City (pop., 1996 est.: 204,900), northwestern Nigeria.
It lies along the Sokoto River on a traditional caravan route that leads north across the Sahara . It was the capital of the Fulani empire. Modern Sokoto is a major trade centre for agriculture and leather crafts. A pilgrimage centre, it is the site of mosques, a sultan's palace, and Usman dan Fodio 's tomb and other holy shrines. Usman dan Fodio University was founded in 1975.