Birni-N'Konni (also Birnin-Konni or shortened to Konni/Bkonni) is a town in the

Tahoua Region Tahoua is one of seven regions of Niger. The capital of the region is the commune of Tahoua. The region covers 106,677 km². Geography Tahoua borders Agadez Region to the northeast, Maradi Region to the southeast, Nigeria's Sokoto State t ...

Niger Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east ...

, lying immediately north of the

border Borders are generally defined as geography, geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by polity, political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other administrative divisio ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

and west of seasonal Maggia River. It is an important

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...

and

transport hub A transport hub is a place where passengers and cargo are exchanged between vehicles and/or between mode of transport, transport modes. Public transport hubs include train station, railway stations, metro station, rapid transit stations, bus ...

and as of the 2012 census had a population of 63,169. The town is the historic centre of the small pre-colonial Hausa state of

Konni Konni may refer to: *Konni (dog), Russian President Vladimir Putin's dog (1999-2014) *Konni, Kerala, a town in Kerala state in India *Konni (Hausa state), a traditional Hausa state in south central Niger *Birni-N'Konni (shortened to Konni), a town ...

. The name comes from the

Hausa Hausa may refer to: * Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa * Hausa language, spoken in West Africa * Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states * Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse See also ...

for "''Walled Town of Konni''", and many Hausa towns (such as

Zinder Zinder (locally, ''Damagaram''), formerly also spelled Sinder, is the third largest city in Niger, with a population of 235,605 as by the 2012 census. It is situated east of the capital Niamey and north of the Nigerian city of Kano. History ...

) designate the old citadel neighbourhood the "Birni". Konni is known for its

vernacular architecture Vernacular architecture (also folk architecture) is building done outside any academic tradition, and without professional guidance. It is not a particular architectural movement or style but rather a broad category, encompassing a wide range a ...

including traditional

granaries A granary, also known as a grain house and historically as a granarium in Latin, is a post-harvest storage building primarily for grains or seeds. Granaries are typically built above the ground to prevent spoilage and protect the stored grains o ...

and is regarded as a centre for

smuggling Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. More broadly, soc ...

between Niger and Nigeria. Birni-N'Konni's contemporary importance rests on the surrounding agricultural lands and its place on the N1 highway, the main east-west highway linking Niger's capital

Niamey Niamey () is the capital and largest city of Niger. As the Niamey Urban Community (, CUN), it is a Regions of Niger, first-level division of Niger, surrounded by the Tillabéri Region, in the western part of the country. Niamey lies on the Nige ...

and the nation's main eastern cities of Maradi and

. It also sits astride one of several main routes between the Hausa populated territories of southern Niger and northern Nigeria, with the

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

transport and trade centre of Illela,

Sokoto State Sokoto ( Hausa: ; Fula: , ''Leydi Sokoto'') is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the extreme northwest of the country. It is bounded by Republic of the Niger to the north and west for 363 km (226 miles), and the states of Zamf ...

just 18 km to the south. The town was also the site of a major

massacre A massacre is an event of killing people who are not engaged in hostilities or are defenseless. It is generally used to describe a targeted killing of civilians Glossary of French words and expressions in English#En masse, en masse by an armed ...

on 8 May 1899 when the French

Voulet–Chanoine Mission The Voulet–Chanoine Mission, also called Central African-Chad Mission (), was a French military expedition sent out from Senegal in 1898 to conquer the Chad Basin and unify all French territories in West Africa. This expedition operated jointly ...

attacked the region. On 27 October 2020, an American citizen was kidnapped in the area. No group claimed responsibility for the abduction. He was freed on 31 October.U.S. Embassy in Niger
/ref>

Climate

References

External links

''Falling Rain.com''

Bibliography

* Samuel Decalo. Historical Dictionary of Niger (3rd ed.). Scarecrow Press, Boston & Folkestone, (1997) * Finn Fuglestad. A History of Niger: 1850–1960. Cambridge University Press (1983) * Jolijn Geels. Niger. Bradt UK/ Globe Pequot Press USA (2006) {{Authority control Communes of Niger