10 Popular areas in Lagos and the Origin of their names

1. Ikeja

The capital of Lagos consists of 78 communities.The name Ikeja is actually an abbreviation for “Ikorodu And Epe Joint Administration”. The colonial masters coined the name for ease of administration.

2, Ojota

In the 18th century, the Ojota area was military settlement where soldiers practiced their shooting or perfected their shooting skills.
There were several gun firing spots which became known as “Oju Ota” which means “Bullet spots” in Yoruba. Later, the name metamorphosed into Ojota as it is fondly called now.

3.Magodo

Before it became a posh area and home to the affluent, Magodo was sacred land. The residents had a lot of taboos. One of such was to avoid using mortars and pestles, “Ma gun odo” which means “Don’t pound it”. It later became ‘Magodo’

4.Apongbon

This is one of the most popular markets in Lagos. Its name was derived from the then acting governor of the Lagos colony, William McCoskry. He had a red beard and the Yorubas decided to describe him by his red beard as they could not pronounce his name.

5. Abule Egba

The area derived its name from the early settlers who were Egba people from Abeokuta. The area used to be called “Abule awon egba” meaning “Village of Egba people” in Yoruba. It later became “Abule Egba”

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