Alabidun Abdulrahaman

Offa is an ancient town and Headquarters of Offa Local Government Area of Kwara State, Nigeria. By landmass, it is the second largest town in the state, after Ilorin, the state capital .It is also the traditional Headquarters of Ibolo dialect of the Yoruba speaking people of Kwara and Osun States.

Though, strenuous efforts were made to obtain reliable archival records from various sources as there were controversies surronding the exact year of its existence, Findings  revealed  that  Offa was first settled around AD 1000 by Yoruba while another source documented it to have been around 1395.

Be it as it may, none ever debunked the fact that Offa was founded by Olalomi Olofa-gangan who happened to be a crown prince from Oyo. He was the one that brought the area into limelight. He was believed to be a direct descendant of King Oranmiyan of Ile-Ife.

Skillfull, Olofa-gangan was a renowned hunter credited for his professionalism as an archer. His first settlement was near a river called Marka. Being distinguished and a frontier town in the old Oyo Empire, Offa featured in both intra and inter-tribal wars and defended itself against the Nupes and the Fulanis.

According to Prof. Saburi Biobaku, he believes that “Great men appear now and again to help shape the course of human history.

” In total agreement with the intellectual disposition of the sage, writing about the historical background or even about the legends of an ancient town like Offa is like putting leg in an endless marathon relay race or diving into an ocean, which according to L. A. K. Jimoh, its “depth and width  appear limitless”. Olofa-gangan died at Offa Eesun in the course of his migration.

It is amazing to discover that Offa as a town was eventually coined from Olofa-gangan; a name formed from the weapons Olalomi Olofagangan  used for his hunting activities. The weapon, which is a bow and arrow called OFA in Yoruba Language. No wonder, sometimes, Offa is spelt as ‘Ofa’.

The ancient tradition Offa is known with  is ijakadi (wrestling) which is dated back to 14th century. It is a cultural festival that was enacted around 1498 AD during Moremi Festival. Moremi, a great heroine from Offa who became the queen of Oranmiyan of Ile-Ife. Like Queen Amina of Kaduna, Moremi singlehandedly rescued the people of Ife from their enemies.

The festival has been held annually in  December. It has become a meeting point for all Offa indigenes. It is coincides with the eating of the new yam. The eating of the new yam is characterized by the cutting of the yam into two halves by a blindfolded man which is referred to in vernacular as ” LA’ARE”.

Ijakadi  is a remembrance of the duel between the two illustrious sons of Offa who engaged each other in a fierce wrestling over a tuber of yam in the farm yard where nobody was around to separate them.

In commemoration, Ijakadi has now become a form of mock wrestling

between the Olofa of Offa and his second in command (Essa), while the whole town cheers them on and take sides.

Ironically, Olofa usually wins the duel. This is to remind the people that Olofa remains the indisputable supreme authority of the town. But in his defensive excuse, “ESSA” would always find an excuse for his defeats saying  “suku loyomi,” meaning “it was the corn chaff that slipped me not the Olofa”. This usually attract a thunderous ovation from the crowd with the slogan ” KABIYESI OOO”.

Activities that featured during  the festival include  a Road show which paraded the five districts of Offa in their dazzling colours, the Arewa Offa Beauty Pageant which celebrates the traditional Offa women, a Food Expo which showcases different dishes of sweet potato – Offa main food crop and Ijakadi Traditional Wrestling.

The word ijakadi has a big influence on an average Offa man, as the praise name of Offa is “Ijakadi L’oro Offa”, a Yoruba phrase meaning ” Wrestling is our game”