Nigerian History Basics Official Name Federal Republic of

Nigerian History

Basics � Official Name: Federal Republic of Nigeria � Form of government: a federal republic with a Senate of 109 and a House of Representatives of 360 � President: Goodluck Johanthon � Capital: Abuja � Official language: English � Official Religion: none � Monetary Unit: Nigerian naira (₦) � Population in 2014: 177, 156, 000

History � � � 800 BC (Iron Age): the Nok was the 1 st to settle in Nigeria The Nok settled in northern part of Nigeria and the artwork is still notable today 11 th century: City-States and kingdoms start to emerge Some of the most influential kingdoms were the Hausa kingdoms and Borno dynasty in north Nigeria and Oyo and Benin kingdoms in south Nigeria 16 th-18 th century: The slave trade causes millions of Nigerians to be forcibly removed 1830 s-1886: Civil wars takes over in south Yoruba land 1958 - Author Chinua Achebe’s famous book “Things Fall Apart” was published 1960 - Nigeria becomes independent from Britain

History continued � 1966 – The government is ruled by military forces � 1967 – 1970 Civil War erupts in Nigeria � 1970 – Nigeria’s becomes a prosperous nation because of the oil boom � 1991 – Abuja is the capital of Nigeria � 1996 – Nigeria Soccer team wins the gold medal in Atlanta, Ga during the Olympics � 1999 – Presidential elections took place, ending military rule. � 2010 – It has been 50 years Nigeria has had its independence from Britain