Ikeja

Ikeja is the capital city of Lagos State in southwestern Nigeria. Its population, as of the 2006 census, is 313,196. Prior to the emergence of military rule in the early 1980s, Ikeja was a residential and commercial town with shopping malls, pharmacies and government reservation areas. It lies 17 km northwest of Lagos city. The Murtala Muhammed International Airport is located in the city. Ikeja is also home to Femi Kuti's Africa Shrine and Lagbaja's Motherland, both venues for live music. Its Ikeja City Mall is the largest shopping mall on the Lagos State mainland. Ikeja also has its own radio station, broadcasting both in English (Eko FM) and in Yoruba (Radio Lagos).

== History == Ikeja, which was formally called "Akeja", was named after a deity of the Awori people of Ota. It was originally settled by the Awori people, and the area was raided for slaves until the mid-19th century. Early in the 20th century, it became an agricultural hinterland for Lagos. The opening of the Lagos-Ibadan railway in 1901 and the growth of Lagos as a port transformed Ikeja into a residential and industrial suburb of that city. In the mid-1960s an industrial estate was established, and in 1976 Ikeja became the capital of Lagos state. Johnson Solanke Tomori was an important in the history of Ikeja. He contributed to all the socio-cultural aspects of Ikeja, Agidingbi, Oregun, Alausa, Ojodu, and all the suburbs of Ikeja. His contributions date back to 1965, when he brought a higher level of social consciousness to Ikeja. The first king of Ikeja was His Royal Majesty Oba Momodu Illo, whom was a descendant of Akeja Oniyanrun and ruled Ikeja from 1957 till 1997.