The
Defoid languages are a now-abandoned branch of the
Benue–Congo language family. The name of the group derives from the fact that nearly all of the ethnic groups who speak member languages refer to the city of
Ilé Ifè as their place of origin — Defoid =
èdè ('language') +
ifè (Ife) +
oid. The Defoid language group consists of two branches,
Yoruboid and
Akoko, which though related, are now recognized as not being closer to each other than they are to
Igboid and
Edoid; the acronym is used provisionally for all four families. (See
Volta–Niger languages.)