Kano is northern Nigeria's largest city and a former Hausa city-state, known for its medieval walled old city, Emir's Palace, Kurmi Market and centuries-old indigo dye pits.
Historical sites
Places where Kano's past comes alive.
Kano City Walls
Built from the 12th to 15th centuries, the walls once enclosed the Hausa city-state. About 14 km of mud-brick wall and several gates survive in part.
Where: Kano Old City
Gidan Makama Museum
Preserves exhibits on Hausa kingship, the Kano Chronicle tradition and the 1804 Fulani jihad.
Where: Gidan Makama, Kano Old City
Emir's Palace (Gidan Rumfa)
Founded under Sarki Muhammad Rumfa (r. 1463-1499), the palace remains the seat of the Kano Emirate.
Where: Kano Old City
Kofar Mata Dye Pits
Traditional indigo dye pits tied to Kano's medieval trans-Saharan cloth trade; reputed to date to the late 15th century.
Where: Kofar Mata
Kurmi Market
One of West Africa's oldest markets, a terminus of trans-Saharan caravan routes linking Kano to North Africa.
Where: Kano Old City
Dala Hill
Tradition holds the hill was the site of the earliest Kano settlement and its iron-working community.
Where: Dala
Kano Central Mosque
The main Friday congregational mosque of the emirate, expanded in the 20th century.
Where: Near Emir's Palace
Gidan Dan Hausa
Early 20th-century residence preserved as a museum of Hausa clay architecture and colonial-era Kano.
Where: Gwammaja
Mambayya House
Home of Mallam Aminu Kano (1920-1983), founder of the Northern Elements Progressive Union, now a research centre.
Where: Gwammaja
Kano Durbar (Hawan Sallah)
A royal horse procession tradition performed at Eid festivals to display the Emir's cavalry and the loyalty of district heads.
Where: Emir's Palace
Gidan Murtala Mohammed
Childhood home of Murtala Mohammed (1938-1976), Nigeria's head of state 1975-76.
Where: Kano