11/04/2025
DID YOU KNOW THAT THERE ARE YORÙBÁ PEOPLE CALLED ONKO IN ỌYỌ STATE?
They're otherwise known as Òkè-ògùn.
The Òǹkò, otherwise known as Òkè Ògùn people, they are a Yoruba people group inhabiting the areas drained by the upper Ogun river in Northwestern Oyo state in Nigeria.
They were historically a part of the once expansive Oyo empire, but are distinct from the Oyo proper.
The Onkos inhabit an area of tropical savannah climate type characterised by moderate rainfall with double maxima.
The area is home to the Old Oyo national park, one of Nigeria's largest conserved areas.
All Onkos without exception claim direct descent from Oduduwa the mythical/legendary progenitor of the Yoruba race.
The Onkos speak a Northwestern Yoruba dialect (NWY) similar in structure to Oyo Yoruba, but with some distinct peculiarities in pronunciation such as extra nasalizations of words Unlike Standard Yoruba, where nouns do not begin with moraic nasals, both vowels and consonantal moras may begin nouns in Onko Yoruba. As a matter of fact, nasals and the high front vowel occur in different contexts in these two dialects.
Cognate forms which begin with nasal in Onko surface within the standard dialect. For example:
Ile (House) becomes Nle, Ise (work) becomes Nche, Ibo (Where) becomes Mbo, Iro (Lie) becomes Nro. Etc.
Another peculiarity of the Onko dialect in contrast with standard modern Yoruba is the presence of the [CH] sound, which in standard Yoruba is vocalised as [Sh] or [S].
This peculiarity/uniqueness is not limited to Onko alone, but can be found throughout western Yorubaland, including the Ibarapa people, Egbados, Ketus, Idaashas, Shabes, Etc. For example, the Yoruba greeting for a diviner (Babalawo) "Aboru Aboye Abo shishe" is rendered "Abo chiche" in Onko.
THESE ARE THE NOTABLE TOWNS IN ONKO-OKEOGUN.
1. Iseyin
2. Okeho
3. Ipapo
3. Okaka
4. ago are
5. sabe owo
6. corner owo
7. agunrege
8. saki
9. tede
10. igboho
11. igbeti
12. basi
13. otu
14. iganna
15. ilero
16. isemi ile
17. adoawaye
18. ilua
19. itasa
20. iwere ile
21. iwere oke
22. ilaji ile
23. ilaji oke
24. ayetoro ile
25. ayetoro oke
26. idiko ile
27. idiko ago
28. ijio
29. ayegun wasimi
30. ogboro
31. komu
32. igbojaiye
33. babaode
Add other towns.