Pupupu, founder of Ondo kingdom

"Ondo Kingdom was established by Princess Pupupu, one the twins of Alafin [king] Oluaso. Her mother was Queen Olu who later died at Ile oluji. The princess gave birth to twins in the era where twins were considered an abomination. ... There are three different origin stories of the Ondo kingdom. Firstly, the tradition of Ondo town which is highly celebrated to this day claims that Ondo was founded by a wife of Oduduwa, the progenitor of the Yoruba who had migrated from Mecca to Ile-Ife. [So here is one of many mentions of Oduduwa as a historical man, not a goddess, as discussed earlier.]

"Oduduwa's wife, Pupupu, gave birth to twins, which were regarded as unlucky and resulted in her exile with her twins. She moved southward until she came to the current location of Ile-Oluji. Pupupu became the first ruler of the Ondo Kingdom in the 16th century [how is explained below] and her descendants wear the crown today. Historian Samuel Johnson accounts a similar story but that Pupupu was the wife of Ajaka, the grandson of Oduduwa. A final origin myth contends that Ondo was founded by people from the Kingdom of Benin during the reign of Ozolua. ...

"A military coup removed Pupupu in power and appointed her son, Aiho (or Airo in some versions) as the ruler. Aiho established the basic political structure for the Ondo state linked largely to his royal lineage and built the royal palace. The royal lineage revolves largely around four different houses, each founded by one of Aiho's sons (although one house died out because of a lack of male heirs). From these different lineages, an Osemawe, or primary monarch for the Ondo kingdom, is selected." 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ondo_Kingdom

You can see that politically the emphasis on male rulership is very pronounced, a theme that also is prominent among the Edo of Benin. (I'll post about that in future, the story of Iyoba Idia of Benin, who put an end to the execution of queen mothers which was intended to quell their considerable political influence, including in dynastic succession.)

More info here, a little obscure for non-Yoruba readers:

http://www.ekimogundescendant.org/the-genesis-of-ondo-kingdom/

"The history of Ondo-Ekimogun sprang from the Palace of Alaafin of Oyo in the ancient city of Oyo when the wife of Oba Alaafin Oluaso [he does not name Pupupu!] bore him twins (a male known till today as Orere and a female also known as Olu) which is forbidden in the Palace of every Oba in Yoruba land. The then Alaafin of Oyo love the twin’s mother called Olori Olu so much and on hearing the news of the newly born twins, he lamented that this is a mysterious child “Ese-omo-re” which later transform to Osemawe as Oba’s title in Ondo Kingdom.

"The Oba Alafin Oluaso ordered that the twins and their mother be taken out of Oyo, he also gave instruction that one stroke of facial mark should be cut on each cheek of the twins as kese or ibaramu mark will cause agony for them on their journey. The single facial stroke mark became an established custom in Ondo town till today. This is how Ondos are referred till the present moment as “Omo Mula meji si oju s’eye”.

rest at link.

"Mọremí Àjàṣorò was a legendary Yoruba queen and folk heroine in the Yorubaland region of present-day southwestern Nigeria who is fabled to have assisted in the liberation of the Yoruba kingdom of Ife from the neighbouring Ugbo Kingdom. Moremi was married to Oranmiyan, the son of Oduduwa, the first king of Ife.

"The Ayaba Moremi lived in the 12th century, hailed from Offa, and was married to Oranmiyan, the heir to the king of Ife and founding father of the Yoruba people, Oduduwa. Ile-Ife was a kingdom that was said to have been at war with an adjoining tribe who were known to them as the Forest people. (Ugbò in the Yoruba language, though the said tribe is believed by scholars to have had no relation to the contemporary Ugbòs of modern Nigeria). [Another source names these Forest people as Ìgbò, a naming I've seen elsewhere, again explaining that these are not the same as the Igbo of SE Nigeria

"Scores of Ife citizens were being enslaved by these people, and because of this they were generally regarded with disdain by the Yoruba city-states. Although the people of Ile-Ife were furious about these raids, they did not have the means to defend themselves. This is because the invaders were seen as spirits by the people of Ife, appearing as masquerades completely covered in raffia leaves.

"Moremi was a very brave and beautiful woman who, in order to deal with the problem facing her people, pledged a great sacrifice to the Spirit of the river Esimirin so that she could discover the strength of her nation's enemies. She is said to have been taken as a slave by the Ugbo, and due to her beauty and Esimirin's help, she married their ruler as his anointed queen. After familiarizing herself with the secrets of her new husband's army, she escaped to Ile-Ife and revealed this to the Yorubas, who were then able to subsequently defeat them in battle.

"Following the war she returned to her first husband, King Oramiyan of Ife (and later [of] Oyo), who immediately had her re-instated as his queen. Moremi returned to the Esimirin River to fulfill her pledge. The river demanded she sacrifice her only son, Oluorogbo. The demand was inconceivable and Moremi pleaded with the god for a less terrible offering to be accepted. In the end, however, she kept her promise and paid the price. The offering of Oluorogbo to the river god grieved not only Moremi but the whole kingdom of Ife. Its people consoled Moremi by offering to be her eternal children - a promise kept by them until today."

There's a parallel to this story in the Baulé tradition about Abla Pokou, an Ashanti princess who fled that kingdom, leading a group of people into what is now Côte d'Ivore. They had to cross a raging river, and Abla Pokou sacrificed her son in order to make the crossing possible. 

Below: Statue of Moremi erected in 2016 by Oba Ogunwusi in the Ife palace 

Moremi being taken captive in order to gather intelligence about the Ugbo

Another relief in the same series about queen Moremi.