Lifestyle

Osifekunde of Ijebu: A Rare First-Person Window into Pre-Colonial Yorubaland and the Atlantic Slave Trade

Published

10 months ago

September 15, 2025

Osifekunde of Ijebu (born c. 1795) occupies a unique place in the history of West Africa and the wider Atlantic world. His personal testimony—recorded in Paris in 1838—offers one of the earliest detailed European-language accounts of Yorubaland before British colonial rule, while illuminating the operations of the 19th-century transatlantic slave trade.

Early Life in Ijebu

Osifekunde was born around 1795 in Ijebu-Ode, a key Yoruba kingdom in what is now Ogun State, Nigeria. At the time, Ijebu controlled a prosperous trade corridor linking the interior Yoruba states with the Niger Delta ports, making it a strategic node in regional commerce.

His later testimony, carefully recorded by French geographer Pascal d’Avezac-Macaya, described:
Political organisation—the authority of the Awujale (paramount ruler) and the council of chiefs.
Economic life—busy market centres and long-distance trading routes.

Religion and culture—traditional festivals and Yoruba spiritual practices that pre-dated large-scale European colonial intrusion.

These recollections provide historians with a rare insider’s view of pre-colonial Yoruba society.

Capture and Enslavement

As a young man, Osifekunde travelled toward the Niger Delta on a trading journey. Sources differ slightly on the details: some suggest he was tricked or kidnapped by Ijaw raiders, others that he was seized outright by pirates active in the slave trade.

He was sold to Portuguese slave traders and transported across the Atlantic to Brazil, which by the early 19th century had become the largest importer of enslaved Africans. Enslaved in Rio de Janeiro under a Brazilian master sometimes recorded as M. Ferreira, Osifekunde experienced the harsh realities of the Atlantic slave economy decades after Britain and other European powers had officially outlawed the trade.

Journey to Paris and Meeting with Pascal d’Avezac

Fate intervened when his Brazilian master travelled to Paris and brought Osifekunde along as a servant. In 1838, he met Pascal d’Avezac-Macaya, a French geographer and ethnographer keen to document African societies.

Recognising the rarity of a first-hand African perspective, d’Avezac recorded Osifekunde’s detailed oral account of Yoruba geography, politics and culture, and even commissioned a plaster life mask of him.

The mask—later held at the Musée de l’Homme in Paris and displayed in the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art—remains a striking physical record of this encounter.

D’Avezac presented Osifekunde’s narrative to the Société de Géographie de Paris in 1841, giving European scholars unprecedented direct testimony of West African society from an African source.

Contributions to Knowledge of Yorubaland

Osifekunde’s recollections went beyond cultural customs:

Geography and trade routes—he mapped major Yoruba towns, described travel times, and explained trade connections from the interior to coastal markets.

Political economy—his observations revealed the Ijebu’s role in controlling access between the hinterland and Atlantic ports.

Such details made his account an invaluable primary source for historians and geographers of the 19th century and remain essential for modern scholars of Yoruba history.

Legacy

Osifekunde’s life story links three continents—Africa, South America and Europe—and personifies the far-reaching networks of the Atlantic slave trade. His ability to recall the complex social, political and spiritual life of his homeland decades after enslavement demonstrates the resilience of cultural memory among the African diaspora.

Today, both his published narrative and his life mask stand as rare, powerful reminders of the human stories behind global historical forces. Modern Yoruba studies and historians of slavery continue to draw on his testimony as a direct African voice in an era when most ethnographic records were filtered through European traders or missionaries.

Sources
National Museum of African Art (Smithsonian Institution), “Life Mask of Osifekunde of Ijebu”, collection notes.

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Lifestyle

‘I didn’t secretly sell my husband’s properties’ — Mr Ibu’s widow

Published

53 minutes ago

June 28, 2026

Oluwagbenga Olaoye

The widow of late Nollywood actor John Okafor, Stella Maris Okafor, has dismissed allegations that she secretly sold her late husband’s properties and kept the proceeds to herself.
Recall that the family of the late actor, popularly known as Mr Ibu, recently opened up about their struggles and financial situation.

In a recent video now making the rounds online, while speaking to content creator King Mitchy, Stella Maris explained that the sale of the properties was carried out in line with a court order and with the consent of Mr Ibu’s two sons, Valentine Okafor and Daniel Okafor.

She further backed her claim, stating that she has the relevant documents.

“I have to show you this document. This is a court order. We—I didn’t, not me alone. My husband’s two sons, Valentine Okafor and Daniel Okafor, and I did it according to the court order. Every evidence is here. We sold the house. I am not the one that sold the house,” she stated.

She also disclosed that she currently runs an online jewellery business, explaining that her late husband had initially discouraged her from venturing into it while she was still acting.

“I have a page online where I sell jewellery, and I am still selling my jewellery. When I wanted to start this business, my late husband stopped me because I was acting. My late husband was my colleague in the industry,” she said.

She further revealed that she is planning to move out of her current residence, describing it as too expensive and saying she only relocated there due to security concerns and public pressure following her husband’s death.

“I did not intend to come to this place. It’s because of pressure and security, but I am packing out.”

Addressing claims by a young man who alleged online that he is one of Mr Ibu’s children and was denied financial support, Stella Maris said disagreements over money began shortly after the actor’s burial.

She alleged that some family members demanded that she share the money given to her during the burial for the upkeep of her children.

“Before they sold the land, we were still in the village, and they were dragging with me over the money that was given to me during the burial. They insisted that I should share the money with them. I told them that this was money given to me for my children. Why should I come and share it with you people?”

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Lifestyle

‘I was a thief in my younger years’ – Charly Boy

Published

2 hours ago

June 28, 2026

Oluwagbenga Olaoye

Nigerian activist and entertainer, Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charly Boy, has admitted that he was involved in crime during his younger years in the United States.

Charly Boy made this confession on Friday when he appeared as a guest in an interview on Arise Television’s ‘Prime Time’.

The vocal social commentator said he made several poor decisions in his younger years and engaged in activities he now looks back on with regret.

“I’ve made mistakes in my life. I’ve been a thief. I’ve done very risky things. I’ve done very stupid things, very foolish things. In fact, I have no business being here with you tonight, but I guess there’s a purpose for my life,” he said.

According to the activist, his years in America were filled with reckless choices, including involvement in financial crimes.

“I was doing white-collar crime when I was in America. I was about 25 years old. I was doing a lot of stupid stuff. That’s why I say I’ve been there,” he added.

The social commentator pointed out that rather than hide those parts of his story, he chose to document them fully in his memoir to show his complete journey from rebellion and mistakes to transformation and self-discovery.

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Lifestyle

New league of Alfas, Imams to correct past mistakes — Oluwo

Published

17 hours ago

June 27, 2026

Oluwagbenga Olaoye

The Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba Abdulrosheed Adewale Akanbi, has called for radical reforms to correct the mistakes recorded by unregistered leagues of Muslim clerics.

Oba Akanbi made the call in his remarks while endorsing the launch of a one thousand member registered league of Imams and Alfas for South West states, Edo and Delta in Ibadan on Saturday.

While affirming his full support for the coalition, Oluwo stressed that the registered league is legally binding with full recognition by the government through the Corporate Affairs Commission, CAC.

The monarch noted that “the body will create a sense of belonging through a decentralised power of the state Imams by recognizing Imams and Alfas at the local levels”.

He challenged Yoruba Imams and Alfas to participate in active politics saying, “Active politics will expose the virtues of good Muslims and further provide an opportunity to improve people’s standards.”

Oluwo also called for collaboration and consistency to ensure the newly planted league survives any challenges confronted at the germination stage.

“There may be challenges at the formation stage. I have strong hope that this registered league will strive and become greater. This is the only league of Imams and Alfas known by law, legally binding and recognized by the government. It is here to stay, fully certified and recognised by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) with registration number 9003000.

“Aside from consistency, I appeal for your active participation in politics. If you are politically powerful, the politicians will call you. You won’t run after them as we experience presently. We need you to be in power. You can be elected or appointed. Join a political party today and be active. As Muslims, you need power. The power will not come to you on a plater of gold.

“I charge you all to dedicate yourself to this course of reviving the league through a decentralized power sharing that creates a sense of belonging and togetherness for the local Imams and Alfas.

“I commend those who ensured Yorubaland, Edo, and Delta Muslims under Imams and Alfas are registered to be recognised by law. It’s an improvement and one of the testimonies that our children should be greater than us. It is not a division. It is an improvement,” he said.

The over 1,000 Imams were drawn from the six south west states – Osun, Oyo, Ondo, Lagos, Ekiti and Ogun, as well as Edo and Delta states.

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