Growing up I used to think to Agbada was a special Yoruba traditional attire meant for certain occasions and worn by a particular class of men in the society, you know the “Elite”, the “big men” present. At occasions in those days, you see men arriving the venue, flinging the garment over their shoulders and walking majestically. It was almost always certain that these men would be "spraying" lots of freshly printed naira notes in that occasion. Yes, that was the impression that an agbada wearing man gave off.

The grand boubou/bubu is one of the names for a flowing wide sleeved robe worn by men in much of West Africa, and to a lesser extent in North Africa, related to the dashiki suit. The name boubou derives from the Wolof word mbubb. It is known by various names, depending on the ethnic group wearing them: agbada (Yoruba, Dagomba), babban riga (Hausa), mbubb (Wolof), k'sa or gandora (Tuareg), darra'a Maghrebi Arabic, grand boubou (in various Francophone West African countries) and the English term of gown.

The use of the grand boubou as clothing became widespread throughout the West African region with the migration of semi-nomadic groups such as the Fulani, and traders such as the Dyula and Hausa. Comparing the grand boubou to the various styles of Arabic Thawb suggests the grand boubou follows an archaic template to the contemporary male clothing of the Middle East and North Africa.

The grand boubou or Agbada as a full formal attire consists of 3 pieces of clothing: a pair of tie-up trousers that narrow towards the ankles (known as a sokoto pronounced "shokoto" in Yoruba) and a long-sleeved shirt (known as a dashiki in Yoruba) and a wide, open-stitched sleeveless gown worn over these. They are generally of the same colour, and historically were made from silk, but increased understanding of Islamic restrictions on clothing meant the grand boubou is now mostly made from cotton and synthetic cloths made to resemble silk.

Looking at the present, the grand boubou or agbada is no longer just for the big daddies, we now see young men (and even women) rocking the agbada with a fusion of merdern fashion; where the old school agbada is worn over long sleeved buba (tunic), these days, they are worn over short sleeved buba. Where the old school agbada is long, extremely broad and wing-like, these days they come in shorter lengths and widths and are definitely not as heavy as the old school type.

These days however, the younger folks have taken the fashion of agbada to a whole new level and we have to admit it’s more than awesome so much so that agbada is now worn to dinners and many other formal events. Who could have thought agbadas would become this fashionable?

The thing about Agbadas is that they help you achieve that big man look in an instant whilst not making you look older than you actually are. Another good thing is the choice of materials Agbadas could be made out of.

You could sew your Agbada with Aso-oke, lace material and of course guinea brocade – which is the best to sew your Agbada with. However, do not try to use Ankara for your Agbada – its only best for short hand Dansiki.

Rocking the agbada outfit without accessories is like a NO NO for me, because they improve your entire outlook. You can add wristwatch, cuff links, rings and even nice necklaces or chains as you wish.

“A good Agbada is a waste of large yards of material without the right accessories; it’s like eating Nsala Soup without pounded yam. - Noble Igwe”