This article is within the scope of WikiProject Biography, a collaborative effort to create, develop and organize Wikipedia's articles about people. All interested editors are invited to join the project and contribute to the discussion. For instructions on how to use this banner, please refer to the documentation.BiographyWikipedia:WikiProject BiographyTemplate:WikiProject Biographybiography
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Africa, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Africa on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.AfricaWikipedia:WikiProject AfricaTemplate:WikiProject AfricaAfrica
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Women, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of women on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.WomenWikipedia:WikiProject WomenTemplate:WikiProject WomenWikiProject Women
This article is within the scope of the Military history WikiProject. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the project and see a list of open tasks. To use this banner, please see the full instructions.Military historyWikipedia:WikiProject Military historyTemplate:WikiProject Military historymilitary history
This article is within the scope of the Women in Religion WikiProject, a collaborative effort to improve Wikipedia's coverage of women in religion. If you would like to participate, you can visit the project page, where you can join the project and see a list of open tasks.Women in ReligionWikipedia:WikiProject Women in ReligionTemplate:WikiProject Women in ReligionWomen in Religion
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Religion, a project to improve Wikipedia's articles on Religion-related subjects. Please participate by editing the article, and help us assess and improve articles to good and 1.0 standards, or visit the wikiproject page for more details.ReligionWikipedia:WikiProject ReligionTemplate:WikiProject ReligionReligion
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Women's History, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Women's history and related articles on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.Women's HistoryWikipedia:WikiProject Women's HistoryTemplate:WikiProject Women's HistoryWomen's History
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Politics, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of politics on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.PoliticsWikipedia:WikiProject PoliticsTemplate:WikiProject Politicspolitics
Latest comment: 3 years ago1 comment1 person in discussion
This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 2 September 2022 and 13 December 2022. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Borilg1827, Button857, Aisu50(article contribs).
Nominator says they may take this article to FAC. I'll try to include some FAC-related issues, and I'll indicate which are not required for GA status.
I'm having a difficult time reading the word Iyoba because it looks like it starts with lowercase L. I posted a query at the MOS about it: Wikipedia_talk:Manual_of_Style/Text_formatting#lowercase_l_and_uppercase_I_not_distinguishable. Not sure what they'll say. Query: Do all the sources spell it with uppercase "I"? Using lowercase "i" as in iyoba would be less confusing for readers, if the sources permit it.
Iyoba is a pronoun/title and cannot possibly be started with 'i', not even in the sources. –VWF
Clarify: "Earlier custom is said to have required ..." Earlier than what?
That was the tradition before his son Esigie, so I'd say just before him. –VWF
Caption: Modern monumental statue in Benin City identified as Aruanran, Esigie's rival in the succession traditions.
Probably should have a citation, since it is stating a fact (unless the caption info is also in body text with citation there)
"monumental" - a better word for large statues of humans is "colossal" which is an official art term meaning 2x life size or larger
Term "identified" is confusing: implies people are not certain who the statue represents. Didn't the artist state the identity of the subject of the artwork?
I removed this image entirely as I have reservations on my own, I also couldn't lay hand on a source. –VWF
Most photos of sculptures require two "free to use" justifications: (1) the photographer; and (2) the underlying artwork. I see the photographer's license in the Commons, but I don't see anything about the artist licensing the sculpture itself. It may be that in Nigeria, artworks are in public domain ... is that so? Bottom line: should probably ask at Commons Help Desk for guidance on what kinds of copyright issues may be involved here. Then, based on that, add more info into the photo's Commons page. Perhaps not important for GA, but FAC image reviewers will definitely raise this issue.
Better word? " An Edo aphorism describes her as ..." May not be the best word. If the sources indicate: consider a synonym of aphorism, such as adage or maxim etc.
"Show Ref Check" tool shows several issues with some sources. Perhaps not GA requirements, but nominator says they are contemplating FAC in the future, so noting here.
ISBNs did not exist in 1968, so editor perhaps used a reprint. If so, the year of the reprint should be provided, NOT the original 1st edition year. (1968). A Short History of Benin. Ibadan University Press. ISBN 9789781212390. Pub. too early for ISBN, perhaps needs |orig-year=;
ISBNs did not exist in 1969, so editor perhaps used a reprint. If so, the year of the reprint should be provided, NOT the original 1st edition year. Ryder, Allan Frederick C. (1969). Benin and the Europeans: 1485–1897. Longmans. ISBN 978-0-582-64514-1. Pub. too early for ISBN, perhaps needs |orig-year=;
Several book sources are a chapter, yet the source does not incluce page # range of the chapter. There are 3 or 4 of these. One is: Buhle, Mari Jo; Murphy, Teresa; Gerhard, Jane (2008). "Worlds Apart, to 1700". Women and the Making of America: Volume 1. Pearson. ISBN 978-0-138-12688-9. Retrieved 25 July 2026 – via Internet Archive. Caution: Missing pagenums for book chapter?
I am knowing this for the first time, thank you. I have replaced the ISBNs with OCLC. I have also added chapter page ranges. –VWF
Link to journal/publisher: some sources may have journal/publishers that have WP articles. Ideally, they'd be linked. Not required for GA, but will impress at FAC.
Example: Curnow, Kathy (1997). "The Art of Fasting: Benin's Ague Ceremony" (PDF). African Arts. 30 (4): 46–53, 93–94. doi:10.2307/3337553. ISSN 0001-9933. JSTOR 3337553. Retrieved 27 July 2026. That journal has WP article at African Arts (journal)
Journal sources do not display publisher. Not required for GA; not even for FAC. But some reviewers find it helpful to establish that sources are reliable (i.e. if publisher is unknown vs famous).
Chronological history of life? Most biographical articles include 3 to 8 sections that are a birth-to-death sequence of facts. Two patterns are common:
2) As in Douglas MacArthur, the entire article is a birth-to-death sequence, (except one minor section at the end).
For the Idia article, it is not clear to readers where the life-to-death chronology is located. Maybe it is the top 9 sections? Which are followed by 3 or 4 topical sections? If so, consider following pattern (1) above and create a "Life" top-level section containing 9 subsections. Then put the 3 or 4 remaining topical sections after that (e.g. "FESTAC 77 and international recognition") as top-level sections.
The Idia article, as it is now, is especially confusing because the section names of nearly every section (except 2) sound like they could be topical.
@Noleander: Well, even though I have written several of the kings article, there are some that I do not follow the regular pattern expected (Early life, accession, reign, death, etc), this is most especially because of the sources available and what they actually say. Idia's early life was not recorded any where, in fact, we do not even know her birth nor death dates, yeah, that's how obscure her personal life, before being Ozolua's wife and after helping her son win kingship, is. So, the section pattern I followed stemmed from the available materials. We definitely cannot compare Einstein's article with this, neither can we compare the sourcing.
Topical means any section outside the life chronology. In Einstein article that includes Legacy, Popular Culture, Awards. In James Cook it includes the Science n Technology section, etc. Noleander (talk) 21:41, 28 July 2026 (UTC)Reply
@Noleander Thanks, I understand the concern more clearly now. As a compromise, I have placed the material from her origins and marriage through her death and succession under a new top-level section titled "Life and political career". Within it, the material concerning the creation of the Iyoba office, her Uselu court, political authority and ritual thingy have been grouped under "Establishment as Iyoba", while Ekasa and the ukpe-okhue are be grouped under "Ceremonial traditions". The sections on court art, FESTAC 77 and historiographical interpretations remain separate top-level thematic sections.
I believe this will make the life-to-death progression immediately visible without imposing a modern biographical structure unsupported by the surviving evidence. I have also made sure it accords with MOS:CHRONOLOGICAL even though the MoS does not prescribe one universal section arrangement for every biography. Vanderwaalforces (talk) 07:22, 29 July 2026 (UTC)Reply
Passing for GA status. Article meets all GA criteria, and nearly WP:FACR. Spot check passed for 6 random passages. New section outline (emphasizing "life span" vs topical) is an improvement. Hope to see it at WP:FAC some day! Noleander (talk) 17:27, 29 July 2026 (UTC)Reply
This table lists 6 random passages from throughout the article (2.7% of 223 total passages).
These passages contain 10 inline citations (3.3% of 302 in the article). Generated with the Veracity user script. Noleander (talk) 12:39, 29 July 2026 (UTC)Reply
Reference #
Letter
Source
Archive
Status
Notes
Ozolua consequently appointed Ogidogbo to govern a provincial territory, leaving Esigie and Aruanran as the principal claimants to the throne.
Earlier custom is said to have required the biological mother of a newly installed Oba to be "put away" or killed so that she could not become an alternative source of political authority.
Her 2000 catalogue entry instead refers to five generally accepted examples and one disputed head, indicating that attribution of the complete group remains uncertain. The head in the British Museum and another in the National Museum, Lagos, have been attributed stylistically to the same sixteenth-century caster. Characteristics developed in these early examples recur in approximately forty-five later commemorative heads made for Iyobas.
The British Museum holds a widely reproduced ivory pendant identified with Idia. It was taken from the royal palace during the British expedition against Benin in 1897, when many court objects were removed and distributed through European museums, private collections and the art market.
.svg){kind=small}
This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 2 September 2022 and 13 December 2022. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Borilg1827, Button857, Aisu50 (article contribs).
_(cropped)_1.jpg){kind=link}
.jpg){kind=link}
