Eight or nine burial mounds near Mani, about 30 km east-south-east of Katsina, each over one central burial, raised over some two centuries from the thirteenth or fourteenth to the fifteenth or sixteenth century; one group of goods is radiocarbon-dated to the early fourteenth century, and tumulus 7 held a Near Eastern bowl of the late fifteenth or early sixteenth century.
Excavated by Palmer (1907) and by Lange's team (1991-1992). Tradition makes it the seat of Kumayo's Durbawa kings, with ancestor shrines at the baobabs. In 1200 the mounds have not yet been raised; whether the place was already a shrine is not known.
Who holds it
- Title
- the Durbi (priest-chief)
- Confidence
- low
Lord in 1200
The Durbawa (tradition)
How things stand that morning
A shrine site of the Durbawa in tradition; the dated burials are later than 1200.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Dated archaeology (after 1200) and tradition.
Primary sources for Katsina (Durbawa)
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
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.