Philosophizing in Yorùbá
Language Focus
Coordinated by Abosede Ipadeola
Part of the Research Focus Philosophies in Africa
Yorùbá is the language and culture of a people primarily found in Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Sierra Leone, Cuba, and Brazil. Although Yorùbá literature and historical studies have experienced considerable growth over the years, Yorùbá philosophy has not received much attention or development.
Nonetheless, Yorùbá philosophy shows potential due to the depth of intellectualism demonstrated by the Yorùbá people over the centuries, as well as the resilience of their culture and heritage. Therefore, to broaden the scope of Yorùbá philosophy, we are establishing a Yorùbá philosophy research group.
In her lecture “Philosophizing in Yorùbá: Exploring a People’s Weltanschauung,” Abọ́sẹ̀dé Ìpàdéọlá explored the philosophical ideas of the Yorùbá as encoded in their culture, language, poems, proverbs, and literary texts from the Yorùbá tradition, including the Ifa literary corpus. The research group consists of philosophers and other experts from the humanities, including a historian and a linguist. In 2026, Abọ́sẹ̀dé Ìpàdéọlá, Sànyà Òshà, Abímbọ́lá Adésọjí, Àrìnpé Adéjùmọ̀, Ọpẹ́yẹmí Balógun, Adébọ́lá Bádéjọ, Adéwálé Owóṣení, and Olúwaṣeun Anífowóṣe will discuss, select, and comment on sources for the Hildesheim Encyclopedia of Philosophical Sources (HePS) in Yorùbá.
Other activities of the research group include an international Yoruba Philosophy Colloquium, a workshop, interviews, and a book publication.
Participating Researchers
Omobola Badejo
Latest Activities
-
The evolution of African and Afro-Brazilian philosophical discourses has never really trailed the accepted genealogies created by Euro-American philosophy. The path it adopted, rather, is checkered by the seismic ordeals of slavery, colonisation, chronic demotic…
-
The study and conceptualization of subjects and concepts across different disciplines in indigenous languages have been gaining significant traction in recent times. To expand academic curricula, challenge rigid disciplinary canons, and decolonize scholarship, scholars are…
-
Yoruba is the language and culture of a people primarily found in Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Sierra Leone, Cuba, and Brazil. Their philosophical ideas prominently feature in their culture, language, and traditions. In this lecture, I…
-
The GloPhi Center will host a poetry reading and discussion with the Nigerian poet Logan February. The event will take place at the outdoor seminary room of the Institute of Philosophy at the Cultural Campus…
-
The mutual influence of language and philosophizing has been a topic of debate for centuries. Do languages determine how we think? Do certain languages suggest certain thought constellations? Is translation a universal language? To this…