History of Nigeria city-states. A state council (the "Oyo Mesi") named the "Alaafin" (king) and acted as a check on his authority. Their capital city was situated about 100 km north of present-day Oyo. Unlike the forest-bound Yoruba kingdoms, Oyo was in the savanna and drew its military strength from its cavalry forces, which established hegemony over the adjacent Nupe and the Borgu kingdoms and thereby developed trade routes farther to the north. The Benin Empire (1440–1897; called "Bini" by locals) was a pre-colonial African state in what is now modern Nigeria. It should not be confused with the modern-day country called Benin,
Yoruba Academy will be maintained by the Academy to set a standard for the Yoruba language. South-West Yoruba in Nigeria: Ekiti State, Lagos State, Ogun State, Oyo State, Osun State, Ondo State, parts of Kwara State, Kogi State, Edo State, Delta State and Niger State Diaspora Yoruba outside Nigeria in Africa: in Togo, Benin, Sierra Leone and parts of Ghana Diaspora Yoruba outside Africa: in Haiti, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Brazil, United States, UK, [(Ireland)] Yoruba Academy The Yoruba Academy is a multi-disciplinary institution that brings together scholars, politicians, businessemen and experts in Yoruba language, culture, economics, law, science and technology, and governance.