Home Region:  West Africa (Africa)

Classical Ife

G SC New WA  ni_yoruba_classic

Preceding:
[continuity; Preclassic Ife] [continuity]   Update here

Succeeding:
No Polity found. Add one here.

No General Descriptions provided.

General Variables
Identity and Location
Utm Zone:
31 N  
Original Name:
Classical Ife  
Capital:
Ife  
Alternative Name:
Ile-Ife  
Uhe  
Ufe  
Organa  
Temporal Bounds
Peak Years:
[1,000 CE ➜ 1,200 CE]  
[1,250 CE ➜ 1,350 CE]  
Duration:
[1,000 CE ➜ 1,400 CE]  
Political and Cultural Relations
Succeeding Entity:
Postclassic Ife  
Relationship to Preceding Entity:
continuity  
Preceding Entity:
UNCLEAR:    [continuity]  
Language
Linguistic Family:
Yoruboid  
Edoid  
Language:
Yoruba  
Bini  
Religion
Religious Tradition:
Yoruba Religions  
Social Complexity Variables
Social Scale
Population of the Largest Settlement:
[70,000 to 105,000] people  
Hierarchical Complexity
Professions
Professional Priesthood:
inferred present  
Bureaucracy Characteristics
Law
Specialized Buildings: polity owned
Market:
inferred present  
Transport Infrastructure
Road:
inferred present  
Port:
present  
Special-purpose Sites
Trading Emporia:
present  
Special Purpose Site:
present  
Information / Writing System
Written Record:
absent  
Script:
absent  
Phonetic Alphabetic Writing:
absent  
Non Phonetic Writing:
absent  
Information / Kinds of Written Documents
Scientific Literature:
absent  
Sacred Text:
absent  
Religious Literature:
absent  
Practical Literature:
absent  
Philosophy:
absent  
Lists Tables and Classification:
absent  
History:
absent  
Fiction:
absent  
Calendar:
absent  
Information / Money
Token:
present  
Precious Metal:
inferred absent  
Paper Currency:
inferred absent  
Indigenous Coin:
inferred absent  
Foreign Coin:
inferred absent  
Article:
inferred absent  
Information / Postal System
Information / Measurement System
Weight Measurement System:
inferred present  
Volume Measurement System:
inferred present  
Length Measurement System:
inferred present  
Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)
Fortifications
Military use of Metals
Projectiles
Handheld weapons
Animals used in warfare
Armor
Naval technology
Religion Tolerance Nothing coded yet.
Human Sacrifice Nothing coded yet.
Crisis Consequences Nothing coded yet.
Power Transitions Nothing coded yet.

NGA Settlements:

Year Range Classical Ife (ni_yoruba_classic) was in:
Home NGA: None

General Variables
Identity and Location



Alternative Name:
Ile-Ife

"The city of Ife (or more formally Ile-Ife) is located on a broad plain surrounded by wetlands at the intersection of forest and savanna. [...] Ife has been known by various names in the wider southern Nigerian area over the course of its long history. In the Edo capital of Benin City, for example, Ife is referred to as Uhe. In the Itsekiri Yoruba area, this city is identified as Ufe. This same term, Ufe (Youfi), also is the name by which this city seems to appear in the earliest related written account[...]. A 1375 Spanish trade map known as the Catalan Atlas also appears to reference ancient Ife under the name Rey de Organa, i.e. King of Organa (Obayemi 1980:92), although repositioned toward the central Sahara. [...] In mythic terms Ife is identified as the site not only of human origins but also world and deity creation as well. This is evoked in the city’s fuller name, Ile-Ife, literally “house (ile) of Ife,” or more precisely “The house from which humanity, civilization, divine kingship, and so on spread to other places.” " [1]

[1]: (Blier 2015: 2-6)

Alternative Name:
Uhe

"The city of Ife (or more formally Ile-Ife) is located on a broad plain surrounded by wetlands at the intersection of forest and savanna. [...] Ife has been known by various names in the wider southern Nigerian area over the course of its long history. In the Edo capital of Benin City, for example, Ife is referred to as Uhe. In the Itsekiri Yoruba area, this city is identified as Ufe. This same term, Ufe (Youfi), also is the name by which this city seems to appear in the earliest related written account[...]. A 1375 Spanish trade map known as the Catalan Atlas also appears to reference ancient Ife under the name Rey de Organa, i.e. King of Organa (Obayemi 1980:92), although repositioned toward the central Sahara. [...] In mythic terms Ife is identified as the site not only of human origins but also world and deity creation as well. This is evoked in the city’s fuller name, Ile-Ife, literally “house (ile) of Ife,” or more precisely “The house from which humanity, civilization, divine kingship, and so on spread to other places.” " [1]

[1]: (Blier 2015: 2-6)

Alternative Name:
Ufe

"The city of Ife (or more formally Ile-Ife) is located on a broad plain surrounded by wetlands at the intersection of forest and savanna. [...] Ife has been known by various names in the wider southern Nigerian area over the course of its long history. In the Edo capital of Benin City, for example, Ife is referred to as Uhe. In the Itsekiri Yoruba area, this city is identified as Ufe. This same term, Ufe (Youfi), also is the name by which this city seems to appear in the earliest related written account[...]. A 1375 Spanish trade map known as the Catalan Atlas also appears to reference ancient Ife under the name Rey de Organa, i.e. King of Organa (Obayemi 1980:92), although repositioned toward the central Sahara. [...] In mythic terms Ife is identified as the site not only of human origins but also world and deity creation as well. This is evoked in the city’s fuller name, Ile-Ife, literally “house (ile) of Ife,” or more precisely “The house from which humanity, civilization, divine kingship, and so on spread to other places.” " [1]

[1]: (Blier 2015: 2-6)

Alternative Name:
Organa

"The city of Ife (or more formally Ile-Ife) is located on a broad plain surrounded by wetlands at the intersection of forest and savanna. [...] Ife has been known by various names in the wider southern Nigerian area over the course of its long history. In the Edo capital of Benin City, for example, Ife is referred to as Uhe. In the Itsekiri Yoruba area, this city is identified as Ufe. This same term, Ufe (Youfi), also is the name by which this city seems to appear in the earliest related written account[...]. A 1375 Spanish trade map known as the Catalan Atlas also appears to reference ancient Ife under the name Rey de Organa, i.e. King of Organa (Obayemi 1980:92), although repositioned toward the central Sahara. [...] In mythic terms Ife is identified as the site not only of human origins but also world and deity creation as well. This is evoked in the city’s fuller name, Ile-Ife, literally “house (ile) of Ife,” or more precisely “The house from which humanity, civilization, divine kingship, and so on spread to other places.” " [1]

[1]: (Blier 2015: 2-6)


Temporal Bounds
Peak Years:
[1,000 CE ➜ 1,200 CE]

"The phenomenal elaboration of material culture in the first four centuries of the second millennium A.D. have been identified as the watershed in the cultural florescence of Ile-Ife (Eyo, 1974b; Garlake, 1974, 1977; Willett, 1973), prompting Willett (1967, 1973) to call it the Classical era. I have elsewhere proposed that the Classical period can be subdivided into two phases: A.D. 1000–1200 and A.D. 1200–1400 (Ogundiran, 2001, 2003). The earlier phase was characterized by the construction of concentric walls that defined the new urban landscape (Ozanne, 1969); the florescence of art in durable media, such as copper alloys, terracotta, and granite stones, much of which serviced the royal court and the religious cults (Willett, 1967); the setting up of large-scale production of glass beads about 1.6 km. from the center of the city (Ajetunmobi, 1989; Eluyemi, 1987); the construction of large-scale impluvium houses (houses with an open central courtyard) and extensive potsherd and stone pavements around the city (Agbaje-Williams, 2001; Garlake, 1975, 1977; Ogunfolakan, 1994); and the elaboration of iconography and rituals (Eyo, 1974a, 1974b). Sacred kingship was fully developed during this period. Human sacrifice either began or increased during the eleventh century A.D., sometimes accompanying the elite burials or associated with state rituals. Mortuary goods, such as glass and carnelian beads, copper alloy sculptures and adornment, indicate the orientation of the elite towards external commerce (Garlake, 1974, p. 122)." [1] "The main art-producing period of early Ife, what I define as the florescence era (Ogundiran’s Classical Period), is distinguished by both roulette- and corddecorated ceramics. Within a relatively short time span in this period, in what I identify as Ife’s high florescence era, most of the early arts appear to have been made. One can date this latter period to c. 1250–1350 CE based on a range of factors, including the thermoluminescence tests of the extant clay core in metal works and the likely reign era of OObalufon II as delimited in Ife oral histories and king lists." [2]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2005: 150)

[2]: (Blier 2015: 44)

Peak Years:
[1,250 CE ➜ 1,350 CE]

"The phenomenal elaboration of material culture in the first four centuries of the second millennium A.D. have been identified as the watershed in the cultural florescence of Ile-Ife (Eyo, 1974b; Garlake, 1974, 1977; Willett, 1973), prompting Willett (1967, 1973) to call it the Classical era. I have elsewhere proposed that the Classical period can be subdivided into two phases: A.D. 1000–1200 and A.D. 1200–1400 (Ogundiran, 2001, 2003). The earlier phase was characterized by the construction of concentric walls that defined the new urban landscape (Ozanne, 1969); the florescence of art in durable media, such as copper alloys, terracotta, and granite stones, much of which serviced the royal court and the religious cults (Willett, 1967); the setting up of large-scale production of glass beads about 1.6 km. from the center of the city (Ajetunmobi, 1989; Eluyemi, 1987); the construction of large-scale impluvium houses (houses with an open central courtyard) and extensive potsherd and stone pavements around the city (Agbaje-Williams, 2001; Garlake, 1975, 1977; Ogunfolakan, 1994); and the elaboration of iconography and rituals (Eyo, 1974a, 1974b). Sacred kingship was fully developed during this period. Human sacrifice either began or increased during the eleventh century A.D., sometimes accompanying the elite burials or associated with state rituals. Mortuary goods, such as glass and carnelian beads, copper alloy sculptures and adornment, indicate the orientation of the elite towards external commerce (Garlake, 1974, p. 122)." [1] "The main art-producing period of early Ife, what I define as the florescence era (Ogundiran’s Classical Period), is distinguished by both roulette- and corddecorated ceramics. Within a relatively short time span in this period, in what I identify as Ife’s high florescence era, most of the early arts appear to have been made. One can date this latter period to c. 1250–1350 CE based on a range of factors, including the thermoluminescence tests of the extant clay core in metal works and the likely reign era of OObalufon II as delimited in Ife oral histories and king lists." [2]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2005: 150)

[2]: (Blier 2015: 44)


Duration:
[1,000 CE ➜ 1,400 CE]

"The phenomenal elaboration of material culture in the first four centuries of the second millennium A.D. have been identified as the watershed in the cultural florescence of Ile-Ife (Eyo, 1974b; Garlake, 1974, 1977; Willett, 1973), prompting Willett (1967, 1973) to call it the Classical era. I have elsewhere proposed that the Classical period can be subdivided into two phases: A.D. 1000–1200 and A.D. 1200–1400 (Ogundiran, 2001, 2003). The earlier phase was characterized by the construction of concentric walls that defined the new urban landscape (Ozanne, 1969); the florescence of art in durable media, such as copper alloys, terracotta, and granite stones, much of which serviced the royal court and the religious cults (Willett, 1967); the setting up of large-scale production of glass beads about 1.6 km. from the center of the city (Ajetunmobi, 1989; Eluyemi, 1987); the construction of large-scale impluvium houses (houses with an open central courtyard) and extensive potsherd and stone pavements around the city (Agbaje-Williams, 2001; Garlake, 1975, 1977; Ogunfolakan, 1994); and the elaboration of iconography and rituals (Eyo, 1974a, 1974b). Sacred kingship was fully developed during this period. Human sacrifice either began or increased during the eleventh century A.D., sometimes accompanying the elite burials or associated with state rituals. Mortuary goods, such as glass and carnelian beads, copper alloy sculptures and adornment, indicate the orientation of the elite towards external commerce (Garlake, 1974, p. 122)." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2005: 150)


Political and Cultural Relations
Succeeding Entity:
Postclassic Ife

"The archaeological sequence of Ile-Ife has been broadly delineated into three major cultural-historical periods (Eyo, 1974a, p. 409; Willett, 1967a). These are: "pre-Classic" (pre-twelfth century), "Classic" (twelfth-sixteenth century), and "post-Classic" (sixteenth-nineteenth century) periods." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2002: 41)


Relationship to Preceding Entity:
continuity

"The archaeological sequence of Ile-Ife has been broadly delineated into three major cultural-historical periods (Eyo, 1974a, p. 409; Willett, 1967a). These are: "pre-Classic" (pre-twelfth century), "Classic" (twelfth-sixteenth century), and "post-Classic" (sixteenth-nineteenth century) periods. Historical investigations indicate that the period began about the fifth century AD with the fusion of scattered independent villages into multivillage polities, each characterized by a central agency of coordination but without powerful royal dynasties, centralized governments, or urban centers (Obayemi, 1985, p. 261). A formal kingship institution and an urban center were forged from these loose sociopolitical unions between the tenth and eleventh centuries to herald what has been described as the Oduduwa or Classical period (Adediran, 1992; Olomola, 1992, pp. 51-61 Willett, 1967a)." [1]

[1]: <(Ogundiran 2002: 41)


Preceding Entity:
Preclassic Ife

"The archaeological sequence of Ile-Ife has been broadly delineated into three major cultural-historical periods (Eyo, 1974a, p. 409; Willett, 1967a). These are: "pre-Classic" (pre-twelfth century), "Classic" (twelfth-sixteenth century), and "post-Classic" (sixteenth-nineteenth century) periods. Historical investigations indicate that the period began about the fifth century AD with the fusion of scattered independent villages into multivillage polities, each characterized by a central agency of coordination but without powerful royal dynasties, centralized governments, or urban centers (Obayemi, 1985, p. 261). A formal kingship institution and an urban center were forged from these loose sociopolitical unions between the tenth and eleventh centuries to herald what has been described as the Oduduwa or Classical period (Adediran, 1992; Olomola, 1992, pp. 51-61 Willett, 1967a)." [1]

[1]: <(Ogundiran 2002: 41)


Language
Linguistic Family:
Yoruboid

"However, this community of practice was not an ethnic nation. In fact, it was multilingual, encompassing several dialects of the Yorùbá language and the Bini (Edo) language, and it succeeded in absorbing the individuals and families from other cultural groups, such as the Nupe and Djerma, into its fold during the Classical period." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 138)

Linguistic Family:
Edoid

"However, this community of practice was not an ethnic nation. In fact, it was multilingual, encompassing several dialects of the Yorùbá language and the Bini (Edo) language, and it succeeded in absorbing the individuals and families from other cultural groups, such as the Nupe and Djerma, into its fold during the Classical period." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 138)


Language:
Yoruba

"However, this community of practice was not an ethnic nation. In fact, it was multilingual, encompassing several dialects of the Yorùbá language and the Bini (Edo) language, and it succeeded in absorbing the individuals and families from other cultural groups, such as the Nupe and Djerma, into its fold during the Classical period." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 138)

Language:
Bini

"However, this community of practice was not an ethnic nation. In fact, it was multilingual, encompassing several dialects of the Yorùbá language and the Bini (Edo) language, and it succeeded in absorbing the individuals and families from other cultural groups, such as the Nupe and Djerma, into its fold during the Classical period." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 138)


Religion
Religious Tradition:
Yoruba Religions

" Although Ilé-Ifè. was not by any means the sole inventor of the òrìsà pantheon, it played a dominant role in standardizing and promoting a version of it. It was the place where the ancestral deities that had evolved out of Ifè’s own local political experience were integrated into the existing pan-regional deities. The city’s intellectuals also gave most of those existing pan-regional deities their own flavor by domesticating them as local deities. One of those methods of domestication was the insistence that those deities had their origins in Ilé-Ifè. The Ifè intellectuals worked with the same cosmogony that was widely known to their neighbors, but they filled it with Ifè-centric dramatis personae. As a result, a new ritual field that was an amalgamation of the regional and local elements was created, and the intellectuals of the city promoted it as a universal experience. In other words, Ilé-Ifè was the place of coalescence where “the ways of the òrìsà” from different parts of the Yorùbá region, before and during the Classical period, were integrated, repackaged, and standardized." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 129-130)



Social Complexity Variables
Social Scale
Population of the Largest Settlement:
[70,000 to 105,000] people

Inhabitants. "The same density estimates can be applied to another but slightly earlier Yoruba town, Ife. The site of Ife is considered to have three phases: Preclassic, Classic (fourteenth century AD, when the site covered 12 sq km), and Postclassic (Agbaje-Williams 1991; Eyo 1974; Willett 1967). Applying the Igboho density estimates to the Ile-Ife population gives us a range from 71,856 to 105,263 persons, similar to that at Old Oyo and not out of line with historical accounts." [1] "One estimate put the population in the range of 70,000–105,000 during the mid-fourteenth century." [2]

[1]: (Kusimba, Barut Kusimba and Agbaje-Williams 2006: 157)

[2]: (Ogundiran 2020: 68)


Hierarchical Complexity
Professions
Professional Priesthood:
present

Suggested, in the following quote, both by the fact that one needed much training to become a babaláwo, and by the fact that a babaláwo "transacted exclusively in the life of the mind". "The master ifá diviner, the babaláwo, was the fountain of knowledge in the Yorùbá community of practice. The babaláwo was (and still is) a learned man who sought to solve material, social, spiritual, and ailing problems through processes of diagnosis and prescription that came out of learning and knowledge. An authority on metaphysics, everyday riddles, and religion, he was required to have an in-depth understanding of the history, sociology, and philosophy associated with each of the deities and the other forces that inhabited the Yorùbá world. Through his divination, he prescribed the sacrifices that were appropriate for the òrìsà, the ajogun (malevolent forces), and the ancestors in order to solve his clients’ problems. His position required many years of training and a lifelong search for knowledge. He transacted exclusively in the life of the mind, not only to seek causal relationships but also to understand the deep meanings of those relationships. The babaláwo was the focal point of civic and religious life and was accessible to everyone in private or public spaces for consultation “on every undertaking” or whenever there was any doubt about the future." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 132)


Bureaucracy Characteristics
Law
Specialized Buildings: polity owned
Market:
present

The following suggests the existence of markets. "Of the various axes of Ifè.’s interaction sphere, none was as important as the northern axis. This strategic area linked Ilé-Ifè with the trade termini on the River Niger and gave the Yorùbá world access to the commercial traffic between the Western Sudan and the Mediterranean. Saharan copper and salt, as well as Mediterranean and Chinese silk and other clothing materials, were entering the Yorùbá region from across the Niger by the eleventh or twelfth century in exchange for sundry rain forest goods, of which Ifè glass beads and ivory were the most highly prized. Therefore, early in its development, Ilé-Ifè employed military and diplomatic strategies to open up and protect the trade routes to the River Niger, especially between Moshi and Osin tributaries. These efforts are encapsulated in the oral traditions regarding the activities of Òrànmíyàn, who is said to have launched military campaigns in the River Niger area. The stories of this legendary figure reveal Ilé-Ifè’s efforts to secure the safe passage of its exports and imports across the river. Indeed, Ifè trading stations were located in this zone of trading termini, in addition to several Yorùbá-speaking communities that occupied a 310-kilometer stretch of land on both banks of River Niger for most of the Classical period. This was a zone of transition in which trading stations, and port towns and villages received exports from Ilé-Ifè and other parts of the Yorùbá world and imports from the Sudan." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 115)


Transport Infrastructure
Road:
present

The following quote implies road maintenance on the part of Ife as well as neighbouring polities. "Protecting the trade routes on which these valuables traveled was an important concern for all the trading partners along the “Bead Road,” which stretched from Ilé-Ifè to the Moshi-Niger area and as far as the Niger Bend in present-day Mali." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 108)


Port:
present

"Of the various axes of Ifè’s interaction sphere, none was as important as the northern axis. This strategic area linked Ilé-Ifè with the trade termini on the River Niger and gave the Yorùbá world access to the commercial traffic between the Western Sudan and the Mediterranean. Saharan copper and salt, as well as Mediterranean and Chinese silk and other clothing materials, were entering the Yorùbá region from across the Niger by the eleventh or twelfth century in exchange for sundry rain forest goods, of which Ifè glass beads and ivory were the most highly prized. Therefore, early in its development, Ilé-Ifè employed military and diplomatic strategies to open up and protect the trade routes to the River Niger, especially between Moshi and Osin tributaries. These efforts are encapsulated in the oral traditions regarding the activities of Òrànmíyàn, who is said to have launched military campaigns in the River Niger area. The stories of this legendary figure reveal Ilé-Ifè’s efforts to secure the safe passage of its exports and imports across the river. Indeed, Ifè trading stations were located in this zone of trading termini, in addition to several Yorùbá-speaking communities that occupied a 310-kilometer stretch of land on both banks of River Niger for most of the Classical period. This was a zone of transition in which trading stations, and port towns and villages received exports from Ilé-Ifè and other parts of the Yorùbá world and imports from the Sudan." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 115)


Special-purpose Sites
Trading Emporia:
present

"Of the various axes of Ifè.’s interaction sphere, none was as important as the northern axis. This strategic area linked Ilé-Ifè with the trade termini on the River Niger and gave the Yorùbá world access to the commercial traffic between the Western Sudan and the Mediterranean. Saharan copper and salt, as well as Mediterranean and Chinese silk and other clothing materials, were entering the Yorùbá region from across the Niger by the eleventh or twelfth century in exchange for sundry rain forest goods, of which Ifè glass beads and ivory were the most highly prized. Therefore, early in its development, Ilé-Ifè employed military and diplomatic strategies to open up and protect the trade routes to the River Niger, especially between Moshi and Osin tributaries. These efforts are encapsulated in the oral traditions regarding the activities of Òrànmíyàn, who is said to have launched military campaigns in the River Niger area. The stories of this legendary figure reveal Ilé-Ifè’s efforts to secure the safe passage of its exports and imports across the river. Indeed, Ifè trading stations were located in this zone of trading termini, in addition to several Yorùbá-speaking communities that occupied a 310-kilometer stretch of land on both banks of River Niger for most of the Classical period. This was a zone of transition in which trading stations, and port towns and villages received exports from Ilé-Ifè and other parts of the Yorùbá world and imports from the Sudan." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 115)


Special Purpose Site:
present

Trading emporia. "Of the various axes of Ifè.’s interaction sphere, none was as important as the northern axis. This strategic area linked Ilé-Ifè with the trade termini on the River Niger and gave the Yorùbá world access to the commercial traffic between the Western Sudan and the Mediterranean. Saharan copper and salt, as well as Mediterranean and Chinese silk and other clothing materials, were entering the Yorùbá region from across the Niger by the eleventh or twelfth century in exchange for sundry rain forest goods, of which Ifè glass beads and ivory were the most highly prized. Therefore, early in its development, Ilé-Ifè employed military and diplomatic strategies to open up and protect the trade routes to the River Niger, especially between Moshi and Osin tributaries. These efforts are encapsulated in the oral traditions regarding the activities of Òrànmíyàn, who is said to have launched military campaigns in the River Niger area. The stories of this legendary figure reveal Ilé-Ifè’s efforts to secure the safe passage of its exports and imports across the river. Indeed, Ifè trading stations were located in this zone of trading termini, in addition to several Yorùbá-speaking communities that occupied a 310-kilometer stretch of land on both banks of River Niger for most of the Classical period. This was a zone of transition in which trading stations, and port towns and villages received exports from Ilé-Ifè and other parts of the Yorùbá world and imports from the Sudan." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 115)


Information / Writing System
Written Record:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Script:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Phonetic Alphabetic Writing:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Non Phonetic Writing:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Information / Kinds of Written Documents
Scientific Literature:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Sacred Text:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Religious Literature:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Practical Literature:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Philosophy:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Lists Tables and Classification:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


History:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Fiction:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Calendar:
absent

The following quote suggests that a Yoruba written alphabet was invented in the nineteenth century. "Àjàyí[...] returned in 1841 to the Bight of Benin and the Bight of Biafra. Now officially known as Samuel Crowther, he [...] was the architect of Yorùbá modernization through his efforts as a linguist to reduce the Yorùbá language to writing, a major revolution in Yorùbá cultural and intellectual history. His accomplishments in this regard included the translation of the Bible into Yorùbá and the development of the first Yorùbá dictionary." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 391)


Information / Money
Token:
present

Strings, "standard measurements of beads", possibly glass beads. "Given their quality as a high-value and low-bulk commodity, long-distance travelers likely carried Ifè glass beads across the Yorùbá world and the adjacent areas as a means of payment for provisions on their journeys. The durability and affective qualities of these dichroic beads, especially the most common sègi, and the guarantee of their supply and demand encouraged people to use them as a means of high-value exchange and for storing wealth. We are short of evidence on whether glass beads evolved to serve as a standard currency, especially as a means of pricing. However, strings and other standard measurements of beads were likely used for purchasing high-value products and services." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 107-108)


Precious Metal:
absent

The following suggests that strings, "standard measurements of beads" and possibly glass beads were used as "money". "Given their quality as a high-value and low-bulk commodity, long-distance travelers likely carried Ifè glass beads across the Yorùbá world and the adjacent areas as a means of payment for provisions on their journeys. The durability and affective qualities of these dichroic beads, especially the most common sègi, and the guarantee of their supply and demand encouraged people to use them as a means of high-value exchange and for storing wealth. We are short of evidence on whether glass beads evolved to serve as a standard currency, especially as a means of pricing. However, strings and other standard measurements of beads were likely used for purchasing high-value products and services." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 107-108)


Paper Currency:
absent

The following suggests that strings, "standard measurements of beads" and possibly glass beads were used as "money". "Given their quality as a high-value and low-bulk commodity, long-distance travelers likely carried Ifè glass beads across the Yorùbá world and the adjacent areas as a means of payment for provisions on their journeys. The durability and affective qualities of these dichroic beads, especially the most common sègi, and the guarantee of their supply and demand encouraged people to use them as a means of high-value exchange and for storing wealth. We are short of evidence on whether glass beads evolved to serve as a standard currency, especially as a means of pricing. However, strings and other standard measurements of beads were likely used for purchasing high-value products and services." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 107-108)


Indigenous Coin:
absent

The following suggests that strings, "standard measurements of beads" and possibly glass beads were used as "money". "Given their quality as a high-value and low-bulk commodity, long-distance travelers likely carried Ifè glass beads across the Yorùbá world and the adjacent areas as a means of payment for provisions on their journeys. The durability and affective qualities of these dichroic beads, especially the most common sègi, and the guarantee of their supply and demand encouraged people to use them as a means of high-value exchange and for storing wealth. We are short of evidence on whether glass beads evolved to serve as a standard currency, especially as a means of pricing. However, strings and other standard measurements of beads were likely used for purchasing high-value products and services." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 107-108)


Foreign Coin:
absent

The following suggests that strings, "standard measurements of beads" and possibly glass beads were used as "money". "Given their quality as a high-value and low-bulk commodity, long-distance travelers likely carried Ifè glass beads across the Yorùbá world and the adjacent areas as a means of payment for provisions on their journeys. The durability and affective qualities of these dichroic beads, especially the most common sègi, and the guarantee of their supply and demand encouraged people to use them as a means of high-value exchange and for storing wealth. We are short of evidence on whether glass beads evolved to serve as a standard currency, especially as a means of pricing. However, strings and other standard measurements of beads were likely used for purchasing high-value products and services." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 107-108)


Article:
absent

The following suggests that strings, "standard measurements of beads" and possibly glass beads were used as "money". "Given their quality as a high-value and low-bulk commodity, long-distance travelers likely carried Ifè glass beads across the Yorùbá world and the adjacent areas as a means of payment for provisions on their journeys. The durability and affective qualities of these dichroic beads, especially the most common sègi, and the guarantee of their supply and demand encouraged people to use them as a means of high-value exchange and for storing wealth. We are short of evidence on whether glass beads evolved to serve as a standard currency, especially as a means of pricing. However, strings and other standard measurements of beads were likely used for purchasing high-value products and services." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 107-108)


Information / Postal System
Information / Measurement System
Weight Measurement System:
present

The phrase "standard measurements of beads", in the following quotes, implies the possible existence of a measurement system, at least one used to measure beads in terms of quantity and/or quality. "We are short of evidence on whether glass beads evolved to serve as a standard currency, especially as a means of pricing. However, strings and other standard measurements of beads were likely used for purchasing high-value products and services." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 107-108)


Volume Measurement System:
present

The phrase "standard measurements of beads", in the following quotes, implies the possible existence of a measurement system, at least one used to measure beads in terms of quantity and/or quality. "We are short of evidence on whether glass beads evolved to serve as a standard currency, especially as a means of pricing. However, strings and other standard measurements of beads were likely used for purchasing high-value products and services." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 107-108)


Length Measurement System:
present

The phrase "standard measurements of beads", in the following quotes, implies the possible existence of a measurement system, at least one used to measure beads in terms of quantity and/or quality. "We are short of evidence on whether glass beads evolved to serve as a standard currency, especially as a means of pricing. However, strings and other standard measurements of beads were likely used for purchasing high-value products and services." [1]

[1]: (Ogundiran 2020: 107-108)



Warfare Variables (Military Technologies)
Fortifications
Military use of Metals
Projectiles
Handheld weapons
Animals used in warfare
Armor
Naval technology

Human Sacrifice Data
Human Sacrifice is the deliberate and ritualized killing of a person to please or placate supernatural entities (including gods, spirits, and ancestors) or gain other supernatural benefits.
- Nothing coded yet.
- Nothing coded yet.
Power Transitions
- Nothing coded yet.