Zinder Region is one of the seven regions of Niger; the capital of the region is Zinder. The region covers 145,430 km². It is the most populous province of Niger.

History

Numerous Palaeolithic and Neolithic remains, as well as cave paintings, have been found in the

Termit Massif The Termit Massif (Termit Mountains or simply the Termit) is a mountainous region in southeastern Niger. Just to the south of the dunes of Tenere desert and the Erg of Bilma, the northern areas of the Termit, called the Gossololom consists of b ...

. Zinder was the centre of the Sultanate of Damagaram, a powerful sultanate which dominated much of the surrounding region from the mid-18th century until the French conquest in the 1890s. Zinder was initially the capital of the Niger territory, however this was moved to Niamey in 1926 and thereafter Zinder declined in importance, though it remains an important regional centre.

Geography

Zinder Region is located in the southeast of Niger and covers 145,430 km². It borders Agadez Region to the north, Diffa Region to the east, Nigeria to the south (specifically, the states of

Yobe Yobe is a state located in northeastern Nigeria. A mainly agricultural state, it was created on 27 August 1991. Yobe State was carved out of Borno State. The capital of Yobe State is Damaturu; and it's largest and most populated city is Potisku ...

Jigawa Jigawa State (Hausa: ''Jihar Jigawa'' (Fula Leydi Jigawa 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤮𞤤 𞤶𞤭𞤺𞤢𞤱𞤢) is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the northern region of the country. Created in 1991 from the northeastern-most region of Kan ...

and Katsina), and Maradi Region to the west. The landscape is primarily

Sahelian The Sahel (; ar, ساحل ' , "coast, shore") is a region in North Africa. It is defined as the ecoclimatic and biogeographic realm of transition between the Sahara to the north and the Sudanian savanna to the south. Having a hot semi-arid cli ...

in the south, merging into the

Sahara , photo = Sahara real color.jpg , photo_caption = The Sahara taken by Apollo 17 astronauts, 1972 , map = , map_image = , location = , country = , country1 = , ...

desert in the north of the region. The terrain is predominantly flat, except for the Koutous Hills, which lie north of Kelle, and the

in the far north of the region.Geels, Jolijn, (2006) ''Bradt Travel Guide - Niger'', pgs. 213-26

Settlements

Zinder is the regional capital; other major settlements include Alakoss, Albarkaram, Bande, Boune, Dakoussa, Dan-Barto, Dantchiao, Daouche, Dogo-Dogo,

Falenko Falenko is a village and rural commune in the Tanout Department of the Zinder Region of Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

, Gaffati,

Gamou Gamou is a village and rural Communes of Niger, commune in the Goure Department of the Zinder Region of Niger.Garagoumsa Garagoumsa is a village and rural commune in the Takeita Department of the Zinder Region of Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

Gouchi Gouchi is a village and rural commune in the Dungass Department of the Zinder Region of Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

Gouna Gouna is a village and rural commune in Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

Goure Goure (fr. Gouré) is a town in southeastern Niger, Zinder Region, Goure Department, of which it is the seat. Situation Situated on the main all-weather east–west highway in Southern Niger, it is about 170 km east of regional capital ...

, Guidiguir,

Hamdara Hamdara is a village and rural commune in the Guidimouni Department of the Zinder Region of Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

Ichirnawa Ichirnawa is a village and rural commune in Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

Kantche Kantche is a village and rural commune in Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

, Kelle,

Kolleram Kolleram is a village and rural commune in the Mirriah Department of the Zinder Region of Niger. The village is known for its unusual dependency on cardboard boxes, of which it is used for necessities such as plumbing, shelter, and even clothing ...

, Kourni, Kwaya,

Magaria Magaria is a town and urban Communes of Niger, commune in the Magaria Department of the Zinder Region of Niger.Malawa,

Matameye Matameye is a town and urban commune, administrative centre of the Matameye Department in Niger, with a population of 17,930 as of 2001. In 2005 a road was completed from Matameye to Takieta. Since 2011 many people have moved to Matameye from T ...

Mirriah Mirriah is a town and urban commune in Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesMoa,

Ollelewa Ollelewa is a village and rural commune in the Tanout Department of the Zinder Region of Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

, Sassoumbroum,

Tanout Tanout is a town in southern Niger. It is in Zinder Region, Tanout Department, north of the city of Zinder. It is the administrative capital of Tanout Department. History Since 1987, the Eden Foundation, an NGO aiming at providing trees for "d ...

, Tenhya,

Tesker Tesker or Tasker is a village and rural commune in Niger. As of 2010, it had a population of 33,544 people. It is the birthplace of musician Mamane Barka (b. 1958). The sparsely populated commune extends over a wide area and spans two major regions ...

Tsaouni Tsaouni Tsouni is a rural commune in Niger, located in the Tillabéri Region, which is in the southwestern part of the country. The commune covers an area of approximately 1,457 square kilometers and has an estimated population of around 38,000 peo ...

, Yaouri and

Yekoua Yekoua is a village and rural commune in Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

Administrative subdivisions

Zinder was divided into 5

Department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

s: *

Goure Department Goure is a department of the Zinder Region in Niger. Its capital lies at the city of Goure Goure (fr. Gouré) is a town in southeastern Niger, Zinder Region, Goure Department, of which it is the seat. Situation Situated on the main all ...

Magaria Department Magaria is a department of the Zinder Region in Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

Matameye Department Matameye is a department of the Zinder Region in Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languages

Mirriah Department Mirriah is a department of the Zinder Region in Niger. Its capital lies at the city of Mirriah, although its largest city is Zinder Zinder (locally, ''Damagaram''), formerly also spelled Sinder, is the third largest city in Niger, with a p ...

Tanout Department Tanout is a department of the Zinder Region in Niger. Its administrative seat is the city of Tanout. As of 2011, the department had a total population of 475,125 people. On 15 April 2010, the Council of Ministers announced that Amadou Seybou Dio ...

Of the 27 administrative stations (postes administratifs) of Niger which were set out in a law dated 1 August 2011 to become departments and for which the appointment of prefects on 29 February 2012 completed the conversion, the following 5 are in Zinder region. * Belbédji Department *

Damagaram Takaya Department Zinder (locally, ''Damagaram''), formerly also spelled Sinder, is the third largest city in Niger, with a population of 170,574 (2001 census);

Dungass Department Dungass is a department of the Zinder Region in Niger. Its administrative seat is the city of Dungass. As of 2012, the department had a total population of 353,867 people. History The department goes back to the administrative post (poste admin ...

* Takiéta Department * Tesker Department So, Zinder now has 10 departments.

Demographics

As of 2012 the population of the Region was 3,539,764.Annuaire statistique du Niger
/ref> The main ethnolinguistic groups are various Arab groups, Fulani, Hausa, Kanuri,

Dazaga Daza (also known as Dazaga) is a Nilo-Saharan language spoken by the Daza people inhabiting northern Chad. The Daza are also known as the Gouran (Gorane) in Chad. Dazaga is spoken by around 380,000 people, primarily in the Djurab Desert regio ...

Toubou and Tuareg groups such as the

Tayart Tamajeq Air Tamajeq (''Tayiṛt'') is a variety of Tamasheq, one of the Tuareg languages. It is spoken by the Tuareg people inhabiting the Aïr Mountains of the Agadez Region in Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = Natio ...

. The

Tagdal Tagdal (Tuareg name: ''Tagdalt'') is a mixed Northern Songhay language of central Niger. Ethnologue considers it a "mixed Berber–Songhay language", while other researchers consider it Northern Songhay. There are two dialects: Tagdal proper ...

language, thought to be a mixed Songhay-Tuareg language, is also spoken.

Governors

Yahaya Yandaka Yahaya may refer to the following people: Given name *Yahaya Abubakar, Nigerian traditional ruler *Yahaya Abdulkarim, governor of Sokoto State, Nigeria *Yahaya Adamu (born 1993), Nigerian football player *Yahaya Ahmad (1947–1997), founder and ch ...

- 2013-16 * Issa Moussa - 2016–present

References

External links

Regions of Niger {{Niger-geo-stub