Description
Book SynopsisTrade Review[This] book as a whole stands as a major achievement not only in Yoruba history and historical anthropology, but in recent historiographic trends using ritual institutions and performances as primary historical sources. It will have a major impact in Yoruba studies, and in the study of West African history more generally. Willis should be commended for penetrating a complex and socially guarded ritual resource to glean the hidden histories manifested therein.
* African Studies Review *
Willis's work should be a must-read for students and established scholars alike.
* Africa *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgements
Introduction
1. The Early History of Otta and the Origins of Egungun and Gelede
2. "Children" and "Wives" in the Politics of the Oyo Empire during the Era of the Atlantic Slave Trade
3. The Emergence of New Warriors, Wards, and Masquerades: The Otta Kingdom during the Era of Imperial Collapse
4. "A Thing to Govern the Town": Gendered Masquerades and the Politics of the Chiefs and the Monarchy in the Rebuilding of a Town, 1848–1859
5. Wives, Warriors, and Masks: Kinship, Gender, and Ethnicity in Otta, 1871–1928
Conclusion: Egungun and Gelede at Otta Today
Bibliography
Index
