Thread by @gentleojay

I did a little resesrch into the origin and hisyory of Nigeria and i came across this piece that i feel will benefit people. Every Nigerian must know the origin of their states

THE ORIGIN OF NIGERIAN STATE NAMES

(Read and Share)

ABIA :

Abia is an acronym derived from the name of the four main groups of the people in the state as at the time it was formed in 1991: Aba, Bende, Isuikwuato & Afikpo

ADAMAWA:
This state was named after a warrior that conquered the region in the beginning of the 19th century. His name was Modibbo Adama Bin Ardo Hassan.

AKWA IBOM:
Akwa Ibom is named after a river, the Qua Iboe (or Kwa Iboe) River.

ANAMBRA:
It was derived from the name of the Oma Mbala
(Omambala) River (in Igbo, the native name of the river is Ànyịm Ọma Mbala).

Bauchi:
There are 3 versions of how Bauchi got its name. One version says ‘Bauchi’ is Hausa word meaning the southern flanks of Hausaland. Tribes living in the southern parts of the Hausaland were referred to as "kasashen bauchi".

BAYELSA:
Bayelsa was formed as a result of the clamour from the three LGAs in old Rivers (Brass LGA known as BALGA, Yenagoa LGA known as YELGA and Sagbama LGA – SALGA). The name came about from the combination of their acronymns.
BA + YEL + SA = BAYELSA.

BENUE:
It is a word from the Batta language ‘Binuwe’ which means ‘Mother of Waters’.

BORNO:
The name was derived from ‘Borno’, an alternative name of the Kanuris who form the predominant ethnic group in the state.

CROSS RIVER:
The state took its name from a River called Oyono or Cross River.

DELTA
It was named after the delta of the River Niger formed as it enters the Atlantic Ocean.

EBONYI
The state was named after the Aboine River that cuts through Abakaliki, the state capital.

EDO:
Named after the Bini people who had always referred to themselves as Edo or Iduu.

EKITI:
‘Ekiti’ is a term that is said to denote a settlement of many hills.

ENUGU:
Enugu derived its name from two local words "enu" & "ugwu" which means ‘top of the hill’.

GOMBE
Named after the dialect of Fulani language (Fulfulde) spoken in the area ‘Gombe’.

IMO:
This state is named after the Imo River (Mmiri Imo).

I sincerely hope the current Governor doesn't rename the state to Rochas Foundation before his tenure elapses.

JIGAWA:
The state was named after its distinctively golden-coloured soil, Jigawa.

Kaduna:
The state after the crocodiles in Kaduna River. "Kadduna" is Hausa plural word for crocodiles.

Kano:
The state was named after a blacksmith of the Gaya tribe who settled in the area while sourcing for ironstone. His name was Kano.

Katsina:
Katsina was named after the wife of the local ruler known as Janzama. Her name was Katsina.

Kebbi:
Legend has it that Kebbi was named after the Ka’abba in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

Kogi:
The name Kogi was said to have been derived from ‘kogi’, (hausa word for river). This is to represent the fact that the two biggest Rivers in Nigeria, River Niger and River Benue form a confluence in the state.

KWARA:
Dis was named afta D River Niger which forms the Northern border of the state. D Nupes used to call the river,Kwara

LAGOS:
D name is a Portuguese word 4 lakes.D Portuguese D first settlers frm Europe 2reach Lagos in 1472. D name was inspired by d lagoons n rivers in Lagos

Nasarawa:
It was so named by the founder of Nasarawa kingdom, Makama Dogo. Nasarawa means Victorious.

Niger:,
Niger Named after the popular River Niger.

Ogun:
Named after the Ogun River.

Ondo:
This was named after the settlers of the old Ondo Kingdom. Ondo is a word for settlers.

Osun:
Like a number of other Nigerian states, it was also named after a river; River Osun.

Oyo:
It was named after the Old Oyo empire.

Rivers:
A state with many water bodies, Rivers State was named for many of the rivers present in the area.

Sokoto:
Named after the defunct Sokoto Caliphate. Sokoto is the anglicized version of the Arabic word ‘suk’ which means ‘market’ or ‘place of commerce’.

Taraba:
The state was named after the Taraba River.

Yobe:
The state was named after Komadugu Yobe (Waube or Ouobe) or River Yobe (or River of Yo).

Finally,

Zamfara:
Zamfarawa the land of Jambarawa.

Abuja :

The name “Abuja” was derived from Abu Ja, a brother to Muhammadu Makau, the last Hausa ruler of Zaria.Makau had left Zaria after being defeated by the Fulani and settled in the area now known as Abuja.

© Godwin Ibiang