Yoruba people

=== City-states ===
{{Main|Yorubaland}}
{{See also|Oyo Empire#Political Structure}}
The monarchy of any [[city-state]] was usually limited to a number of royal lineages.<ref>A. Adelusi-Adeluyi and L. Bigon (2014) "City Planning: Yoruba City Planning" in Springer's Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures (third edition), ed. by Helaine Selin.</ref> A family could be excluded from kingship and chieftaincy if any family member, servant, or slave belonging to the family committed a crime, such as theft, fraud, murder or rape. In other city-states, the monarchy was open to the election of any free-born male citizen. In [[Ilesa]], [[Ondo City|Ondo]], [[Akure]] and other Yoruba communities, there were several, but comparatively rare, traditions of female ''Ọbas''. The kings were traditionally almost always [[Polygamy|polygamous]] and often married royal family members from other domains, thereby creating useful alliances with other rulers.<ref>{{cite journal|title=The Yoruba and Their Language Newspapers: Origin, Nature, Problems and Prospects|journal=Studies of Tribes and Tribals|year=2004|doi=10.1080/0972639X.2004.11886508|last1=Salawu|first1=Abiodun|volume=2|issue=2|pages=97–104|s2cid=194810838}}</ref> Ibadan, a city-state and proto-empire that was founded in the 1800s by a [[Multilingualism|polyglot]] group of refugees, soldiers, and itinerant traders after the fall of Ọyọ, largely dispensed with the concept of monarchism, preferring to elect both military and civil councils from a pool of eminent citizens. The city became a military republic, with distinguished soldiers wielding political power through their election by popular acclaim and the respect of their peers. Similar practices were adopted by the ''[[Ijesha|Ijẹsa]]'' and other groups, which saw a corresponding rise in the social influence of military adventurers and successful entrepreneurs. The [[Igbomina tribe|Ìgbómìnà]] were renowned for their [[agriculture|agricultural]] and hunting prowess, as well as their woodcarving, leather art, and the famous Elewe masquerade.<ref>{{Cite journal |doi=10.1086/203234 |title=The Beginnings of Agriculture in West Africa: Botanical Evidence |year=1985 |last1=Sowunmi |first1=M. A. |journal=Current Anthropology |volume=26 |pages=127–129 |s2cid=145073849}}</ref>
[[File:The belief in the god of thunder sango in the traditional Yoruba society 4.jpg|thumb|right|Depiction of a traditional [[Shango|Sango]] venerating fraternity|195px]]