Oshogbo

Oshogbo (ōshōb`bō), city (1991 est. pop. 421,000), SW Nigeria, on the Oshun River. Primarily a farming and commercial city, it has cotton gins, a steel-rolling mill, a traditional textiles industry, and cigarette and food-processing factories. The city is also a road and rail junction, and has an airport. Oshogbo was probably founded in the 17th cent. as a town in the Yoruba kingdom of Ijesha (see Ilesha). In 1839 it was the site of a decisive battle in which Ibadan, a Yoruba city-state, defeated Ilorin, an expansionist Fulani state, thus halting Ilorin's southward advance. An influx of refugees after the battle swelled Oshogbo's population.

---

Oshogbo

City (pop., 1996 est.: 476,800), Nigeria. Located northeast of Ibadan, it lies along the Oshun River. Originally settled by the Ilesha from Ibokun, it remained a small town until the early 19th century when an influx of Yoruba fleeing from Fulani conquerors arrived. In 1840 it was the scene of a battle won by Ibadan that proved to be the turning point in the Fulani-Yoruba wars. It was made part of Oyo state in 1976 and the capital of the newly created state of Osun in 1991. It is a trade centre for cocoa and palm oil; weaving and dyeing cotton cloth and growing tobacco are other local occupations.

---

Oshogbo

a city in SW Nigeria: trade centre. Pop.: 629 000 (2005 est.)