LAGOS, April 4, 2026 – The Lagos State Records and Archives Bureau (LASRAB) turned heads at the MUSON Centre on Thursday, April 2, with a stunning display of artefacts and archives that brought Lagos’ hidden Nupe connections to life during the launch of Alli-Balogun and the Nupe Dimensions of Lagos History.
Authored by Dr. Gbolahan Taiwo Alli-Balogun, a University of Lagos historian specializing in pre-colonial Yoruba-Nupe relations, the 300-page volume – foreworded by former Lagos Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN, CON) – dives into the often-overlooked 19th-century Nupe incursions that shaped Lagos. It spotlights the Alli-Balogun lineage’s role in bridging Nupe warriors, led by figures like King Kosoko, with Lagos’ indigenous Eko traders, influencing everything from trade routes to palace politics.
The event drew a vibrant crowd: traditional rulers from Nupe and Yoruba stools, academics, top government brass, and culture buffs. Scholarly panels unpacked how Nupe cavalry raids in the 1850s fused with Lagos’ slave-trade economy, laying groundwork for the multicultural megacity we know today – a narrative Dr. Alli-Balogun calls “Lagos’ unsung ethnic mosaic.”
Anchoring the proceedings, Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Ministry of Information & Strategy, Mr. Olanrewaju Bajulaiye, hailed Lagos as “a living narrative of resilience, innovation, and cultural fusion.” He stressed preserving these stories: “History isn’t dusty relics; it’s the blueprint for our future.”
LASRAB stole the show with rare gems: faded Nupe-Lagos trade ledgers from the 1860s, sepia photographs of Alli-Balogun forebears negotiating with British consuls, and ceremonial Nupe regalia unearthed from state vaults. Guests pored over these tactile links to Lagos’ past, sparking lively chats on how Nupe influences linger in local festivals and architecture.
The bureau’s involvement reaffirms its mandate under the Lagos State Records Law to democratize history. “We’re not just custodians; we’re storytellers,” a LASRAB official told reporters, highlighting partnerships with events like this to digitize and share archives online.
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As Lagos races toward #AGreaterLagosRising, initiatives like this remind us: the city’s global swagger stems from deep, diverse roots – Nupe threads woven into its Yoruba fabric.
