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Yoruba
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Yoruba mask Yoruba female figure Gelede mask Yoruba cap mask Figure 6: Ritual dancing in Nigeria. Yoruba performing a dance in honour of the god Shango. Yoruba ceremonial robe Yoruba twin figures
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Yoruba mask
Yoruba mask Yoruba mask, copper alloy, by Ali Amonikoyi, c. 1910; in the Brooklyn Museum, New York. 26.7 × 18.4 × 14.0 cm.

Yoruba

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•History

Yoruba, one of the three largest ethnic groups of Nigeria, concentrated in the southwestern part of that country. Much smaller, scattered groups live in Benin and northern Togo. The Yoruba numbered more than 20 million at the turn of the 21st century. They speak a language of the Benue-Congo branch of the Niger-Congo language family. Most Yoruba men are farmers, growing yams, corn (maize), and millet as staples and plantains, peanuts (groundnuts), beans, and peas...

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