Kaduna State in the context of "Hausa Kingdoms"

Northern Nigeria (or Arewancin Nijeriya) was an autonomous division within Nigeria, distinctly different from the southern part of the country, with independent customs, foreign relations and security structures. In 1962, it acquired the territory of the British Northern Cameroons, which voted to become a province within Northern Nigeria.

In 1967, Northern Nigeria was divided into the North-Eastern State, North-Western State, Kano State, Kaduna State, Kwara State, and the Benue-Plateau State, each with its own Governor.

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is a federal territory in central Nigeria. Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria, is located in this territory. The FCT was formed in 1976 from parts of the states of old Kaduna, Kwara, Niger, and Plateau states, with the bulk of land mass carved out of Niger state. The Federal Capital Territory is within the North Central region of the country. Unlike other states of Nigeria, which are headed by elected Governors, it is administered by the Federal Capital Territory Administration, headed by a minister, who is appointed by the president.

9°30′N 8°0′E / 9.500°N 8.000°E / 9.500; 8.000

The Nok culture is a population whose material remains are named after the Ham village of Nok in southern Kaduna State of Nigeria, where their terracotta sculptures were first discovered in 1928. The Nok people and the Gajiganna people may have migrated from the Central Sahara, along with pearl millet and pottery, and diverged prior to arriving in the northern region of modern-day Nigeria. This may have led to their respective settlements in the regions of Gajiganna and Nok. Nok people may have also migrated from the West African Sahel to the region of Nok. Nok culture may have emerged in 1500 BCE and continued to persist until 1 BCE.

Kano State (Hausa: Jihar Kano جِهَرْ كَنُوَ) is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the northern region of the country. Created in 1967 out of the former Northern Region, Kano State borders Katsina State to the northwest for about 210 km (130 miles), Jigawa State to the northeast for 355 km (221 miles), Bauchi State to the southeast for 131 km (82 miles), and Kaduna State to the southwest for 255 km (158 miles). The state's capital and largest city is Kano, the second most populous city in Nigeria after Lagos. The incumbent governor of the state is Abba Kabir Yusuf. He was sworn in on 29 May 2023.

Modern-day Kano State was the site of a number of prior kingdoms and empires, including the Kingdom of Kano, which was centred on Dalla Hill (Hausa: Dutsen Dala) and existed from to 1000  to 1349 CE. In 1349, the Sultanate of Kano was established with Yaji I as its first Sultan. In the 15th century, Kurmi Market was opened, which helped the city of Kano become a centre of commercial activity in Hausaland. The market remains open today and its historic importance is reflected in the state's nickname, the Centre of Commerce.

Tiv (or Tiiv) are a Niger-Congo ethnic group. They constitute approximately 2.4% of Nigeria's total population, and number over 5 million individuals throughout Nigeria and Cameroon. The Tiv language is spoken by over 5 million people in Nigeria, with a few speakers in Cameroon. Most of the language's Nigerian speakers are found in Benue, Taraba, Nasarawa, Plateau, Cross River, Adamawa, Kaduna, Niger, Kogi and the Federal Capital Territory Abuja. The language is a branch of Benue–Congo and ultimately of the Niger–Congo phylum. In pre-colonial times, the Fulani ethnic group referred to the Tiv as "Munchi" (also sometimes written Munshi e.g. Duggan, E. de C. 1932), a term not accepted by the Tiv people.

KadunaListen is the capital city of Kaduna State, and the former political capital of Northern Nigeria. It is located in north-western Nigeria, on the Kaduna River. It is a trade center and a major transportation hub as the gateway to northern states of Nigeria, with its rail and important road network.

The population of Kaduna was put at 760,084 as of the 2006 Nigerian census. Rapid urbanization since 2005 has created an increasingly large population, and as of 2024, the city has an estimated population of 1.2 million people.

Niger State is a state in the North Central region of Nigeria, bordered to the east by Kaduna State and the Federal Capital Territory, to the north by Kebbi State and Zamfara State, and to the south by Kogi and Kwara states, while its western border makes up part of the international border with Benin. It is the largest state in the country by area. The state capital is Minna, and the state is divided into 25 local government areas. Other major cities include Bida, Kontagora, and Suleja.

Of the 36 states of Nigeria, Niger is the eleventh most populous with an estimated population of about 6.7 million as of 2020. Geographically, the state is split between the West Sudanian savanna in the east and the Guinean forest–savanna mosaic ecoregion in the rest of the state. The Kainji Lake as well as the Niger and Kaduna rivers are the state's major water bodies, with the River Niger flowing through from Kainji Lake through the western part of the state and forming the border with Kwara State. Niger State is also home to the Kainji, Jebba, and Shiroro Dams, which are major sources of hydroelectric power. Also situated there is Kainji National Park, the largest National Park in Nigeria, which contains Kainji Lake, the Borgu Game Reserve and the Zugurma Game Reserve.

The Ham people (exonyms: Jju: Ba̱daa, Tyap: A̱daa) are an ethnic group found in the southern part of Kaduna State in the northwestern region of Nigeria, predominantly in Jaba, Kachia and Kagarko Local Government Areas of southern Kaduna State, Nigeria. They speak the Hyam language and refer to themselves as Ham. They are known as the 'Jaba' in Hausa, but a recent study by a linguist who is a native of the area (John 2017) has definitely proven that the label 'Jaba' was derogatory and should be rejected. Some estimates place the Ham as numbering 400,000.