ABSTRACT
It is not surprising that the Yoruba believe they were present at the creation, for they are an ancient people. Linguists have noted that the language of the Yoruba became distinct from that of their neighbors more than 5,000 years ago, and there is evidence that the Yoruba had iron tools more than 2,000 years ago, making them among the first people on the African continent to learn to work with iron. The city of Ife has been occupied for more than 1,400 years; in fact, it is among the oldest cities in the forestland of west Africa.
