History of Africa usually governed by an "oba" and an "iwarefa", a council of chiefs who advised the "oba." by the 18th century, the Yoruba city-states formed a loose confederation, with the "Oni" of Ife as the head and Ife as the capital. As time went on, the individual city-states became more powerful with their "obas" assuming more powerful spiritual positions and diluting the authority of the "Oni" of Ife. Rivalry became intense among the city-states. The Oyo Empire rose in the 16th century. The Oyo state had been conquered in 1550 by the kingdom of Nupe, which was in possession of cavalry,
Yoruba people others. These varieties, or spiritual lineages as they are called, are practiced throughout areas of Nigeria, the Republic of Benin, Togo, Brazil, Cuba, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States, Uruguay, Argentina and Venezuela, among others. As interest in African indigenous religions grows, Orisha communities and lineages can be found in parts of Europe and Asia as well. While estimates may vary, some scholars believe that there could be more than 100 million adherents of this spiritual tradition worldwide. Oral history of the Oyo-Yoruba recounts Odùduwà to be the Progenitor of the Yoruba and the