Ejigbo

LGA and town in Osun State, Nigeria

Ejigbo is a prominent town in Yoruba Land in South West Nigeria, and the headquarters of Ejigbo Local Government Area, one of the oldest local government areas of Osun State. The population is around 140,000.

Understand

The average elevation is 426 metres (1,398 ft).

History

Ejigbo is an ancient settlement, which, according to oral history, was founded by Akinjole Ogiyan right after the old Oyo. Ogiyan has a rich pedigree, as a descendant of Oduduwa and the ruling family of Ile-Ife. Together with his brothers, particularly the Akire - the founder of Ikire-Ile, Ogiyan left Ile-Ife to establish their own town. The fact that the Ogiyan is from Ile-Ife, is confirmed by "Ejigbo Mekun," the name of a market in Ile-Ife. Akinjole was the paramount ruler and prescribed authority over many other small villages that settled around settlement.

Over time, Ejigbo has become subsumed in the Greater Lagos metropolitan area.

People

The indigenes of Ejigbo are a well-travelled people. They have a long history of international emigration, predominantly to Cote d'Ivoire. This has been drastically affecting the population of Ejigbo township due to continuous migration of her people to some neighbouring West African countries, notably: Benin Republic, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Liberia, Niger Republic, and Togo. This has resulted in the many varieties of languages spoken in the town. Apart from Ejigbo peoples' mother tongue (which is the Yoruba language), and the Nigeria's official language (English), some of the other foreign languages spoken today in Ejigbo include: French (second to Yoruba), Dioula (brought down from Mali), Ewe (brought down from Togo), and Asante from Ghana.

Get in

Ejigbo is about 35 km (22 mi) north-east of Iwo, 30 km (19 mi) from Ogbomosho in the north and 24 km (15 mi) from Ede in the south-east. It is about 40 km (25 mi) north-west of Osogbo, the capital of Osun State, and about 95 km (59 mi) north-east of Ibadan.

Get around

See and do

The town is home to several traditional events.

  • Ogiyan Festival. The festival of Orisa Ogiyan is still the most spectacular annual event in the town. During the festival, the Ogiyan, the ruler of the town is confined to his home for three months. The Orisa Ogiyan festival is held at the beginning of the harvest of new yams, usually in the rainy season. The Orisa is fed with new yam and epo pupa (palm oil). An important aspect of the festival is Ewo, the practice in which the people of the town divide themselves into two groups: the Isale Osolo and the Oke Mapo. The two groups face each other in a daylong whipping fights, as though in real battle. 

Do

Buy

Eat

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Learn

  • UniOsun College of Agriculture: The College of Agriculture of Osun State University is located in Ejigbo. The town is on the border between Oyo state and Osun State. The College has four departments with students admitted into their programmes.

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