Hausa Kingdoms (Masarautun Hausa), also known as Hausaland (Kasar Hausa), was a collection of states ruled by the Hausa people, before the Fulani jihads. It was situated between the Niger River and Lake Chad (modern day northern Nigeria). Hausaland lay between the Western Sudanic empires of Ancient Ghana, Mali and Songhai and the Eastern Sudanic empire of Kanem-Bornu.
Hausa oral traditions detail the Bayajidda legend, which describes the adventures of the Baghdadi hero, Bayajidda, culminating in the killing of the snake in a well at Daura and his marriage to the local queen Magajiya Daurama. According to the legend, Bayajidda's descendants founded the Hausa Bakwai (seven "true" states), as well as the Hausa Banza ("bastard" or "illegitimate" states).
