Kano << KAH noh >> (pop. 3,587,000) is a city in the northern plains of Nigeria. It is Nigeria’s second largest city, after Lagos. Kano has long been an important center of trade. Today, it is the capital of Kano state. The city lies on the Jakara River in a region that is mostly savanna (grasslands with scattered trees). Most of the city’s residents are Muslims belonging to the Hausa ethnic group.
Kano’s history dates back to the A.D. 600’s. The town was once called Dala, after Dala Hill, an area rich in iron ore. For hundreds of years, Kano was an important stop along the trade network of northern Africa. People traded textiles, leather goods, and enslaved people for salt and luxury goods.
Hausa kings called sarki ruled Kano until the early 1800’s. A Muslim ethnic group, the Fulani, then conquered most of the Hausa states of northern Nigeria. In 1903, the United Kingdom took control of Kano, making it a center of colonial administration. Under British rule, agriculture—especially the raising of peanuts, or groundnuts—became a central part of Kano’s economy. Since Nigeria gained independence in 1960, Kano has continued to grow as an industrial and cultural center.
Kano’s ancient Kurmi Market remains one of the largest commercial centers in western Africa. Leatherworking and indigo dying have been important industries in Kano for hundreds of years. Much of what has become known as “Moroccan” leather is actually produced in Kano.
