Professor Sophie Oluwole, Nigeria's first female Doctor of Philosophy, passes away

Professor Sophie Oluwole is dead
She was Nigeria's first female Doctor of Philosophy
She was 82-year-old at the time of her death.

Professor Sophie Oluwole, the first Nigerian woman to get a PhD in Philosophy, is dead.

The 82-year-old legendary philosopher passed away around 8 pm on Sunday evening after a protracted illness as disclosed by Professor Muyiwa Falaiye of the University of Lagos (Unilag).

Prof. Oluwole, also known as Mamalawo (Mother of Wisdom) was born in Igbara-oke, Ondo State in 1936.

She studied history, geography and philosophy at the Unilag. According to Wikipedia, she completed her PhD in philosophy at the University of Ibadan.

Upon becoming a qualified professor, Oluwole taught African Philosophy in the Department of Philosophy at Unilag until she retired 18 years ago.

Reportedly, she was the university's first female Dean of Arts and first female Dean of Student affairs.

She also published a lot of books that reflected her beliefs on Ifa, Orunmila and Yoruba philosophy, in general.

The late Oluwole was known for being extremely vocal about changing the misrepresentation of African thinkers in education and the role of women in philosophy.