Full Description
The Yoruba, one of the largest and most historically important ethnic groups in Nigeria, are noted for the economic activity, confidence, and authority of their women. Yoruba Women, Work, and Social Change traces the history of women in Yorubaland from around 1820 to 1960 and Nigerian independence. Integrating fresh material from local court records and four decades of existing scholarship, Marjorie Keniston McIntosh shows how and why women's roles and status changed during the 19th century and the colonial era. McIntosh emphasizes connections between their duties within the household, their income-generating work, and their responsibilities in religious, cultural, social, and political contexts. She highlights the forms of patriarchy found within Yorubaland and explores the impact of Christianity, colonialism, and international capitalism. This keen and insightful work offers a unique view of Yoruba women's initiative, adaptability, and skill at working in groups.
Contents
Contents
Preface and Acknowledgments
Note on Language and Orthography
Abbreviations, Terms, and Explanations
Part 1. Introduction
1. Opening
2. Sources and Questions
Part 2. The Context of Women's Lives
3. Yorubaland, 1820-1893
4. Colonial Yorubaland, 1893-1960
5. Family and Marriage
Part 3. Women's Economic Activities
6. Labor, Property, and Agriculture
7. Income-Generating Activities in the Nineteenth Century
8. New Approaches to Familiar Roles during the Colonial Period
9. Western Skills and Service Careers
Part 4. Other Public Roles and Broader Issues
10. Religion, Cultural Forms, and Associations
11. Regents and Chiefs, Economic Organizations, and Politics
12. Patriarchy, Colonialism, and Women's Agency
Glossary of Yoruba Words
Notes
List of References
Index
