Description of Adamawa State

Located in the northeastern part of Nigeria, Adamawa State shares a border with the states of Borno to the north, Gombe to the west, and Taraba to the south; to the east, it also shares a border with Cameroon. The state is named after the former emirate of Adamawa, and the city of Yola, the former capital of the emirate, now serves as the capital of Adamawa State. In 1991, the former Gongola State was split into the states of Adamawa and Taraba, making Adamawa one of the most ethnically diverse in Nigeria.

Adamawa ranks eighth among the 36 states in terms of land area but thirteenth in terms of population, with an estimated 4.25 million people living there as of 2016. The state's geography is dominated by mountain ranges (the Atlantika, Mandara, and the Shebshi ranges) and the Adamawa Plateau, which are cut through by a number of valleys and rivers (the Benue and the Gongola, in particular). Adamawa's lowlands belong to the West Sudanian savanna in the north and the wetter Guinean forest-savanna mosaic in parts of the south, while the highlands belong to the Mandara Plateau mosaic and the Cameroonian Highlands forests ecoregions, respectively. Located in the state's southeastern corner, Gashaka Gumti National Park is home to a wide variety of fauna, including the last of Nigeria's chimpanzee, leopard, and golden cat populations as well as bushbuck, African buffalo, patas monkey, black and white colobus, giant pangolin, and hippopotamus.

Historically, many different peoples have called the area that is now Adamawa State home. These include the Bwatiye (Bachama), Bali, Bata (Gbwata), Gudu, Mbula-Bwazza, and Nungurab (Lunguda) in the state's central region; the Kamwe in the state's north and central region; the Jibu in the far south; the Kilba, Marghi, Waga, and Wula in About 55% of Adamawa's population is Sunni Muslim, while 30% are Christians (mostly Lutherans, EYNs, ECWAs, and Pentecostals), and 15% practice traditional ethnic religions.

A portion of what is now Adamawa State was taken by the Fulani jihad in the early 1800s, and the Adamawa Emirate was established there as part of the Sokoto Caliphate. A little over 90 years later, the area was split in two after German and British forces defeated the Emirate in the Adamawa Wars. Much of what is now western Adamawa was part of the Northern Nigeria Protectorate, which the British absorbed into British Nigeria before Nigeria gained its independence in 1960. Before the Kamerun campaign of World War I, the area under German control was considered to be a part of German Kamerun. After the war, the area that is now eastern Adamawa State was incorporated into the British Cameroons as the majority of the Northern Cameroons. This lasted until a referendum in 1961 led to the region's merger with Nigeria. Up until the region was split in 1967, modern-day Adamawa State was a part of the post-independence Northern Region. On 3 February 1976, Gongola State and nine other states were created following the division of the North-Eastern State. After 15 years as a state, Gongola was split in two, with the southern half becoming Taraba State and the northern half becoming Adamawa State.

Agriculture is the backbone of Adamawa State's economy, which relies on the production of goods like cotton, groundnuts, millet, cassava, guinea corn, and yams. Although Adamawa's Human Development Index was one of the lowest in the country due to the Boko Haram insurgency, progress has resumed in the state since 2016.

Geography

Adamawa is one of Nigeria's biggest states, at around 36,917 square kilometers in size. There are three states that surround it on all sides: Borno to the north, Gombe to the west, and Taraba to the south. The international border with Cameroon is located on its eastern edge. With the start of the dry season in November, Adamawa state experiences extremely high temperatures and humidity levels during the summer months. The months of December through February are known as the Harmattan season.

Benue, Gongola, and Yedsarem, three massive river valleys, cut across an otherwise mountainous landscape in this region. Landscape features include the valleys of Mount Cameroon, the Mandara Mountains, and the Adamawa Plateau.

Economy

Farmers dominate the landscape, which is divided into the Sub-Saharan and Northern Guinea Savannah biomes. Cotton and groundnuts are their primary exports, while maize, yam, cassava, guinea corn, millet, and rice provide the bulk of their food needs.

Those who make their homes in riverside villages typically make a living fishing, while the Fulanis raise cattle. State-maintained roads connect every corner of the state to one another.

The colonial era, when the Germans ruled a swath of territory known as the Northern and Southern Kameruns from Dikwa in the North to Victoria (Limbe) on the Atlantic coast, was pivotal in the growth of many communities across the state. The Treaty of Versailles, which ended World War I, saw these territories transferred to British control as United Nations Trust Territories. Subsequent referendums resulted in the northern Kameruns merging with Nigeria to form the then Sardauna Province, and the southern Kameruns forming a Confederation with French-speaking Cameroon.

Religion 

In spite of its Muslim majority, Adamawa is Nigeria's most Christian state. Adamawa was the scene of many pivotal events during the Islamic Jihad led by the Sokoto Caliphate in the early nineteenth century. A descendant of the Islamic kings who conquered and ruled the region before Nigeria's unification still holds the traditional position of Emir, also known as Lamido, over the state of Adamawa. Atiku Abubakar is the King of Adamawa's Waziri (Vizier). Both the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria (EYN Church) and the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (LCCN Church) have their national headquarters in Adamawa; the former is located in Mubi in the northern zone of the state, and the latter in Numan in the southern zone. In March of 1923, American missionaries established a congregation of the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria (EYN church) in the Garkida Gombi Local Government of the state. In 1913, Dutch missionaries established the Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria (LCCN Church) in the town of Numan.