Textile Weaving (Aṣọ-Òkè) at Ologbin-Adewole Northern Yorubaland, Nigeria

Abstract

This research investigates traditional textile weaving among the people of Ologbin-Adewole in Ilorin, Nigeria. This traditional craft is one of the ancient crafts that gave Ologbin-Adewole recognition among other communities in Ilorin. Over the years, this indigenous thriving industry has dwindled both in production and skilled workers. The decline has been partly associated with the influence of westernization through the importation of European goods. This paper presents processes of textile production in Ologbin-Adewole as well as examines changes in the craft over time based on oral history and ethnographic records. This is aimed at documenting this important African art and preventing it from becoming a part of Africa’s past. The paper concludes by bringing to limelight the significance of this indigenous craft of textile weaving among the people of Ologbin-Adewole.

Keywords:

• Ologbin-Adewole
• Ilorin
• textile weaving
• indigenous technology
• Aṣọ-Òkè

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Abdulmalik Abdulrahman Abdulmalik

Abdulmalik Abdulrahman Abdulmalik, Department of Archaeology, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria and Sainsbury Research Unit for the Arts of Africa, Oceania and the Americas, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK

Kingsley Chinedu Daraojimba

Kingsley Chinedu Daraojimba, Department of Archaeology and Tourism, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria and McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.[email protected]