Countries / Sub-Saharan Africa
5 notable historical events in Nigeria, in chronological order.
The Nok culture flourished in present-day central Nigeria, known for its terracotta sculptures and as one of the earliest iron-smelting cultures in sub-Saharan Africa.
From the 16th to the 19th century, an estimated 12.5 million enslaved Africans were shipped across the Atlantic to the Americas, with profound consequences for both continents.
The Islamic scholar Usman dan Fodio launched a jihad against the Hausa kingdoms and founded the Sokoto Caliphate, one of the largest states in 19th-century Africa.
In 1960, seventeen African countries gained independence, most of them former French colonies along with Nigeria, Somalia and the Congo.
War followed the secession of south-eastern Nigeria as the Republic of Biafra; the fighting and blockade-induced famine killed an estimated one to two million people.