THE YORUBAS
The Yoruba people (Yoruba: Ìran Yorùbá, lit. 'Yoruba lineage'; also known as Àwon omo Yorùbá, lit. 'Children of Yoruba', or simply as the Yoruba) are an ethnic group of southwestern and north-central Nigeria, as well as southern and central Benin. Together, these regions are known as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute over 40 million people in total. The majority of this population is from Nigeria, and the Yoruba make up 21% of the country's population, according to the CIA World Factbook,[1] making them one of the largest ethnic groups in Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language, which is tonal, and is the Niger-Congo language with the largest number of native speakers.[9] The Yoruba share borders with the Bariba to the northwest in Benin, the Nupe to the north and the Ebira to the northeast in central Nigeria. To the east are the Edo, Ẹsan and the Afemai groups in mid-western Nigeria. Adjacent to the Ebira and Edo groups are the related Igala pe