Idia (c. late 1400s-c. 1540) was the first Iyoba (Queen Mother) of the Benin Empire — mother of Oba Esigie. She personally led the Benin army in battle during her son's war against the neighboring Idah Kingdom — preserving the empire in its crisis. Her bronze ivory pendant mask is one of the iconic artworks of Benin — looted by the British in 1897, it became the FESTAC '77 emblem of pan-African heritage.
The first woman elevated to the formal title of Iyoba in Benin history.
Idia reduces to eight — the number of Iyoba.