Kano (Nigeria)

Kano , city (1991 est. pop. 595,000), N Nigeria. It is the trade and shipping center for an agricultural region where cotton, cattle, and about half of Nigeria's peanuts are raised. Kano is the major industrial center of N Nigeria; peanut flour and oil, cotton textiles, steel furniture, processed meat, concrete blocks, shoes, and soap are the chief manufactures. The city has long been known for its leatherwork; its tanned goatskins were sent (from about 15th cent.) to N Africa and were known in Europe as Morocco leather. One of the seven Hausa city-states, Kano's written history dates back to AD 999, when the city was already several hundred years old. It was a cultural, handicraft, and commercial center, with wide trade contacts in W and N Africa. In the early 16th cent. Kano accepted Islam. Kano reached the height of its power in the 17th and 18th cent. In 1809 it was conquered by the Fulani , but it soon regained its leading commercial position. In 1903 a British force captured the city. In Kano are Abdullahi Bayero College (1960; part of Ahmadu Bello Univ., Zaria); Gidan Makama Museum, with examples of local art; and the palace of the emir, the former ruler of the Kano city-state.

Kano City in n central Nigeria; capital of Kano state. The city dates from before the 12th century and became a Muslim possession in the 16th century. It was conquered by the Fulani in the early 19th century. Today Kano is a trading centre for a region producing cotton and nuts. Industries: textiles, leather goods, brewing, chemicals. Pop. (1996 est.) 674,000.