Most people of western Nigeria, Benin and Togo call themselves Yoruba. Yorubaland was comprised of many independent kingdoms and the Yoruba language has many dialects, sometimes mutually unintelligible. The Yoruba have a pantheon of over 400 deities (Orisa) under the Supreme Being Oladumare. These deities are the spirits of ancestors and natural phenomena, such as rivers, and hills. Here, as elsewhere in Africa, the fertiity of of human beings, animals, and plant lfe are among the most vital concerns. Local variations can be identified within a recognizable general style of Yoruba art. Gelede masks are used by the Gelede cult in the southwest of Yorubaland to appease the spirits and to invoke their benediction to protect the community from malevolent forces. The masks are worn at the funeral rituals of the members of the cult and also annually for Gelede festival, which honors the great mother, Iya-Nla. The dancers (all male) and the old women (aje) of the towns first gather in the market place and pray to female spirits. At night, an Efe (a special masquerade) performance takes place and main ritual begins the next day. Efe is the senior male dancer whose satirical songs comment on current events; he sometimes predicts future events as well. The masks consist of two parts, the lower part and an often elaborate and whimsical superstructure on top. The Gelede masks themselves represent female powers. The dancers appear in identical pairs draped in multi-coloured costumes, starting with the youngest performers and proceeding to most experienced. A carnivalesque atomsphere prevails.

Epa masks are made in Ekiti area of northeast Yorubaland and are used in Epa ceremonies to honor heroes and ancestors. The mask performances and ceremonies are held once or twice in a year in front of a sacred grove. Some of the masks, which may weigh upto 30 kgs, are worn by young men at initiation ceremonies to perform acrobatic feats as evidence of strength and endurance. Sometimes this is done in honor of Ogun, god of iron and war, and marks the cutting of new yams. Like the Gelede masks, the Epa masks have two parts, the lower (Ikoko), being sacred, is the focus of ritual, while the superstructure marks the masks as belonging to a specific episode. The masks are repainted with earth colors every year before performances.