Nigeria Through Time: Interactive Map

10,000,000 BCE – 1,500 BCE

Prehistory & the Stone Age

Hunter-gatherers, early pottery and the first farmers of the Nigerian savanna and forest.

Timeline events

12

Rulers & leaders

2

Wars & battles

0

Dynasties & regimes

1

Key Events

View full timeline

c. 250,000 years ago Acheulean hand-axe workshop at Ugwuele At Ugwuele in Uturu, Abia State, hunter-gatherers worked a dolerite ridge to produce large bifacial tools.
c. 14,600 years ago African Humid Period begins and Mega-Chad swells About 14,600 years ago the African Humid Period began, bringing lakes, rivers and grassland to the Sahara and Sahel.
c. 5,500 years ago (5500 BP) Sahara dries as the African Humid Period ends In steps between roughly 6,000 and 5,000 years ago the monsoon retreated south and the Green Sahara turned to desert.
c. 4,000 years ago (sources differ: 3000-1000 BCE) Bantu expansion begins in the Nigeria-Cameroon borderland Linguistic evidence points to the highlands between south-eastern Nigeria and Cameroon as the starting point of the Bantu migrations.
c. 1500 BCE Nok culture emerges on the Jos Plateau and Benue Nok culture is dated by Wikipedia to roughly 1500 BCE to 1 BCE, centred on southern Kaduna State and the Jos Plateau.

Explore all 12 events from this period

1,499 BCE – 799

Nok Culture & the Early Iron Age

Nok terracottas, early iron-working, Lake Chad villages and the first trans-Saharan contacts.

Timeline events

30

Rulers & leaders

2

Wars & battles

4

Dynasties & regimes

2

Key Events

View full timeline

c. 900 BCE Pearl millet farming in the Lake Chad basin Wikipedia's Lake Chad article records some of West Africa's earliest domesticated pearl millet in the Chad basin, dated to about 800-1000 calibrated BCE. Villagers grew it alongside herding and fishing.
c. 500 BCE-200 CE Earliest settlement at Ile-Ife Ile-Ife, regarded as the Yoruba spiritual homeland, has settlement traces that Wikipedia dates variously: the Ile-Ife article says the city was founded between 1000 and 500 BCE, the History of Nigeria article says settlements date to the 10th-6th centuries BCE, and the Yoruba article says a powerful city-state existed there by the 5th century BCE. Yoruba tradition holds that Oduduwa founded the first mound at Oke Ora.
202 CE Septimius Severus captures Garama Wikipedia records that Septimius Severus captured Garama, the Garamantian capital, in 202 CE. Garama had about 4,000 residents with roughly 6,000 more in the surrounding area and was excavated in the 1960s at modern Germa, about 150 km west of Sabha.
666 CE Arab forces take Fezzan Britannica's Fezzan entry, quoted in Wikipedia, says Arab forces took Phazania (Fezzan) in 666 CE and brought it under Islamic rule.
late 1st millennium CE Igodomigodo takes shape under the Ogiso Igodomigodo, the earliest organised polity in the Benin area, coalesced from autonomous communities in the late 1st millennium CE, per Wikipedia.

Explore all 30 events from this period

800 – 1399

Early States: Kanem, Ife, Hausa & Igbo-Ukwu

Kanem under the Sayfawa, Igbo-Ukwu bronzes, the Ogiso of Benin, Ife and the first Hausa cities.

Timeline events

27

Rulers & leaders

4

Wars & battles

3

Dynasties & regimes

1

Key Events

View full timeline

c. 850 Igbo-Ukwu bronzes cast in the Nri heartland At Igbo-Ukwu in present Anambra State, craftsmen made ornate leaded-bronze vessels, pendants, staffs and ritual objects, and buried a richly dressed figure with them.
999 Bagauda becomes first king of Kano The Kano Chronicle, a written history of the city, names Bagauda as Kano's first king, reigning from 999 to 1063.
c. early 12th century End of the Ogiso dynasty in Benin Tradition says the last Ogiso, Owodo, was removed after internal conflict and public discontent.
c. 1300 Oyo founded by Oranmiyan Oyo tradition says Oranmiyan, a prince of Ile-Ife, followed a serpent to the site of Ajaka and founded a kingdom whose rulers bore the title Alaafin.
c. late 14th century Mai Umar I Idrismi relocates the court to Bornu After losing Kanem, Mai Umar I Idrismi moved the Sayfawa across Lake Chad to Bornu, in the plain of the Yobe and Komadugu rivers.

Explore all 27 events from this period

1400 – 1699

Kingdoms of Bornu, Benin, Oyo & the Hausa States

Bornu at Ngazargamu, Benin under Ewuare, Oyo and Kwararafa, and Portuguese contact.

Timeline events

53

Rulers & leaders

14

Wars & battles

12

Dynasties & regimes

1

Key Events

View full timeline

c. 1400-1600 Owo emerges as a Yoruba city-state From about 1400 to 1600 Owo was the capital of an independent Yoruba city-state in present Ondo State.
c. 1480 Prince Ginuwa founds the Warri (Itsekiri) kingdom The Warri Kingdom, also called Iwere, was founded around 1480 by Prince Ginuwa, eldest son of Oba Olua of Benin.
c. 1515 Agadez falls under Songhai Agadez, the Tuareg sultanate in the Aïr mountains founded as a sultanate in 1449, was ruled by Songhai from 1515 to 1591.
c. 1578 Ehengbuda, last of the warrior kings of Benin Ehengbuda was the last of Benin's warrior kings, reigning in the late 1500s.
1699 Van Nyendael visits Benin In 1699 David van Nyendael visited Benin, and Dutch accounts from 1699 to 1704 describe the kingdom.

Explore all 53 events from this period

1700 – 1803

Atlantic Slave Trade & Imperial Oyo

The Bight of Benin and Biafra trade, Oyo's imperial height, the Aro and the delta city-states.

Timeline events

23

Rulers & leaders

5

Wars & battles

6

Dynasties & regimes

1

Key Events

View full timeline

c. 1713 Akenzua I becomes Oba of Benin Akenzua I reigned as Oba of Benin from about 1713 to 1735.
mid-1700s Bonny becomes the leading slave port By the mid-1700s Bonny had become the leading slave-trading port in the Bight of Biafra, surpassing Elem Kalabari (New Calabar) and Old Calabar.
c. 1770 Jibiri, first Muslim king of Nupe Around 1770 King Jibiri became the first Nupe king to be Muslim.
1788–1789 Eid confrontation at Magami During Eid al-Adha in 1788-89, Sultan Bawa Jan Gwarzo summoned Usman dan Fodio to Magami.
1803 Yunfa becomes Sarkin Gobir Yunfa, a nephew of Bawa and a former student of Usman dan Fodio, ruled Gobir from 1803 to 1808.

Explore all 23 events from this period

1804 – 1860

Sokoto Caliphate & the Yoruba Wars

The Fulani jihad, the Caliphate, the fall of Old Oyo and the first European explorers.

Timeline events

44

Rulers & leaders

5

Wars & battles

7

Dynasties & regimes

1

Key Events

View full timeline

1804 Buba Yero launches the jihad in Gombe In 1804, soon after Usman dan Fodio's call, the Fulani scholar Buba Yero began a jihad in the area of Gombe in the north-east.
c. 1812 Usman dan Fodio divides the caliphate between Bello and Abdullahi Around 1812 Usman dan Fodio reorganised authority among his commanders.
1832-1834 Macgregor Laird's steamers ascend the Niger In 1832 the Liverpool shipowner Macgregor Laird sent two paddle steamers, Quorra and Alburkah, up the Niger with Richard Lander to found a trading settlement at the Niger-Benue confluence.
1845 Modakeke settlement founded beside Ife According to the Modakeke article, the settlement was founded in 1845, when displaced Oyo settlers were given land outside the walls of Ile-Ife.
10 April 1860 - 17 March 1862 Ijaye War between Ibadan and Ijaye After Alaafin Atiba died in 1859, the Are-ona-Kakanfo Kurunmi of Ijaye refused to recognise his successor Adelu.

Explore all 44 events from this period

1861 – 1899

Abolition, Missions & the Scramble

Lagos annexed, missionaries, the Oil Rivers, the Royal Niger Company and the Berlin Conference.

Timeline events

25

Rulers & leaders

6

Wars & battles

4

Dynasties & regimes

1

Key Events

View full timeline

6 August 1861 Britain annexes Lagos On 6 August 1861 a naval force under Commander Beddingfield of HMS Prometheus, with acting consul William McCoskry, annexed Lagos.
1878 Archibong III crowned king of Old Calabar According to the Old Calabar article, King Archibong III of Duke Town was crowned in 1878 with regalia sent directly by Queen Victoria.
12 July 1884 Berlin Conference recognises British claims on the Niger The Berlin Conference opened on 15 November 1884 and closed on 26 February 1885 with the signing of the General Act.
4 January 1897 Phillips party is ambushed on the road to Benin In early January 1897 James Phillips, a British official, set out for Benin City with a party of officials and traders to press Oba Ovonramwen to open trade.
9 August 1899 Royal Niger Company's charter is revoked Parliament passed the act on 9 August 1899 that provided payment to the Royal Niger Company for the surrender of its charter.

Explore all 25 events from this period

1900 – 1938

Colonial Conquest & Amalgamation

The conquest of the Caliphate, indirect rule, amalgamation in 1914 and the Women's War.

Timeline events

37

Rulers & leaders

11

Wars & battles

8

Dynasties & regimes

2

Key Events

View full timeline

1 January 1900 Protectorate of Northern Nigeria is proclaimed On 1 January 1900 Frederick Lugard read the proclamation establishing the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria at Lokoja, taking over the Royal Niger Company's northern territories for the Crown.
from c. 1904 Railway workers hold Nigeria's first strike In 1904 railway staff staged what is recorded as Nigeria's first strike, as workers building and running the Lagos line demanded better pay and treatment.
1 January 1914 Eweka II restores the Benin dynasty After Oba Ovonramwen died in exile at Calabar in 1914, his son Aisien was installed as Oba Eweka II. The British accepted the restoration under their supervision, and the Oba received a salary while sharing authority with a Native Authority council.
24 June 1923 Herbert Macaulay founds the NNDP On 24 June 1923 Herbert Macaulay founded the Nigerian National Democratic Party, the first Nigerian political party, to contest the elections allowed by the new Clifford Constitution.
1938 Youth Movement wins the Lagos elections In the Legislative Council elections of 1938 the Nigerian Youth Movement won the Lagos seats from the NNDP, ending a monopoly that had lasted since 1923.

Explore all 37 events from this period

1939 – 1959

Late Colonial Rule & Nationalism

War service, nationalist parties, constitutions and the road to self-government.

Timeline events

22

Rulers & leaders

5

Wars & battles

2

Dynasties & regimes

1

Key Events

View full timeline

3 September 1939 Nigeria enters the Second World War On 3 September 1939 Britain declared war on Germany, and Nigeria was automatically at war.
1945 Egbe Omo Oduduwa is formed in London In 1945 a group of Yoruba leaders in London founded the Egbe Omo Oduduwa, a pan-Yoruba cultural organisation.
1951 Northern People's Congress Becomes a Party The Northern People's Congress, led by Ahmadu Bello with Abubakar Tafawa Balewa as deputy, was established as a political party in 1951.
15 January 1956 Oil Discovered at Oloibiri On 15 January 1956 the Shell-D'Arcy company (later Shell-BP) discovered commercial oil at Oloibiri in what is now Bayelsa State, after exploration since 1937 and drilling in 1951.
15 March 1959 Federal Election of 1959 Nigeria's pre-independence federal election was held in December 1959.

Explore all 22 events from this period

1960 – 1970

Independence, First Republic & Civil War

Independence, coups, the pogroms and the Biafran War.

Timeline events

30

Rulers & leaders

3

Wars & battles

5

Dynasties & regimes

2

Key Events

View full timeline

1 October 1960 Nigerian Independence On 1 October 1960 Nigeria became independent, with Queen Elizabeth II as head of state and Abubakar Tafawa Balewa as Prime Minister.
9 August 1963 Nigeria Becomes a Republic On 1 October 1963 Nigeria became a federal republic and ceased to recognise the British monarch as head of state.
15 January 1966 July Counter-Coup On the night of 28-29 July 1966 northern soldiers mutinied.
4-5 January 1967 Fall of Enugu Nigeria's 1st Division captured Enugu on 4 October 1967.
1970-1974 Biafra Surrenders On 15 January 1970, Major General Philip Effiong announced Biafra's surrender in Lagos, ending the Nigerian Civil War.

Explore all 30 events from this period

1971 – 1998

Oil Boom & Military Rule

Oil wealth, successive coups, the Second Republic and the Abacha years.

Timeline events

36

Rulers & leaders

8

Wars & battles

2

Dynasties & regimes

2

Key Events

View full timeline

1971 Nigeria Joins OPEC Nigeria joined OPEC in 1971 and set up the Nigerian National Oil Corporation that year.
15 January - 12 February 1977 FESTAC 77 The Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC 77) ran from 15 January to 12 February 1977 in Lagos.
March 1984 War Against Indiscipline launched In March 1984 the military government announced the War Against Indiscipline (WAI) at Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos.
January 1993 Presidential election of 12 June 1993 On 12 June 1993 Nigerians voted in a presidential election between Moshood Abiola (SDP) and Bashir Tofa (NRC).
8 June 1998 Moshood Abiola dies in custody On 7 July 1998 Moshood Abiola died in Abuja while meeting US officials, including Thomas Pickering and Susan Rice, apparently on the day he was expected to be freed.

Explore all 36 events from this period

1999 – present

Fourth Republic

Civilian rule from 1999: Obasanjo to Tinubu, insecurity, reform and the oil economy.

Timeline events

43

Rulers & leaders

5

Wars & battles

3

Dynasties & regimes

1

Key Events

View full timeline

29 May 1999 Obasanjo sworn in; Fourth Republic begins On 29 May 1999 General Abdulsalami Abubakar handed power to Olusegun Obasanjo, who had won the 27 February presidential election as the PDP candidate with 62.78 percent against Olu Falae's 37.22 percent.
5-6 May 2010 Yar'Adua dies; Jonathan sworn in President Umaru Yar'Adua left for Saudi Arabia on 23 November 2009 for treatment of pericarditis and was not seen in public for months.
19 February 2018 Dapchi schoolgirls abducted On 19 February 2018 insurgents of the Boko Haram faction linked to ISWAP attacked the Government Girls Science and Technical College in Dapchi, Yobe State, and abducted 110 girls, five of whom died in captivity.
1-10 August 2024 Dangote refinery begins producing petrol In early September 2024 the Dangote refinery at Lekki, Lagos, began producing and distributing petrol, after earlier diesel and jet fuel from January 2024.
27 February 2026 Tinubu wins the APC presidential primary The All Progressives Congress held its presidential primary on 23 May 2026, and on 24 May the committee chair Pius Anyim declared President Bola Tinubu the winner at the party's convention centre in Abuja.

Explore all 43 events from this period

Ruler at the Time

Explore the History of Nigeria

Key facts of the era

Rulers & Dynasties

History at Glance

Prehistory & the Stone Age

Nok Culture & the Early Iron Age

Early States: Kanem, Ife, Hausa & Igbo-Ukwu

Kingdoms of Bornu, Benin, Oyo & the Hausa States

Atlantic Slave Trade & Imperial Oyo

Sokoto Caliphate & the Yoruba Wars

Abolition, Missions & the Scramble

Colonial Conquest & Amalgamation

Late Colonial Rule & Nationalism

Independence, First Republic & Civil War

Oil Boom & Military Rule

Fourth Republic

Nigeria Through Time

PREHISTORY & THE STONE AGE

NOK CULTURE & THE EARLY IRON AGE

EARLY STATES: KANEM, IFE, HAUSA & IGBO-UKWU

KINGDOMS OF BORNU, BENIN, OYO & THE HAUSA STATES

ATLANTIC SLAVE TRADE & IMPERIAL OYO

SOKOTO CALIPHATE & THE YORUBA WARS

ABOLITION, MISSIONS & THE SCRAMBLE

COLONIAL CONQUEST & AMALGAMATION

LATE COLONIAL RULE & NATIONALISM

INDEPENDENCE, FIRST REPUBLIC & CIVIL WAR

OIL BOOM & MILITARY RULE

FOURTH REPUBLIC

Sources and Method

Rulers and Territorial Map

Research Limitations

Explore history differently

Interactive timelines

Historical maps

People, places & stories

The bigger picture

An independent project

Corrections, suggestions & contributions

Research & historical accuracy

Using the website

Analytics and external services

Browser storage

Messages you send

Your choices and questions

External links

Educational purpose

Accuracy and historical uncertainty

Maps and disputed territory

Images and third-party material

External websites

Corrections and rights concerns