SUMMARY

The Ife group refers to the people living in Ife town, Osun State in Nigeria. The inhabitants of Ife are mainly of Yoruba descent and Ife is considered to be the central town of the Yoruba ethnicity.

Ife city has a population of approximately 500 000, of which a large majority adheres to Islam. The town is considered the birthplace of the Yoruba ethnicity, founded in the eleventh century. Therefore it enjoys a holy status amongst the Yoruba. The history of Ife town is beset by conflict, mostly related to internal slave trade in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

The population of Ife has not had a leader who orchestrated the violence. There have in fact been political leaders in the city and region. These leaders have however not organised the violence, but rather worked with the central government of Nigeria to curb the unrest.

The inhabitants of Ife are viewed as a group mostly by adversaries, i.e. they are defined by their particular opponent. Since Ife is a rather populace town the instances when its inhabitants have engaged in violence have only engaged a few of its 500 000 inhabitants. The youths of Ife have been most active in the violence.

The inhabitants of Ife have been involved in the non-state category of UCDP organised violence.