Kings and their demesnes · Kano · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Naguji

The sarki's own town and the close plain around it, where he took the new land tax of one-eighth of the crop and from which he raided from Kura to Tsangaya.

He is remembered as generous but violent, and as the king who demanded to see the secrets of the god of the old population and punished them when they refused.

Who he is

Name
Naguji, son of Yusa (Tsaraki)
Title
sarki of Kano
Since
1194 (Palmer's reconstruction)
Born
Not known
Family
Bagauda dynasty; mother Yankuma or Muntaras
Confidence
low

Kano Chronicle (1880s) in Palmer's translation; dates reconstructed.

What it holds

  • The walled town of Kano
  • The central Kano plain

How it was acquired

Succeeded his father Yusa (Tsaraki), 1194 in Palmer's count.

Allies and rivals

Santolo (rival); the cult leaders of the old population (subdued by force).

How things stand that morning

Ruling Kano on 1 January 1200 in the reconstructed dating.

Wealth

The crop tax; tribute of the plain's chiefdoms.

Military

Household warriors and levies; the town wall begun by Gijimasu and finished by Yusa.

Threats

  • Santolo
  • Revolt of the old population

What the year holds

What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.

  1. not pinnedThe Santolo campaign (two years at Basema, ending in defeat).Depends on: Chronicle order only. Stopped by: -

Where the sources disagree

  • Reign 55 years in the chronicle, 1194-1247 in Palmer.

Evidence: One late chronicle.

On the map: Estimate.

Primary sources for Kano

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

  • The Kano Chronicle (about 1880 to 1890, from older written lists and oral tradition). The only narrative of the Hausa towns, but a nineteenth-century compilation whose dates for early kings are reckoned back from reign lengths. Read online

Sources and studies

  1. Wikipedia: Naguji (Kano Chronicle in Palmer's translation: 55 years; land tax of one-eighth; Santolo; Kura to Tsangaya; Samagi)
  2. Wikipedia: Kano Chronicle (king list with Palmer's dates as given by Last 1980; written probably in the 1880s; Palmer's translation 1908)

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.