Bida

Bida traces its earliest roots to a 16th-century settlement of the Beni people, a Nupe subgroup, which was captured in 1531 by Tsoede, the legendary founder of the Nupe kingdom. For centuries it remained a modest outpost until the Fulani conquest of the Nupe kingdom around 1806 reshaped the region's political landscape. The town's true transformation came in 1835 when Emir Usman Zaki triumphed in the Nupe civil war and elevated Bida to capital of the Nupe emirate, replacing the older capital at Raba.

During Emir Masaba's second reign from 1859 to 1873, Bida experienced remarkable growth — its iconic town walls were expanded to enclose five square miles, three royal palaces rose within the city, and trade links with the British Royal Niger Company were established in 1871. The British campaign of 1897 defeated the Fulani army at Bida, leading to direct occupation by 1901; the territory was reorganized as Bida emirate and incorporated into Niger province in 1908. Today, Bida ranks as the second-largest city in Niger State and holds UNESCO recognition as a cultural center, celebrated globally for its exquisite brass and bronze works, its unique groundnut cakes called kuli-kuli, and its enduring role as the spiritual and cultural homeland of the Nupe nation.