formerly Gando
Traditional emirate, northwestern Nigeria.
Originally settled by the Kebbawa, the area was part of the the Kebbi kingdom in the 16th century. The emirate's town of Gwandu became important during the Fulani jihad (180412), and from 1815 it was one of the two capitals of the Fulani empire until it came under British control in 1903. The Gando emirate was reduced in size by British cessions to French West Africa in 1907. Its emir, however, remains an important Muslim traditional leader in Nigeria. The town of Gwandu is a local agricultural market.