Laurels by the Nigerian Academy of Letters

1. Professor RICHARD ADEBOYE OLANIYANProfessor Richard Adeboye Olaniyan is a retired Professor of History from  the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife since October, 1983, as an eminently worthy scholar for the  award of the  Fellowship  of the Nigerian Academy of Letters. A sound and solid scholar with a truly intimidating bio-data, Professor Olaniyan obtained his Bachelor […]

1. Professor RICHARD ADEBOYE OLANIYAN
Professor Richard Adeboye Olaniyan is a retired Professor of History from  the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife since October, 1983, as an eminently worthy scholar for the  award of the  Fellowship  of the Nigerian Academy of Letters.
A sound and solid scholar with a truly intimidating bio-data, Professor Olaniyan obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree (Magna cum Laude), Regis University, in 1965, Master of Arts, Georgetown University, 1967 and Doctor of Philosophy (with Distinctions) in the year 1970 also from the Georgetown University—all in the United States of America.
In buttressing this presentation of this very senior Professor of History for this Fellowship, I cite the very covetable distinctions, grants  and awards he had garnered, including among numerous others, the Danforth Fellowship for three years, 1965 to 1969 for Postgraduate studies after a nationwide competition among the leading USA colleges and Universities, the Phi Alpha Theta Award given in recognition of conspicuous attainments and scholarship in History in 1967 and American Society Award for outstanding scholarship in Political Science in 1965. He is also a recipient of the Fulbright Alumni Initiative Award granted jointly to him and Professor Lillian Trager of the University of Wisconsin by IIE, Council for International Exchange of Scholars and the State department of the United States of America for twenty-four months  (2004-2006).
This inimitably credible academic and frontline scholar of European and African diplomatic studies  who has constructed the trajectory of and history of inter-state relations from briefs and correspondences of diplomacy, a teacher of History who rose through the ranks since 1970 till attaining the Chair in the year 1983, all at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife until retiring in the year 2007 has published thirty-eight books and monographs and numerous essays in peer review articles in reputable national and international journals. He is a member of many professional Associations including the Historical Association of Nigeria, American Society of Nigeria and the American Studies Association of Nigeria. He has been External Examiner to fifteen Universities and supervised numerous Masters and Doctoral projects.
Mr President, it is this  seasoned, experienced academic, frontline history scholar, pioneer of the study of diplomatic interactions and diplomacy of Yoruba and pre-colonial African states, a worthy academic mentor and humanely endowed intellectual that I have the honour and pleasure of presenting to you for the award of the Fellowship of the highly coveted Fellowship of the Nigerian Academic of Fellows.   
2. Professor Oloyede Is-haq
Professor Is-haq Olanrewaju Oloyede is a Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Ilorin. He studied and worked for the entirety of his tertiary life and career at the University of Ilorin— from the status of an undergraduate Student, through his  graduate studies to Lectureship until attaining the pinnacle of his career as Professor and ultimately a Vice-Chancellor (spanning 1979- 2012). Before becoming Vice-Chancellor, he had served as a member of the Governing Council of the University, Director of Academic Planning, Deputy Vice-Chancellor Academic and Deputy Vice-Chancellor Administration. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree (Arabic, First Class, Hons) in 1981, Masters of Arts, Islamic Studies, 1985, and Ph.D., Islamic Studies, 1991.
Outside of a chequered career as a university, community and public administrative life, Professor Oloyede has published widely in notable and reputable national and international peer review outlets, with publications numbering over fifty. His publications range, diversely, from African traditional religions, comparative religious studies, Shari’ah and secularism, Islamic and Arabic poetry and poets, including Uthman Dan Fodio, peace studies to Islamic legal Education and Islamic jurisprudence.
In reward of his academic and scholarly offering as well as his services to the local, national and international community, he has been amply rewarded with Fellowships, distinctions and honours and appointments, among which are, the fellowship of the Nigerian Institute of management, the Chairmanship of the association of Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities, Executive Secretary/Secretary-general of Nigerian Inter-Religious Council, Co-Secretary, national Political Conference,  and current Secretary-general of Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs. Further recognition of his services to the Higher Education administration are his appointment as Board member, Association of Commonwealth Universities, President of Association of African Universities and member of UNECO/ADEA Working Group of Higher Education in Africa.
Mr. President, I present to you, Professor Oloyode, a notable scholar of Islamic Studies, a high-profile University and public Administrator, a bridge builder in the tertiary education and national peace-making and inter-sectarian well-being for the award of the Fellowship of the Nigerian Academic of Letters.
3. Professor ENO-ABASI URUA
Professor Eno-Abasi Urua is a fine academic and notable achiever in the areas of phonetics, phonology, language documentation and language studies. She attended the University of Calabar, where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts Education (English) in 1980, Master of Arts and Ph.D. in Linguistics in 1987 and 1990 respectively from the University of Ibadan. A lady of many fists, Eno-Abasi obtained  the best Master of Arts result in the Department of Linguistics  at the University of Ibadan in 1987, won the Association of Commonwealth Universities Post-Doctoral Fellowship Award in 1993 and received the Alexander von Humboldt-Stiftung (George Foster) Fellowship Award in the year 2000. A consistent and focused academic, Professor Urua Essien rose through the ranks at the Universities of Cross River State Uyo from a Teaching Assistant in 1985 to a Professor in 2002.
Her research focus within she has published impressively is the phonetics and phonology of Lower Cross (Benue Congo) languages, inter-facing with other sub-fields of Linguistics. In both her ingenuity in language documentation, research and the utilization of ICT, she has enriched our knowledge of the sound systems of the Lower Niger languages. She has published (singularly and in collaboration) highly engaging, four and rare books  in her discipline, forty monographs, journal articles and numerous conference proceedings in worthy scholarly outlets. She has opened greater knowledge space to the areas of sound studies in Ibibio vowels, line crossing consonants and CV suffixation in Ibibio, the linguistic situation and phonetics analysis in Akwa Ibom.
Mr. President, I invite you to admit into the College of Fellows of the Nigerian Academy of letters, this young, fore-sighted and far-sighted scholar of linguistics and phonology; this well-grounded student of knowledge academic in a knowledge society and  this versatile and profound, frontline female Humanist, Professor Eno-Abasi Urua Essien.