The later capital of the Oyo empire, in the woodland savanna south of the Niger (now in Old Oyo National Park).
Pottery found beneath the city walls is dated about 1100 plus or minus 110, with other dates as early as the eighth century, so people lived on the site before 1200; the potsherd pavements are radiocarbon-dated to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries and the great walls are later. The Oyo kingdom of the Alaafin is placed in the thirteenth or fourteenth century by most writers, so on 1 January 1200 Oyo-Ile is a settlement, not yet a royal capital.
Who holds it
- Name
- No Alaafin is attested for 1200; the tradition makes Oranmiyan the founder, dated about 1300 by Stride and Ifeka
- Title
- Alaafin of Oyo (later)
- Since
- not applicable
- Confidence
- low
Lord in 1200
No king attested; a settlement may stand on the site.
How things stand that morning
A settlement only.
Communities
Yoruba-speaking (Oyo) farmers.
Walls and castle
None for 1200; the three wall circuits are later.
Trade and crafts
Savanna farming; position on the routes to the Niger crossings.
What the year holds
What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.
- thirteenth or fourteenth century (not 1200)Rise of the Alaafin's kingdom at Oyo-Ile.Depends on: Not affected by events of 1200 as far as known. Stopped by: Not applicable.
Where the sources disagree
- Wikipedia's Oranmiyan article gives both 'about 1290' for his departure from Benin and 1300 for his founding of Oyo, against Egharevba's 1170 for his time at Benin.
Evidence: Radiocarbon dates from excavations (Soper, Agbaje-Williams, Ogundiran) and tradition.
On the map: A point only.
Primary sources for Yoruba towns
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- Ife, Benin, Nri, the Yoruba towns and the Akan: archaeology and recorded tradition (no contemporary text; traditions written down from the 1890s). No text of any kind exists for the forest belt in 1200.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.