Esa-Oke is a Yoruba town located at the Obokun Local Government Area of the Ijesa North Federal Constituency of Ife/Ijesa Senatorial District of

Osun State Osun (; ), is a state in southwestern Nigeria; bounded to the east by Ekiti and Ondo states for 84 km and for 78 km respectively, to the north by Kwara State for 73 km, to the south by Ogun State for 84 km and to the wes ...

, South-West of

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

. It is a native Ijesa (

Ijesha The Ijesha/Ilesha (written as Ìjẹ̀ṣà in Yoruba orthography) are one of the major sub-ethnicity of the Yorubas of West Africa. Ilesha is the largest town and historic cultural capital of the Ijesha people, and is home to a large kingdom o ...

) community and shares boundaries with other towns namely: Oke-Imesi,

Imesi-ile Imesi-ile is an ancient town in the northeastern part of the Obokun, Obokun Local Government in Osun State, Nigeria. In the 19th century, this town was the epicenter of the Jalumi War, Jalumi and the Kiriji War, Kiriji wars among the Yoruba people ...

, Ijebu-Ijesa, Esa-Odo, Efon-Alaaye. Omiran Adebolu, a member of the Olofin

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

of Ile-Ife, though disputably, was believed to have founded Esa-Oke after he left Ile-Ife in 1184 A.D. The traditional title of the ọba (King) is Ọwámiran of Esa Oke.

Occupation

The

people The term "the people" refers to the public or Common people, common mass of people of a polity. As such it is a concept of human rights law, international law as well as constitutional law, particularly used for claims of popular sovereignty. I ...

of Esa-Oke were predominantly

farmers A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mi ...

who specialised in growing

food Food is any substance consumed by an organism for Nutrient, nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or Fungus, fungal origin and contains essential nutrients such as carbohydrates, fats, protein (nutrient), proteins, vitamins, ...

crops such as Yam, Cassava, Maize, Rice and so on as well as Cash crops such as Cocoa, Kolanut and so on. However, the thrust of commerce is central to their activities and they participate in trading activities mostly across the Western and the Northern part of Nigeria.

Traditional institution

The

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

has at the head of its traditional governance structure, a kingship that goes with the title of the 'Owamiran of Esa-Oke'. The Ijesa North traditional Council of the

Osun Osun (; ), is a States of Nigeria, state in South West (Nigeria), southwestern Nigeria; bounded to the east by Ekiti State, Ekiti and Ondo State, Ondo states for 84 km and for 78 km respectively, to the north by Kwara State for 73&nb ...

state Council of Obas is the umbrella body that oversees its affairs. There are four broad divisional heads reporting to the king representing : Oke-Esa, Erinjiyan, Idofin and Odo-Ese, each with a divisional chieftaincy title of: Asaba, Osolo, Obafin and Enurin respectively. There are four ruling houses namely: * Ile Afinbiokin (Oba Isiaiah Adeniran's lineage, also known as Ile-Otu) * Ile Beleyeke * Ile Gogodudu also known as Ananye * Ile Aragadagbagun also known Yeye Owa (Oba Adeyemi Adediran's lineage). Traditional rulers in the order of their currency are: * Oba Adeyemi Adediran - Atipa Owaji II - 2004 till date * Oba Isaiah Ajayi Adeniran - Afinbiokin II- 1954 to 2004 * Oba Fatolu - XXXXXXXXXX - 1948

Education and social infrastructure

The town is the host community to the

Osun State College of Technology Osun State College of Technology (OSCOTECH) is a tertiary learning institution in Esa-Oke, Osun State, Nigeria. The college was formerly a satellite campus of the Ibadan Polytechnic. It became autonomous on 12 October 1992 when the Governor of O ...

(OSCOTECH), a tertiary

institution An institution is a humanly devised structure of rules and norms that shape and constrain social behavior. All definitions of institutions generally entail that there is a level of persistence and continuity. Laws, rules, social conventions and ...

Polytechnic A polytechnic is an educational institution that primarily focuses on vocational education, applied sciences, and career pathways. They are sometimes referred to as ''institutes of technology'', ''vocational institutes'', or ''universities of app ...

status, known regionally for its technological niche. There are two public secondary schools namely: Esa-Oke Grammar School and Saint Joseph's Catholic High School. On the list also are eight public primary schools. However, the town has in recent times, year 2000 to date, witnessed the establishment of some private secondary and primary schools with notable schools like Fayofunmi Model College, Elepolu Group Of Schools and Peace&Joy Group Of Schools. Esa-Oke is very accessible with good road network that connects to neighbouring towns and states, especially the

Osun state Osun (; ), is a state in southwestern Nigeria; bounded to the east by Ekiti and Ondo states for 84 km and for 78 km respectively, to the north by Kwara State for 73 km, to the south by Ogun State for 84 km and to the wes ...

capital,

Osogbo Osogbo (also known as ''Oṣogbo'', and seldomly as ''Oshogbo'') is a city in Nigeria. It became the capital city of Osun State in 1991. Osogbo city seats the Headquarters of both Osogbo Local Government Area (situated at Oke-Baale Area of th ...

, in just about 1 hour, 30 minutes.

Culture and tourism

The annual

Egungun Egungun, Yoruba language: Egúngún, also known as Ará Ọ̀run (The collective dead) in the broadest sense is any Yoruba masquerade or masked, costumed figure. More specifically, it is a Yoruba masquerade for ancestor reverence, or the ances ...

and Ikedi festivals are usually recreational. They feature cultural dances and huge display of historical traditional costumes including the 'Ege' dance. The mysterious 'Ayo Olopon' is also good for tourist attraction.

Notable people

* Oba Adeyemi Adediran: The Owa Omiran of Esa-Oke * Chief

Bola Ige Chief James Ajibola Idowu Ige ( ; 13 September 1930 – 23 December 2001), popularly known as Bola Ige, was a Nigerian lawyer and politician. He served as Federal Minister of Justice of Nigeria from January 2000 until his assassination in De ...

: Former governor of Old Oyo State, former Nigeria's Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice * Joseph Omotoso Adeyemi-Bero: First Administrative Secretary to first military governor of Lagos State, Brig.-Gen. Mobolaji Johnson (rtd) when Lagos was created in 1967; Former Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Sports and Social Development, Lagos State. * Hon. Busayo Oluwole Oke: Member of House of Representative representing Obokun/Oriade Federal Constituency of Osun State * Prof. Timothy A. Adebayo: Former Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Ladoke Akintola University, Ogbomoso and the Fourth Vice-Chancellor of Ajayi Crowther University, Oyo. * Ayo Adediran: A renowned Town Planner and former Permanent Secretary in Lagos State * Dr. Olasiji Akanmu Olamiju: Public Health Consultant and Founder and CEO of Akol Pharmacy * Prof. Oni Michael Abiodun: Senior Lecturer at the Department of Political Science,

Babcock University Babcock University is a private Christian co-educational Nigerian university owned and operated by the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Nigeria. The university is located at Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria, equidistant between Ibadan and La ...

, Ilishan Remo * Dr. Festus Kehinde Ojo: Senior Lecturer, Department of Electronic/Electrical Engineering,

Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Ladoke Akintola University of Technology (LAUTECH) is a public research institution located in Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria. The university enrolls over 30,000 students and employs more than 3,000 workers including contract staff. History In 1 ...

(LAUTECH), Ogbomoso *

Israel Adesanya Israel Mobolaji Temitayo Odunayo Oluwafemi Owolabi Adesanya (born 22 July 1989) is a Nigerian-New Zealand professional mixed martial artist, former kickboxer and boxer. As a mixed martial artist, he currently competes in the Middleweight di ...

: Five time UFC middleweight champions and Mixed martial artist

References

{{reflist

External links

Osun State College of TechnologyDistance to neighbouring townsOsun State Government
Populated places in Osun State Towns in Yorubaland