Emirates of the Sokoto Caliphate

The Sokoto Caliphate was a loose confederation of emirates that recognized the suzerainty of the Amir al-Mu'minin. The caliphate was established in 1809 and later became the largest pre-colonial African state. The boundaries of the caliphate are part of present-day Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Nigeria.

According to historian Mahmud Modibbo Tukur, by the turn of the 20th-century, the Sokoto Caliphate covered an area of about 388,500 square kilometres (or 150,000 square miles), not including parts of Adamawa (Fombina), located in modern-day Cameroon, which is estimated to cover over 100,000 square kilometres.

At the end of the 19th-century, the Caliphate comprised 30 emirates, excluding its twin capitals of Gwandu and Sokoto. Some of these emirates had autonomous sub-emirates under them, with Adamawa having the most, numbering over 40. Most of the emirates were grouped by regional titles: the western emirates were known as the aqalim al-gharb; the southern ones aqalim al-yemen; and the emirates in the no-man's-land between Hausaland and Borno as Borno Gudiri or Ghaladi. The eastern and western territories were administered from the twin capitals of Sokoto and Gwandu respectively.

According to historian Yusufu Bala Usman, the emirates were: +EmirateDate joinedCapitalAdamawa Emirate (Fombina) 1809 (created)YolaAgaie Emirate1832 (created)AgaieBauchi Emirate1809 (created)BauchiBida Emirate1835BidaBirnin-GaoureBirni N'GaouréBitinkogiLamordeDaura Emirate1805DauraGelajoGelajoGombe Emirate1804 (created)GombeGwandu Emirate1809 (created)GwanduHadejia EmirateHadejiaJama'are EmirateJama'areJema'a EmirateJema'aJunju EmirateGayaIlorin Emirate1824 (created)IlorinKano Emirate1807KanoKatagum Emirate1807 (created)KatagumKatsina Emirate1807KatsinaKazaure EmirateKazaureKontagora Emirate1864 (created)KontagoraLapai Emirate1825 (created)LapaiLafiagi EmirateLafiagiLiptako EmirateDoriMissau EmirateMissauMuri Emirate (Hammanruwa)MuriNasarawa Emirate1838 (created)LafiaSaySayShonga EmirateTorodiLamordeYagaSebbaYauri EmirateYauriZazzau Emirate1804Zaria

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