African Studies Research Seminar: The Town and Gown in Ibadan: Re-exploring the Legends of Mbari

Conveners: Miles Tendi and Michael Odijie

Speaker: Professor Olutayo C. Adesina, University of Ibadan / University of Manchester

Mbari, a club founded in Ibadan in 1961 by a group of young writers and academics from the University College Ibadan (UCI), offers a distinctive perspective on racial and cultural dynamics in the university town during Nigeria's late colonial and early post-independence eras. Its origins and vibrant character have led historians and scholars to explore its context, composition, and the factors that influenced its development and lasting qualities. This important club created a space for interactions that examined human nature beyond race, ethnicity, and class. It not only revealed micro-relations shaped by colonial and decolonial processes in a city engaged in cross-cultural exchanges but also highlighted systemic links through meaningful dialogue between town and gown in Ibadan, southwestern Nigeria. While the Mbari Club provided diverse racial, historical, cultural, and literary perspectives, it also represented a relationship that was both personal and culturally significant. 

Professor Olutayo C. Adesina, Ph.D.

Professor of History, University of Ibadan, Nigeria

British Academy Global Professor of History, Department of History, University of Manchester