Edo language in the context of "Languages of Nigeria"

A voiced alveolar nasal is a type of consonantal sound used in numerous spoken languages. The symbol in the International Phonetic Alphabet that represents dental, alveolar, and postalveolar nasals is ⟨n⟩.

The vast majority of languages have either an alveolar or dental nasal. There are a few languages that lack either sound but have [m], such as Yoruba, Palauan, and colloquial Samoan (however, these languages all have [ŋ]. An example of a language without [n] and [ŋ] is Edo). There are some languages (e.g. Rotokas) that lack both [m] and [n].

The Edo people, also referred to as the Benin people, are an Edoid-speaking ethnic group. They are prominently native to the Edo South senatorial district which make up seven local government areas of Edo State, Nigeria. They are speakers of the Edo language and are the descendants of the founders of the Benin Kingdom, the Ogiso. They are closely related to other Edoid ethnic groups, such as the Esan, the Etsakọ, the Isoko, the Owan and the Urhobo as well as other southern ethnic groups.

The names Benin and Bini are Portuguese corruptions, ultimately from the word Ubini, which came into use during the reign of Oba (ruler) Ewuare, c. 1440. Ubini is an Edo word meaning 'livable', used by Pa Idu, the progenitor of the Edo state people, to describe the area found as a livable locale during their sojourn from Egypt. Ubini was later corrupted to Bini by the mixed ethnicities living together at the centre; and further corrupted to Benin around 1485, when the Portuguese began trade relations with Oba Ewuare giving them coral beads, which the Edo people call 'Ivie'.

The Benin Bronzes are a group of several thousand metal plaques and sculptures that decorated the royal palace of the Kingdom of Benin, in what is now Edo State, Nigeria. The metal plaques were produced by the Guild of Benin Bronze Casters, now located in Igun Street, also known as Igun-Eronmwon Quarters. Collectively, the objects form the best examples of Benin art and were created from the fourteenth century by artists of the Edo people. The plaques, which in the Edo language are called Ama, depict scenes or represent themes in the history of the kingdom. Apart from the plaques, other sculptures in brass or bronze include portrait heads, jewellery, and smaller pieces.

Some of the dramatic sculptures date to the fourteenth century, but the bulk of the collection dates to the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. It is believed that two "Golden Ages" in Benin metal workmanship occurred during the reigns of Esigie (fl. 1550) and of Eresoyen (1735–1750), when their workmanship achieved its highest quality.

The Benin Moat (Edo: Iyanuwo), also known as the Benin City Iya, the Inner City Iya of Benin or the Wall of Benin, is a large earthwork within Benin City in Nigeria's Edo state, which formerly encircled the city at the time of the Benin Empire. It is the central part of a series of connected earthworks surrounding the city which are collectively known as the 'Benin City Walls', consisting of the massive Inner City earthwork and much smaller, though more extensive Outer City earthworks. Other earthworks are spread out across Edo State (known as the rural iya), and all of these earthworks are sometimes referred to collectively as 'the Walls of Benin'. All of these earthworks are known as Iya in the Edo language. With the exception of a small part of the Benin City Iya, these structures are not really 'walls' but rather linear earthworks, consisting of a ditch and earth rampart known as a 'dump rampart'. The Inner City Iya was built on a significantly larger scale with much taller ramparts and deeper ditches than any of the surrounding earthworks or other earthworks spread across the country, many of which are described as having a 'slight' and 'casual' profile. Most of these earthworks only served to delineate boundaries, whereas the Inner City Iya served a defensive purpose. Historical European accounts of the 'Benin Moat' or 'Benin City Wall' probably only refer to the Inner City Iya, though the accounts sometimes differ in their description of its structure. Several wooden entrance gates are said to have existed, but 19th century accounts make no mention of them and their remains have yet to be identified by archeological research. The Inner City Iya had a total length of approximately 12 kilometres (7.45 miles), though much of it has disappeared due to urban expansion and destruction in the modern era. The combined length of all of the earthworks across the entire country, including ditches and ramparts and boundary traces, has been estimated to be approximately 16,000 kilometres (9,900 mi), covering about 6,500 square kilometres (2,500 sq mi) of land, though little remains today. Whilst some sources have erroneously referred to these earthworks as comprising a single built structure, they actually consist of many different structures created at different times, some of which are connected and others which are not. These earthworks have deep historical roots, with evidence suggesting their existence before the establishment of the Oba monarchy. Construction may have begun as early as 800 AD, continuing up to the modern era. The Inner City Iya itself was built in c. 1460 AD. Its construction involved large-scale manual labour and the repurposing of earth from the outer ditch to build the inner rampart. It is estimated that a labour force of 5,000 men, working 10 hours a day, could have completed the work in 97 days, within the period of a single dry season.

Today, remnants of the Iya can still be found in Benin City, although urbanisation and land disputes pose challenges to their preservation. Recognised for their historical significance, the Benin Iya have been placed on a tentative list of Nigerian World Heritage Sites, though they have yet to be included in the official list by UNESCO. The Guinness Book of World Records describes 'The Linear Earthworks of Benin and Isha' as "the longest earthworks of the pre-mechanical era", though this refers to the estimated length of all the earthworks and boundary traces across the country combined and not specifically to the moat and rampart surrounding Benin City.

Nigeria is a very ethnically diverse country with 371 ethnic groups, the largest of which are the Hausa, Yoruba and the Igbo. Nigeria has one official language which is English, as a result of the British colonial rule over the nation. However, it is not spoken as a first language in much of the country because of the massive linguistic diversity in the country. Because of this, Nigeria stands out as one of the world's most linguistically diverse nations, with over 500 languages spoken among its 223 million people (2023 estimate), a testament to its rich ethnic heritage. Some of the popular languages spoken in Nigeria are listed as follows: Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo, Ijaw, Ibibio, Edo, Fulfude, and Tiv to name a few.

According to the language family tree classification by Ethnologue, Okpe, Urhobo and Uvwie, alongside Eruwa and Isoko, make up the five Southwestern Edoid languages of the Benue-Congo group. Quoting Johnstone (1993), Ethnologue puts the population of Urhobo people at 546,000, Okpe 25,400 (2000) and Uvwie 19,800 (2000). These three languages have geographically neighbouring languages: Izon and Itsekiri to the west and south, Ukwuani and Isoko to the east and Edo to the north. Thus, Isoko and Urhobo are similar languages that belong to the same linguistic family.

The Volta–Niger family of languages, also known as West Benue–Congo or East Kwa, is one of the branches of the Niger–Congo language family, with perhaps 70 million speakers. Among these are the most important languages of southern Nigeria, Benin, Togo, and southeast Ghana: Yoruba, Igbo, Bini, and Gbe.

These languages have variously been placed within the Kwa or Benue–Congo families or, starting in the 1970s, combined with them altogether. Williamson & Blench (2000) separate the languages here called Volta-Niger from the others. Güldemann (2018) fails to see clear criteria for dividing the languages into two or three families and maintains the broad grouping and name of Benue-Kwa for all them.