Facts about Yoruba Ethnic Group

One of Nigeria’s three main ethnic groups, Yoruba, is centered in the country’s southwest. Benin and northern Togo have much smaller, dispersed clusters.

At the turn of the century, the Yoruba totaled more than 20 million people. They speak a Benue-Congo language, which is part of the Niger-Congo language family.

The majority of Yoruba men work as farmers, growing staple crops such as yams, corn (maize), and millet, as well as plantains, peanuts (groundnuts), beans, and peas as secondary crops. Cocoa is a major cash crop. Others work as traders or artisans.

Women undertake minimal farm work but control a large part of the complex market system; their standing is determined more by their market position than by their husbands’.

The Yoruba have a long history of being among Africa’s most accomplished and productive craftspeople.

The traditional Yoruba religion comprises a complex deity hierarchy, with a supreme creator and over 400 minor gods and spirits, the majority of whom have their cults and priests.

Poetry, short stories, myths, and proverbs are all part of the Yoruba language’s literature.