The operation was named Benin Punitive Expedition, and on 9 February 1897 the invasion of Benin kingdom began ,.

At about 1485, following the Portuguese involvement in the area, the city proper began to be referred to as " Benin " while the expanding group of tributary states became known as the " Benin Empire ".

In 1936, Oba Akenzua II began the movement to return the art now known in modern discourse as the ' Benin Bronzes '.

The path of totality of the Moon's shadow began at sunrise in Brazil and extended across the Atlantic to Africa, traveling across Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Libya, and a small corner of northwest Egypt, from there across the Mediterranean Sea to Greece ( Kastellórizo ) and Turkey, then across the Black Sea via Georgia, Russia, and Kazakhstan to Western Mongolia, where it ended at sunset.

In the fifteenth century, Ughoton began to function as a port city for nearby Benin City, first hosting the Portuguese, and later the English and Dutch traders.

The regions most recognized for producing terracotta art in this part of the world include the Nok culture of central and north-central Nigeria, the Ife / Benin cultural axis in western and southern Nigeria ( also noted for its exceptionally naturalistic sculpture ), and the Igbo culture area of eastern Nigeria, which excelled in terracotta pottery.

Benin has played an important role in the African music scene, producing one of the biggest stars to come out of the continent in Angélique Kidjo.

In Nigeria and several other west African countries, including Ghana, Benin, Togo, Ivory Coast, and Burkina Faso, they are usually grated and lightly fried in palm oil to preserve them.

Benin is the centre of Nigeria's rubber industry, but processing palm nuts for oil is also an important traditional industry.

In March 1896, following price fixing and refusal by Itsekiri middle men to pay the required tributes, the King of Benin ordered a cessation of the supply of oil palm produce to them.

* in present Benin, since 13 October 1946 Dahomey overseas territory, on 4 December 1958 granted autonomy as Republic of Dahomey, the last ( acting ) governor, René Tirant ( b. 1907 ), stayed on as only High commissioner till the 1 August 1960 independence

His awards include the Césaire de la Musique award for best male artist of the year ( October 2007 ); he received a gold disc for his album, Droit Chemin, and has been nominated for best music clip, and best artist in the Black Music Awards to be held in Coutonou, Benin on January 12, 2008.

In October 1896 Lieutenant James Robert Phillips ( RN ) Phillips was not a Lieutenant, he was a lawyer ; after completing articles he was Sheriff and Overseer of Prisons in the Gold Coast and later Acting Queen's Advocate there, before his appointment as Acting Consul-Generalin the Protectorate-see Home, cited below already, at page 30 the Acting Consul-General visited the Benin River District and had meetings with the agents and traders.

Kérékou seized power in Benin in a military coup on 26 October 1972, ending a system of government in which three members of a presidential council were to rotate power ( earlier in the year Maga had handed over power to Justin Ahomadegbé ).

* Black Star of Benin ( France ; 30 October 1930 )

According to them, Ahomadégbé-Tomêtin " was among the three great thinkers who took turns to lead Dahomey ( now Benin ) from May 1970 to October 1972.

Félicien Houenou Singbo ( born October 25, 1980 ) is a Beninese football player who plays for Benin national football team.

Yakubu Aiyegbeni ( born 22 November 1982 in Benin City ), generally known simply as Yakubu, is a Nigerian footballer who plays as a striker for Guangzhou R & F and the Nigerian national football team.

Other breweries have been opened over time – Benin City brewery in 1974 and Ogba brewery in 1982.

* 1980-1990 Africare President C. Payne Lucas received National Orders of Benin ( 1990 ), Cote d ' Ivoire ( 1984 ), Niger ( 1980 ), Senegal ( 1982 ) and Zambia ( 1986 ), the nations ' highest awards for humanitarian service.

These include: Albania, Afghanistan Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Benin, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chad, Chile, the People's Republic of China, Côte d ' Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, DR Congo, Egypt, East Timor, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Grenada, Holy See ( Vatican City ), Honduras, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, North Korea, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Libya, Malta, Mauritania, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Norway, Netherlands, Nigeria, Oman, Order of Malta, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Uruguay, and Vietnam.

* 1960 – Dahomey ( later renamed Benin ) declares independence from France.

* National Day, celebrates the independence of Benin from France in 1960.

He was the first European to visit the region of Benin in Nigeria and named the river located there, the Rio Fermoso.

The economy of Benin remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture and cotton.

Since the transition to a democratic government in 1990, Benin has undergone an economic recovery.

Benin sells its products mainly to France and, in smaller quantities, to the Netherlands, Korea, Japan, and India.

Despite its rapid growth, the economy of Benin still remains underdeveloped and dependent on subsistence agriculture, cotton production, and regional trade.

Although trade unions in Benin represent up to 75 % of the formal workforce, the large informal economy has been noted by the International Trade Union Confederation ( ITCU ) to contain ongoing problems, including a lack of women's wage equality, the use of child labour, and the continuing issue of forced labour.

Benin ’ s financial sector is dominated by banks, and in general remains shallow.

Benin has a lively and diversified microfinance sector.

Benin is member of the regional Bourse Regional des Valeur Mobiliés ( BRVM ) located in Abidjan, Côte d ' Ivoire.

* West African Agricultural Market Observer / Observatoire du Marché Agricole ( RESIMAO ), a project of the West-African Market Information Network ( WAMIS-NET ), provides live market and commodity prices from fifty seven regional and local public agricultural markets across Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d ' Ivoire, Guinea, Niger, Mali, Senegal, Togo, and Nigeria.

The project is run by the Benin Ministry of Agriculture, and a number of European, African, and United Nations agencies.

Instability in Côte d ' Ivoire in 2003 forced a rerouting of rail freight from the Abidjan corridor to ports in Togo, Benin, and Ghana via the road network.

In 2006, an Indian proposal surfaced to link the railways in Benin and Togo with landlocked Niger and Burkina Faso.

The Benin Bronzes are really brass, and the Romanesque Baptismal font at St Bartholomew's Church, Liège is described as both bronze and brass.

For example: in Africa, the bronze heads of the Kingdom of Benin ; in Europe, Grecian bronzes typically of figures from Greek mythology ; in east Asia, Chinese bronzes of the Shang and Zhou dynasty — more often ceremonial vessels but including some figurine examples.

A bongo drinks from a swamp. Angola, Benin extinct ?, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d ' Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya ( the only place where the eastern bongo are found in the wild ), Liberia, Mali, Niger, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo extinct?

Highlights of the African collection include the Benin Bronzes, a magnificent brass head of a Yoruba ruler from Ife, Nigeria ; Asante goldwork from Ghana and the Torday collection of Central African sculpture, textiles and weaponry.

The Elgin Marbles, Benin Bronzes and the Rosetta Stone are among the most disputed objects in its collections, and organisations have been formed demanding the return of these artefacts to their native countries of Greece, Nigeria and Egypt respectively.

The Trans – West African Coastal Highway provides a paved link to Ghana, Togo, Benin and Nigeria, with paved highways to landlocked Mali and Burkina Faso feeding into the coastal highway.

Population censuses have been taken in Benin in 1978, 1992 and 2002.

Dahomey was a country in west Africa in what is now the Republic of Benin.