Bauchi State

Bauchi, usually referred to as Bauchi State to distinguish it from the city of Bauchi, is a state in northern Nigeria. Its capital is the city of Bauchi. The state was formed in 1976 when the former North-Eastern State was broken up. It originally included the area now in Gombe State, which became a distinct state in 1996.

The Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University is located in the capital city Bauchi.

History

What is now known as Bauchi was until 1976 a province in the then North-Eastern State of Nigeria. According to the 2006 census, the state has a population of 4,653,066.

Bauchi State has gone through tremendous transformation over the years. The Ajawa language was spoken in Bauchi State, but became extinct between 1920 and 1940 as speakers switched to Hausa.

During the colonial era up to independence, it formed part of the Bauchi Plateau of the then Northern Region, until the 1967 state creation exercise, when the Bauchi, Borno, and Adamawa provinces constituted the former North-Eastern State.

Bauchi

Bauchi (earlier Yakoba) is a city in northeast Nigeria, the capital of Bauchi State, of the Bauchi Local Government Area within that State, and of the traditional Bauchi Emirate. It is located on the northern edge of the Jos Plateau, at an elevation of 616 m. The city has a population of 301,284 (2012). The Local Government Area covers an area of 3,687 km² and had a population of 493,810 at the time of the 2006 Census.

History

The city was founded by Yaqub ibn Dadi, the only non-Fulani flag-bearer of the Sokoto Empire. The name was derived from a hunter called Baushe, who advised Yaqub to build his city west of the Warinje mountain. In return Yaqub promised to name his city after the hunter.

Abubakar Tafawa Balewa is buried in the city, while the Yankari National Park is 110 km from the state capital. The city lies on the Port Harcourt – Maiduguri railway line. The Bauchi State Library Board was established in 1976.

In July 2009, attacks in Bauchi by Boko Haram following the arrest of some of its members resulted in over 50 people killed and over 100 arrested.