Most of what is said about early Kano comes from a single document, the Kano Chronicle, a list of kings with notes on their deeds. It survives in several Arabic copies from the 19th century and was translated into English by H. R. Palmer in the early 20th century. It draws on older oral and written lists.
Historians use it carefully. Its sequence of rulers is valuable, but some early dates were likely worked out afterwards, and the chronicle’s religious viewpoint (the arrival of Islam as the turning point) shapes the story. Modern studies compare it with other sources such as Songhay, Borno and Tuareg records, archaeology and later oral traditions.
- sarki
- king, ruler (plural sarakuna)
- birni
- walled city or town
- ganuwa
- wall, city wall
- kasuwa
- market
- gari
- town; Sabon Gari means “new town”
Sources for this article
- Palmer 1928, Kano Chronicle (translation)
- Last 1967, introduction