars. Its inhabitants are mostly of the
Yoruba people
The Yoruba people ( ; , , ) are a West African ethnic group who inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo, which are collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute more than 50 million people in Africa, are over a million outsid ...
, and its ruler is the
Alaafin
Alaafin, or ''The custodian of the Palace'' in the Yoruba language, is the title of the king of the Oyo Empire and present-day Oyo town of West Africa. It is the particular title of the Oba (king) of the Oyo. It is sometimes translated as ...
of Oyo.
Education
Oyo is home to five higher institutions; these are the Federal College of Education (Special),
Ajayi Crowther University,
Emmanuel Alayande University of Education (Erelu Campus and Isokun Campus)
Federal School of Surveying(The only school of surveying in Sub-sahara Africa), and Atiba University.
It houses numerous public and private secondary schools such as Oke-Olola Community Schools, Olivet Baptist High School, School of Science, Saint Benardine Girls Grammar School, Ladigbolu Grammar School, Oranyan Grammar School, Emmanuel Alayande Model High School, Aatan Baptist Comprehensive High School, Shepherd's Field International College, Golden Valley Academy, Nesto College, SPED International College etc.
There are numerous primary schools both private and public with new crop of alleged "mushroom" private schools.
Commerce
The major markets in the city include the
Akesan market, the Ajegunle market, the
Owode market, the Saabo market, Oparinde (Oja-Oke) market and the Irepo market.
Oyo houses branches of different banks such as
GT Bank (Owode),
First bank,
Zenith Bank,
Access Bank, Eco Bank,
United Bank for Africa
United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) is a multinational pan-African financial services group headquartered in Lagos Island, Lagos and known as Africa’s Global Bank. It has subsidiaries in 20 African countries and offices in London, Paris and New ...
etc and some other microfinance banks and cooperatives. It also has grocery stores and supermarkets such as the Ace Supermarket, Joba Pharmacy and Stores, Labake Stores, Jara Supermarket etc. The city is the home of many hangout spots such as the Old Oyo National Park which contains a museum(holding artifacts from the ancient Òyó Empire) and a few animals. Some hotels in Oyo include Labamba Hotel, Tees resort and bar, Begonia hotel, Adesh Hotel, Gold N Rock Hotel, Galaxy Hotel etc.
Local governance and location
The city has four LGAs viz:
Atiba LGA, headquartered at Offa-Meta;
Oyo East LGA, headquartered at Kosobo;
Oyo West LGA, headquartered at Ojongbodu and
Afijio LGA, headquartered at Jobele.
The city is centrally located on the dual carriage
A1 expressway from Lagos which links it from
Ibadan
Ibadan (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the List of Nigerian cities by population, third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano (city), Kano, with a total populatio ...
all the way to
Ilorin
Ilorin is the capital city of Kwara State located in the Western region of Nigeria. The city is a major hub for transportation and commerce in the region. . Retrieved 18 February 2007 Although Ilorin is classified under the North-Central g ...
.
Popular culture
''
Death and the King's Horseman'', a play by the
Nobel laureate
The Nobel Prizes (, ) are awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the Swedish Academy, the Karolinska Institutet, and the Norwegian Nobel Committee to individuals and organizations who make outstanding contributions in th ...
Wole Soyinka
Wole Soyinka , (born 13 July 1934) is a Nigerian author, best known as a playwright and poet. He has written three novels, ten collections of short stories, seven poetry collections, twenty five plays and five memoirs. He also wrote two transla ...
, is based on an incident that happened in Oyo in 1946.
[Author's Note]
''
The Palace Owner'', a praise poem by
Basit Ajibade is based on the prowess of Oyo kings.
Notable people
*Chief
Fela Sowande (1905–1987), a musician and composer
*Chief
Wande Abimbola (born 1932), an academician, former Vice Chancellor of the
University of Ife
Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) is a federal university in Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria. The university was founded in 1961 and classes commenced in October 1962 as the University of Ife by the regional government of Western Nigeria, which w ...
and former Senate Majority Leader of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
*
Gbenga Oluokun (born 1983), a heavyweight boxer
*
Quadri Aruna
Quadri Akinade Aruna (born 9 August 1988) is a professional Nigerian table tennis player. He competed for Nigeria at the 2012 Summer Olympics, 2016 Summer Olympics, and 2020 Summer Olympics, reaching the quarter-finals in 2016.
He is the first ...
(born 1988), a table tennis player
*
Najeem Olukokun (born 1990), a footballer
*
Olaniyi Afonja (born 1974), an actor and comedian
*
Adebayo Faleti, a writer and actor
*Archbishop
Ayo Ladigbolu (born 1938), Clergyman
*
Monsurat Sunmonu (born 1960), Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and former Speaker, Oyo State House of Assembly
*
Babajide David (born 1996), football player
* Prince Ajibola Afonja Industrialist and former chairman of First Bank Nigeria PLC
* Chief M.O.Ogunmola Historian and former Nigeria Ambassador
* Revd Dr Olasupo Ayokunle former President of Christian Council of Nigeria & Nigerian Baptist Convention
References
Notes
*
{{Authority control
Populated places in Oyo State
Cities in Yorubaland
Cities in Nigeria
1830s establishments in Africa