List Of States In Northern Nigeria And Their Year of Creation (2023)

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This Article was Reviewed by The Chief Editor, Godfrey

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Today, our discussion is going to center around the list of states in Northern Nigeria and their year of creation.

Nigeria is a large country with different regions. These regions are further divided into 36 states, which make up the country Nigeria.

Nigeria has four regions: the North (Northeast, Northwest, and North-central), the South (South-south, Southwest, and Southeast), and the West.

These regions are also known as geopolitical zones, and in this article, we shall concentrate on the Northern region of Nigeria and its states.

List Of States In Northern Nigeria

19 States In Northern Nigeria

Some of the biggest states in Nigeria are in the north. Farming, mining, fishing, hunting, trading, weaving, blacksmithing, dying and making mats are the main economic activities in these northern states. 

The region is one of the most populated in Nigeria. It is thought that over 90 million people live in the states of this region. 

Most people in this part of Nigeria are Muslims, but you can also find a few Christians, especially in southern Kaduna, and traditional worshippers.

Nigeria’s northern part is made up of 19 states. These states are further divided into the North East, North West, and North Central geopolitical zones.

 Let’s give you a list of all of Nigeria’s Northern states. The northern states of Nigeria are listed below in no particular order.

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1. Bauchi

Bauchi is a state in northern Nigeria. It was created in the old northeastern state on the 3rd of February, 1976. As of 2022, more than 6.5 million people live there.

It is a cotton-producing state and also a good place to raise cattle and other livestock because a large number of the people who live there are involved in animal husbandry.

Like many other states in the area, it is ruled by the Hausa tribe. The state capital is the city of Bauchi. Gombe was separated from Bauchi in the year 1996.

2. Borno State

Borno state is one of the northern states that was formed on the 3rd of February, 1976. The majority of people in the state are Kanuri. People know Borno for its farming methods. Maiduguri is the capital of this state. In 1991, Yobe state was a part of Borno state.

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3. Kano State

Kano is one of Nigeria’s first-generation states. It was formed on the 27th of May, 1967, in the northern part of the country.

List Of States In Northern Nigeria

Kano has the most people and the largest economy in northern Nigeria. It is next to Katsina in the north, Jigawa state in the east, Bauchi in the south, and Kaduna in the west.

Kano has 17.55 million people living in it, most of whom are from the Hausa tribe. Kano city is the capital of Kano state.

4. Kebbi State

Sokoto and Kebbi states were together until the 27th of August 1991, when the Federal Government split them into two separate states. Birnin-kebbi is the capital city of the Kebbi state.

It is in the northwest of the country. It shares borders with the states of Sokoto, Niger, and Zamfara. With over 4.4 million people, Kebbi is one of the average-sized states in Nigeria.

5. Kaduna State

Kaduna is in the northwest of Nigeria. It became a state on the 27th of May, 1967, when the Federal Government broke up the Old North-central state to make more. The capital of the state of Kaduna, which has 8.25 million people, is the city of Kaduna.

6. Katsina State

Katsina was created on the 23rd of September, 1987. It used to be part of the old Kaduna state. It is northwest of the country and has more than 8.5 million people.

Katsina is known for how much groundnuts, hides, and skins it produces. At the state’s central market, you can also find sorghum, cotton, millet, onions, and domestic animals. The city of Katsina is the capital of the state of Katsina.

7. Kwara State

People often think that Kwara is in the southwest of Nigeria, but it is actually in the north-central part of the country (that is middle belt).

Still, the Yoruba tribe is the largest in Kwara, followed by the Fulani, Nupe, and Bariba tribes. You should also know that Kwara was founded on the 27th of May, 1967, with 3.2 million people living there.

Kwara state is known for how much cotton, cocoa, coffee, Kolanut, tobacco, beniseed, and palm produce it grows.

8. Taraba State

On the 27th of August, 1991, Taraba state was carved out of Gongola state. The state is in the northeast of Nigeria, and its capital, Jalingo, is home to at least 3 million people.

9. Sokoto State

Sokoto is one of the states created in 1976 from the north-western area. It was also known as the capital of the caliphate.

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Sokoto City is the capital of the state of Sokoto. It is home to 5 million people. Most people know Sokoto as the home of the Sultan and the seat of the Caliphate.

List Of States In Northern Nigeria

10. Kogi State

Kogi state is not in the northern part of Nigeria. Instead, it’s in the middle belt(Northcentral) of Nigeria.

Kogi state, or Lokoja, is where the rivers Niger and Benue meet. It is also called the Confluence State.

Igala, Ebira, and Okun are the state’s three largest tribes. Bassa, Gwari, Kakanda, and Oworo are the state’s four smallest tribes.

At least 4.4 million people live there. Kogi is best known for being the home of Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited, Nigeria’s largest iron and steel company. It is also home to one of Africa’s biggest cement factories, the Obajana Cement Factory.

It might be interesting to know that Kogi was made on the 27th of August, 1991, from parts of Kwara and Benue states.

11. Niger State

On the 3rd of February, 1976, Niger State was created out of the old north-western state. It is one of the biggest states in Nigeria, with a population of over 5.5 million people. 

Minna is its capital city. The major tribes in Niger state are Gbayi, Nupe, and Hausa, while Koro, Kadara, Kambari, Kamuku, Fulani, Dukawa, Mauchi, Ayadi, etc., are minor ethnic groups in the state.

12. Yobe State

As was already said, Yobe was carved out of Borno state on the 27th of August, 1991. The state is in the northeastern part of Nigeria.

It is home to about 3.3 million people, most of whom work in commercial farming and other types of agriculture. Damaturu is Yobe state capital.

List Of States In Northern Nigeria

13. Gombe State

Gombe was formed on the 1st of October, 1996, as part of an event to mark the anniversary of Nigeria’s independence. It used to be part of Bauchi state, so it is in the northern part of Nigeria.

14. Nasarawa State

Nasarawa was made on the 1st of October, 1996, and is in the north-central zone. It is next to the states of Kaduna, Abuja, Kogi, and Benue.

Nasarawa is still one of the least populated states in the country, with just over 2.5 million people living there. The capital of Nasarawa state is Lafia.

15. Adamawa State

Adamawa is a well-known and peaceful state in Nigeria. It is in the northeast of the country. The state’s history goes back to Gongola, which split into Taraba and Adamawa in 1991. The capital of Adamawa state is Yola.

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Adamawa, on the other hand, is a good place to get cotton, hides, and skins because many of its people are involved in different types of farming.

16. Jigawa State

Jigawa state was carved from Kano state in 1991. It is in the northwest of the country. It is known for its paintings in the Dutsen Habude cave in Birnin Kudu.

Dutse is the capital city of Jigawa state, with more than 5.8 million people from tribes like Fulani, Hausa, Mangawa, Badawa, and Ngizimawa.

17. Zamfara State

Zamfara is another state from Sokoto on the 1st of October, 1996. It is northwest of the country and has more than 4.5 million people. Its capital is Gusau, and most of its people are from the Hausa tribe.

List Of States In Northern Nigeria

18. Benue State

Even though Benue state is not mostly in the north, it is on this list because it is in the middle belt, which is the north-central area.

It was formed in 1976 when Benue and Plateau split into Plateau State and Benue State.

The TIV, Igede, and Idoma tribes have much power in Benue state. It is known as one of the best places to grow food crops in Nigeria. Because of this, it is called “the food basket of the nation.”

The capital of Benue State is Makurdi, which is home to almost 5.7 million people.

19. Plateau State

The Murtala Mohammed Regime split Benue-Plateau State into Plateau State on the 3rd of February, 1976. Before that, the area was called Benue-Plateau State. Jos is its capital.

Jos was originally called “Gwosh,” but the Hausa people who moved there and turned it into a trading centre mispronounced it as “Jos.”

It is located in the northcentral of Nigeria. The state has about 40 ethnic groups, including the Vergam, Ankwei, Angas, Jawara (Jarauci), Birom, Mango, Fulani, Hausa, and Eggen. It is known for its diversity.

List Of States In Northern Nigeria

Conclusion: List Of States In Northern Nigeria

As mentioned above, most people who live in the states speak Hausa or Fulani, but there are also other ethnic groups in the Northern region.

So you may be wondering why Abuja is not on this list of states in Northern Nigeria. 

Abuja is a state located in the north, but the FCT (Federal Capital Territory) is not a state; rather, it is the capital of Nigeria.

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About the Chief Editor

Godfrey Ogbo, the Chief Editor and CEO of AtlanticRide, merges his environmental management expertise with extensive business experience, including in real estate. With a master's degree and a knack for engaging writing, he adeptly covers complex growth and business topics. His analytical approach and business insights enrich the blog, making it a go-to source for readers seeking thoughtful and informed content.

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