In this era of globalisation, discourses on issues of governance and constitutionalism in Africa ought to shift from a concern with externally induced models to an inward-looking approach that considers the relevance or otherwise of the rich and extremely diverse heritage of the indigenous peoples. As one of the most visible cultural entities of pre-colonial Africa, the political system of the Yoruba kingdoms of southwestern Nigeria had institutions and processes that deserve detailed consideration in this regard. Thus, this paper examines those institutions and processes in pre-colonial Yorubaland that are relevant to the legislative function. It pays particular attention to: (a) the sources and the loci of law-making powers, i.e., official and unofficial institutions that made rules of individual and communal behaviour which, though informal, unwritten and uncodified, are widely known, applied and accepted as authoritative.; (b) the relationships in terms of balance of powers among the various units of government responsible for law making, particularly between the paramount ruler and his chiefs; and (c) the nature and character of law, the legal/judicial system which was mainly inquisitorial as opposed to the accusatorial system inherited at independence, and the system of criminal justice that was designed to be largely reformatory rather than punitive. The study finds that while the politico-legal system of pre-colonial Yorubaland was basically monarchical, there were enough checks on the powers of the monarchy that made absolutism an exception rather than the rule. The search for autochtony in constitution making in Africa could, therefore, in my considered view, begin from here.