The Short History of Eruku
-Excerpts from the notes of Late Chief (Dr) Alexander Omotosho Obateru as captured in 1956
Eruku is an Ekiti village, seventy-seven miles east of Ilorin which is its provincial headquarters and it is the eastern boundary of the Ilorin province. The common belief is that the people originated from Oyo which in turn, originated from Ile- Ife. The dialect and customs of the Eruku people bear testimony to this. For example, the occasional festivals and sacrifices, the ceremonies of the coronation of the Owa (king) show remarkable similarities to similar practices in Oyo and Ile- Ife. Eruku was once a very large village before it was brought to desolation by the Fulani slave dealers who came from the north towards the beginning of the nineteenth century. There were eleven big quarters namely: Oke-ehin, Ogba Owa (now Ogbua), Odosanlu, Okeaginmi, Ese-ore, Okejoa, Oke-Ado, Odolomu, Okesedo, Okeogi and Okegan. There are six royal houses, one in each of the following quarters: Oke-ehin, Ese ore, Okejoa, Ogba Owa, Okegan, and Odosanlu. Chiefs of lower degrees are appointed from the other five quarters. The six royal quarters elect suitable persons of royal blood in turn, as soon as the throne becomes vacant due to the death of a reigning Oba. Oke-ehin quarter is regarded as the head of the royal quarters and it was its ancestors who brought crowns directly from Oyo to Eruku. The other five royal quarters received their crowns from Oke-ehin, having paid the price (like money and kola nuts) demanded by the royal ancestors. From that time, successive Obas are installed in turn from each of the six royal quarters.
There were many famous warriors in the village during the pillaging by the Fulani warriors and yet the village was swept off almost completely by the invading warriors. This was not because they were stronger but due to their trickery of which the people of Eruku became susceptible. When the invaders came, they would besiege only one quarter at a time and they would send a message to the other quarters not to worry as they were not their intended target. Unfortunately, other quarters would stand by while one quarter was invaded. This same trickery continued and many of the inhabitants were captured and sold to the white slave traders until the whole village was reduced to only ten people and one dog at the end of the last war.
After the wars, the remnants came together to the present location where after so many years of peaceful living, the village became considerably populous. The reign of one Oba Fabusoro around the year 1900 was particularly prosperous and the village had an uninterrupted period of peace. The village was governed well and civilization reached an appreciable, comparative standard. The village mourned bitterly when he died.
The death of Oba Fabusoro was followed by a period of chaos and rebellion centered around the established order of ascension to the position of Oba. Things got so bad that from 1936 to 1945, there were two Obas; Amuseyin and David Babalola in Eruku at the same time. Oba Amuseyin died in 1946 and Oba David Babalola who reigned over only the Odo-Agbo quarter was installed and deposed twice before the village eventually settled their differences and reverted to the old custom of one Oba and the succession custom. Oba Odofin was installed in the year 1947 and remains the Oba up till now (1953). His reign is tolerably prosperous. Some of the people who were carried away captive by the Fulani warriors during the wars escaped and returned to Eruku while others returned after the abolition of the Slave trade. There were also those who chose to remain in the villages where they were taken as they have become prosperous and well settled in those places.
The village can boast of some famous men. Adetifa and Akerekoro were the most renowned in the history of the village. Adetifa was noted for his capabilities and skills in the art of war while Akerekoro was a very brave and clever man. During the time when gangs of rascals used to kidnap children in the village, it was him who organized the campaign which helped to put an end to the evil practices.
There had been very powerful and eloquent Obas in the village but the preeminent ones were Oba Fabusoro and Amuseyin. Oba Fabusoro was more popular with the villagers because of his good character and democratic ways. Oba Amuseyin on the other hand was tough to deal with but had praise-worthy qualities like love for education and self-sacrifice which cut his reign short to twelve years.
The population of the village was reported as three thousand and five hundred during the 1952 census. This has increased considerably in the past year due to the influx of many people from the neighboring towns and villages. Many of these immigrants came for trading and did not leave when they discovered that the Eruku people were very hospitable. It is envisaged that many of these immigrants will become naturalized in the village in years to come.
All the villagers were formerly pagans who worshipped all sorts of gods. The major gods worshipped in those days includes: Osayin, Ogun, Oloroke, Epa, Aribidosi and Aseja. The people were highly superstitious and they regarded their priests as gods also. Christianity was first introduced in 1908 by one Reverend McKay of the CMS mission Oshogbo. He was followed in 1909 by another Reverend Thomas Titcombe of the Sudan Interior Mission (SIM) in Egbe. The villagers were more receptive to Reverend Titcombe because he came from a neighboring village (Egbe) and a few foundation members began to assemble for Christian service in the home of one Mr Paul Fashomi Okele. The first church was finally built in 1915.
In the year 1920, some of the members of the SIM church broke away to establish the Catholic Church. During these early times, the reigning Oba Fabusoro was very hospitable to the early Christians and land was given to them freely to build churches. Two other churches were established in later years with the Christ Apostolic church established in 1942 and the Methodist church in 1949.
It is noteworthy that during these times, there were still many pagans in the village and all the villagers cohabited in peace despite their different religious affiliations. The Muslims form another important religious body in the village. They have three mosques, one in each of the important quarters of the village. There is great unity amongst the Muslims and they are very loyal and obedient to their leader. All the religions play a very important part in the social life of the village. This is especially true for the Christian bodies who are responsible for building schools, post office and the law court. Notable Muslims like Mr Audu Rasaki, Mr Raji Lemomu and Mr Oseni were also known to have helped the town by contributing money and offer personal sacrifices.
There were two schools in the village namely the Sudan Interior Mission school which was established in 1939, and the Catholic school which was established in the same year. The two schools were united in 1947 and partitioned into the junior and senior primary departments. The junior primary school was made up of infant classes 1 & 2 and Standards one and two. Standards three to six make up the senior primary department. The school is well attended and about one eighth of the children of school age in the village attended school. Other children came from the surrounding villages of Osi, Epe, Ikerin, Aye, Obo, Araromi and Itapaji to attend school in Eruku.
In the past, only boys’ education was regarded as necessary and only a few parents sent their daughters to the school. At present (1953), the proportion of girls to boys in the school is about one to four. The proportion of teachers to children is about one to twenty-five. Of note during this time is the young lady, Agnes Tale Fatoyinbo who graduated from the Eruku village school and is now training as a nurse at the Catholic hospital in Owo. A number of natives also left to attend various schools and some of these natives returned to teach in the village school. === The School Girls with the Head Masters of the Junior & Senior Primaries (1953) Miss Agnes Tale Fatoyinbo (1954) Owa of Eruku in 1956 ( Picture date not specified) The Oba Palace recently built by the villagers (1956) The Epilogue (by Francis Idowu Obateru, P. Eng -July 2017)
The resilience of the indigenes of Eruku after the wars is quite captivating and the achievements recorded after the villagers pulled together as one team cannot be overemphasized. From the small beginnings in education, Eruku has produced numerous erudite personalities in various professional fields. There has been a revered Supreme Court Chief judge, educationists, legal juggernauts, military personnel, business magnates, Engineers and medical practitioners to mention a few. There are also several great achievers making indelible marks in Nigeria and in the diaspora.
We rank shoulders high with the renowned lofty educational status of the Ekiti people of Yoruba extraction in Nigeria. Being part of this great town with deep history is a legacy for which all the indigenes should stand tall. I enjoin every indigene to join hands in moving our esteemed town to greater heights as we continue the journey through this new age. MAY THE REIGN OF OWA BUSARI OLAREWAJU BE LONG AND PROSPEROUS

How can you call this a short history?

JASONjnr:
How can you call this a short history?

You should know that full history should be longer than this.

Just curious about my origin, because my origin suggest I'm from Eruku but currently claiming another town where my great grandma migrated with her two sons and some other family members, probably during one of these wars.
The oriki goes thus:
Omo owa leruku egbe,
Igbe ki so
jiesa tohun fe ologun re ijesa
Omo ose kubukubu la lade owa
Owa tobi bi ewu lela barakata
.......,... The rest I can't remember for now.
Pls, who are the Owas in Eruku and is there any family within Eruku that shares the same Oriki or anyone similar?
Thanks.