Sanya takes centre stage at LABAF review after prize win

By Doris Obinna

Nigeria-born novelist and cultural storyteller Oyin Olugbile has won the 2025 Nigeria Prize for Literature for her novel Sanya, earning the prestigious US$100,000 award. The winner was announced on 10 October 2025, marking yet another milestone for the prize sponsored by Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG).

At the book reading, which took centre stage over the weekend at the Lagos Book and Art Festival (LABAF), the novel was praised for its bold reimagining of Yoruba mythology and its feminist framing.

The event, held under the sub-theme “Securing Memory, Effecting Change,” spotlighted both Olugbile’s achievement and NLNG’s continued contribution to Nigeria’s literary landscape.

Reviewer, actor and literary activist Nathaniel Olawoyin highlighted how *Sanya* demonstrates literature’s power to shape national discourse, preserve cultural identity and inspire future generations. He noted the book’s rich engagement with myth, memory and gender, particularly its interrogation of patriarchy through a heroine who must disguise herself as a man to fulfil her destiny.

Joining virtually, Olugbile explained that *Sanya* draws deeply from Yoruba cosmology. The title, she said, means “to recompense” or “to redeem suffering,” a reference to the protagonist’s birth following her mother’s multiple stillbirths and a prophecy of a warrior child. Some readers, she added, have detected the deliberate fusion of the deities Sango and Oya in the name, pointing to the novel’s themes of duality, lineage and destiny.

The novel’s reinterpretation of the traditionally male deity Sango as a woman drew particular attention at the event. Critics described the work as emotionally resonant and culturally grounded, blending grief, prophecy and questions of power into what some called “a story both epic and deeply human.”

Olugbile said her decision stemmed from curiosity and what she described as a “rebellious creative instinct,” shaped by academic research, a family history of writing and a long-standing interest in cultural narratives.

She revealed that the idea for *Sanya* began in 2017 and took nearly five years to complete as she juggled research, motherhood and personal challenges. Early rejections, she said, pushed her to refine the manuscript before securing a publisher. The strong reception, she added, has sparked interest in potential film or series adaptations, with readers urging her to bring the story to a global audience. She also hinted at future works exploring other African deities and mythologies.

In her remarks, NLNG’s Manager for Corporate Communications & Public Affairs, Anne-Marie Palmer-Ikuku, echoed the praise from the advisory board, describing *Sanya* as “very daring.” She commended Olugbile for reinterpreting traditional Yoruba narratives and reimagining Sango as a woman, calling the work “relieving” in its boldness and cultural depth.