Ewu is a Nigerian town situated in

Esan Central Esan Central Local Government Area is a Local Government Area of Edo State, Nigeria. Its administrative headquarters is located in the town of Irrua. The postal code of the area is 310. It has an area of 253 km2 and a population density of ...

Local Government Area in the Edo State 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, ...

. The city, an Esan tribe, lies on 200 feet in the plateau region of central

Edo State Edo State, Edo, officially known as Edo State, is a States of Nigeria, state in the South South, South-South Geopolitical zones of Nigeria, geopolitical zone of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. As of 2024, the state was ranked as the List of Ni ...

, 100 kilometres north of

Benin City Benin City serves as the Capital city, capital and largest Metropolitan area, metropolitan centre of Edo State, situated in Nigeria, southern Nigeria. It ranks as the List of Nigerian cities by population, fourth-most populous city in Niger ...

, the capital of

, Nigeria. Ewu city comprises the communities of Eguare-Ewu, Ehanlen-Ewu, Ihenwen-Ewu, Uzogholo-Ewu, Ukhiodo-Ewu, Idunwele-Ewu, Eko-Ojeme, Oghodogbor, and Ukpeko Ori. Ewu is bounded in the north by Agbede, in the south-east by

Irrua Irrua is a town in Edo state and the administrative seat of the Esan Central local government area in Edo State Nigeria. Irrua was established by decree 92 of 1993 (Appendix I) to provide tertiary services to people of Edo State and beyond. ...

, in the south-west by

Ekpoma Ekpoma is a town in Edo State, Nigeria. It is the administrative headquarters of the Esan West Local Government Area. Ekpoma lies on the geographical coordinate of latitude . The town has an official Post Office, and it is home to the Ambrose ...

History and governance

The Ewu-born playwright, historian and poet Saintmoses Eromosele described Ewu as 'The Holy City of Commerce, Industry and Hospitality' in his book, ''The History and Chronicle of Ewu Monarchy: Since 1440''. The monarchy of Ewu is believed to have been organized by

Oba Ewuare Ewuare (also known as Ewuare the Great or Ewuare I), originally known as Prince Ogun, was the twelfth Oba of Benin, Oba of the Benin Empire from 1440 until 1473. Ewuare became king in a violent coup against his brother Uwaifiokun which destroyed ...

, at about 1460 (Common Era) and was associated with Bini princes and warriors who made it their garrison in their quest to subjugate cotton and fabrics producing Esan tribes, especially the once powerful Uzea kingdom. Prior to the coming of

in the mid 15th century, the Ewu community was organized and governed by an ancient

gerontocracy A gerontocracy is a form of rule in which an entity is ruled by leaders who are substantially older than most of the adult population. In many political structures, power within the ruling class accumulates with age, making the oldest individu ...

where a council of the oldest people called Edion administered the various communities that constituted Ewu, independently. But

of imperial Benin Kingdom overturned the

gerontocratic A gerontocracy is a form of rule in which an entity is ruled by leaders who are substantially older than most of the adult population. In many political structures, power within the ruling class accumulates with age, making the oldest individu ...

system of administration he met in his conquest of Esan land and enthroned some of his princes as viceroys in its place, and a

Benin Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...

general Ozaine (a tradition renders his name as "Oza" became a viceroy of the Oba in Ewu and thus first Onojie of Ewu kingdom. These princes of

Benin Empire The Kingdom of Benin, also known as Great Benin, is a traditional kingdom in southern Nigeria. It has no historical relation to the modern republic of Benin, which was known as Dahomey from the 17th century until 1975. The Kingdom of Benin's c ...

checked the frequent rebellion and insubordination of the ancient, once powerful Uzea kingdom in

Esanland Esanland ( Esan: ''Otọesan''), otherwise known as Esan Nation, is a cultural region located in Edo State, Nigeria. It is composed of five Local Government Areas in Edo State. Esanland lies west of the banks of the Niger River. It is bordered by ...

, and co-opted the Esan kingdoms into the then fast-expanding

., Notwithstanding the origin of the

Empire occupation of Ewu in about 1460, Ewu people have various accounts of oral tradition which trace their pre-Benin-Empire-occupation existence to time immemorial. In all the accounts of origin, it is generally accepted that the people of Ehanlen were the aboriginals in the ancient land of Ewu. It is also believed that the people of Idunwele were migrant farm settlers and hunters from Emaudo in

. It is believed that the people from Benin Kingdom were settled at Ihenmwen and Ukhiodo, especially among the families that occupy the area of Ewu known as Idumu-igun quarters. The people are believed to have originated from Igun in

. It is also traditionally believed, especially among the Aru Ose worshippers, that Ewu was indeed the original home and tap root, Eilu, of the Esan race being the ancient custodian of the Edio
River
(now in Agbede) and the Ihiala (ancient moat dug around Ewu). The Ewu kingdom is currently ruled by the Ojeifo dynasty, which traces its roots via Ekpebua to Ozaine, the first Onoje of Ewu, who was a viceroy of the

of Benin. The aboriginal peoples of Ewu are the Ehanlen people. Other settlers came from Igun and Ugbekun Quarters of

kingdom during the occupation of Ewu by the Benin imperialists. These settlers settled at Ihenwen at the quarters known as Idumigun. Later nomads and emigrants came from Emaudo in

and settled in the areas known as Idunwele and Eko. Other waves of

emigrants fled from the

tyranny A tyrant (), in the modern English language, English usage of the word, is an autocracy, absolute ruler who is unrestrained by law, or one who has usurper, usurped a legitimate ruler's sovereignty. Often portrayed as cruel, tyrants may defen ...

of Oba Ewuare to Ewu and settled at Uzogholo, Idunwele and Ehanlen.

Religion

Ewu has three major religions:

Ebor Ebor is the abbreviation of the Latin ''Eboracum'', an early Latin form for York in Britain. It may also mean: * Ebor, the legal alias of the Archbishops of York * Ebor, Manitoba, a community in Canada * Ebor, New South Wales, a village in Australi ...

;

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

; and Christianity. Islam was introduced in the early 20th century in 1908 through Onojie Omosun. Ewu is home to the Ewu Saint Benedict Monastery, a monastery of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. It is also home to an advanced theological seminary owned by the

Assemblies of God The World Assemblies of God Fellowship (WAGF), commonly known as the Assemblies of God (AG), is a global cooperative body or communion of over 170 Pentecostal denominations that was established on August 15, 1989. The WAGF was created to provi ...

Church, Nigeria, known as the

Nigerian Advanced School of Theology Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

(NAST).

People in Ewu

* Fidelis Oyakhilomen, retired Deputy Inspector General of Police, Nigeria, former military Governor of

Rivers State Rivers is a states of Nigeria, state in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria (Old Eastern Region). Formed on 27 May 1967, when it was split from the former Eastern Region, Nigeria, Eastern Region, Rivers State borders include Imo State, Im ...

and former chairman, Nigeria Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) *

David Iyoha David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the Kings of Israel and Judah, third king of the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy), United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. The Tel Dan stel ...

, Speaker of the

House of Assembly. * Saintmoses Eromosele, author of The History and Chronicle of Ewu Monarchy: Since 1440, international poet and novelist who wrote his blockbuster first novel, "The Winds of Life" at the age of sixteen and while still in secondary school. . * Benard E. Aigbokhan, a professor of economics, President of Nigerian Economics Society and Vice Chancellor of

Samuel Adegboyega University Glorious Vision University (GVU), formerly Samuel Adegboyega University (SAU) is a faith-based University located in Ogwa, Edo State, Nigeria, West Africa. It was founded by The Apostolic Church Nigeria, LAWNA (Lagos, Western and Northern Areas) ...

Ogwa Ogwa is a town in Esan West Local Government Area in Edo State, Nigeria. It is among the constituent communities of Esanland. The people of Ogwa speak the Esan language. The language of the Esan people shares the same name as the name of the lan ...

between 2013 and 2020.

Festival

Ewu plays host to the annual Ighele festival, which is celebrated annually in Ewu in the month of June. The festival is important to the Ewu people and the inhabitant of Ewu because of the belief that Ighele brings peace and prosperity.

References

;General * James B. Webster & Onaiwu W. Ogbomo, ''Chronological Problems in C.U.Okojie's Narrative Traditions''; 2007, * Egharevba, J. U. 1968 ''A short History of Benin'', Ibadan, I.U.P. * * Saintmoses Eromosele, ''The History and Chronicle of Ewu Monarchy: since 1440''; 2003. By Saintmoses Eromosele and Ewu Students' Association of Nigeria, ESAN, Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma. * Omonkhodion, J.O., 1998. ''The Sociology of the Esans'', Tropical Publishers Limited ;Specific {{coord missing, Nigeria Populated places in Edo State