The Bassa Nge are an ethnic group in Nigeria that traces its history back to 1805. They originally inhabited

Gbara The Gbara (; now spelled and pronounced as ''Bara'' or ''Gara'' in those Manding languages lacking ) or Great Assembly was the deliberative body of the Mali Empire, which ruled much of West Africa during the Middle Ages. It was first formed in ...

which was formerly the capital of the

Nupe Kingdom The Bida Emirate is a traditional state in Nigeria, a successor to the old Nupe Kingdom, with its headquarters in Bida, Niger State. The head of the state is the Etsu Nupe, considered the leader of the Nupe people. History The old Nupe Kingdo ...

. The Bassa Nge migrated from their homeland in

Bida Bida is a Local Government Area in Niger State, Nigeria and a city on the A124 highway which occupies most of the area. The LGA has an area of and a population of 188,181 at the 2006 census. The postal code of the area is 912. The city Bida i ...

due to a dynastic feud in about 1820. They are formerly the largest of

Nupe Nupe may refer to: *Nupe people, of Nigeria *Nupe language, their language *The Bida Emirate, also known as the Nupe Kingdom, their former state *A member of the Kappa Alpha Psi Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African Amer ...

groups, with a population of about 15,000 in 1820 before they dispersed throughout

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

. They speak two languages: The Nupe-Tako dialect of the

Nupe language Nupe (also known as ''Anufe, Nupenci, Nyinfe, Tapa'') is a Volta–Niger language of the Nupoid branch primarily spoken by the Nupe people of the North Central region of Nigeria. Its geographical distribution stretches and maintains pre-eminen ...

of the Volta-Niger languages and the Bassa Nge (or Bassa Nupe) dialect of the Basa language in the

Kainji languages The Kainji languages are a group of about 60 related languages spoken in west-central Nigeria. They form part of the Central Nigerian (Platoid) branch of Benue–Congo. Demographics Four of the most widely spoken Kainji languages are Tsuvadi ( ...

(all of the Niger-Congo and Benue-Congo group of

West African languages West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

). In 2017, Bassa Nge Community North America (BNC) held an annual convention in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

which discussed progress of the community with more than 54 members and guests attending the convention. Their history came on when the BNC made a donations of

over the counter Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are medicines sold directly to a consumer without a requirement for a prescription from a healthcare professional, as opposed to prescription drugs, which may be supplied only to consumers possessing a valid prescr ...

(OTC) medicines in their headquarters clinic in Gboloko. In an interview with Ma’ade Yaila, a Bassa-Nge daughter stated that her language has its roots from Nupe. They belongs to the Benue-Congo branch of the Niger-Congo family, the Bassa Nge traditional ruler is called Etsu unlike the

Etsu Nupe The Bida Emirate is a traditional state in Nigeria, a successor to the old Nupe Kingdom, with its headquarters in Bida, Niger State. The head of the state is the Etsu Nupe, considered the leader of the Nupe people. History The old Nupe Kingdo ...

called in Nupe too, the language is not similar with the one Bassa Nkomo which they lived in the same geographical place. The Bassa-nge can be found in

Niger river The Niger River ( ; ) is the main river of West Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in south-eastern Guinea near the Sierra Leone border. It runs in a crescent shape through ...

and conflict of

river Benue The Benue River (french: la Bénoué), previously known as the Chadda River or Tchadda, is the major tributary of the Niger River. The river is approximately long and is almost entirely navigable during the summer months. The size of its bas ...

, they lived in Bassa local government and majority in

Lokoja Lokoja is a city in Nigeria. It lies at the confluence of the Niger and Benue rivers and is the capital city of Kogi State. While the Yoruba (Oworo), Bassa Nge and Nupe are indigenous to the area, other ethnic groups of Nigeria, including the ...

. The present Etsu of Bassa-nge in Bassa is Brig. Abu Ali. One among the children of the Etsu Bassa-Nge Col. Muhammad Abu Ali, who lead 221 battalion tank a fight against

Boko Haram Boko Haram, officially known as ''Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād'' ( ar, جماعة أهل السنة للدعوة والجهاد, lit=Group of the People of Sunnah for Dawah and Jihad), is an Islamic terrorist organization ...

in Borno died in 2016 together with five soldiers, the Kogi State Governor,

Yahaya Bello Yahaya Adoza Bello (born 18 June 1975) is a Nigerian businessman and politician who has served as the Governor of Kogi State since 2016. A member of the All Progressives Congress, Bello has been the youngest governor in Nigeria throughout his te ...

condoled the family of Etsu of Bassa-Nge Kingdom Brig Gen. Abu Ali (Rtd) over the death of Col. Muhammed Abu Ali his first son. The history of BassaNge is available in

Stanford University libraries The Stanford University Libraries (SUL), formerly known as "Stanford University Libraries and Academic Information Resources" ("SULAIR"), is the library system of Stanford University in California. It encompasses more than 24 libraries in all. Sev ...

Notes

{{authority control Niger-Congo-speaking peoples Kogi State Ethnic groups in Nigeria Nupoid languages Basa languages Languages of Nigeria Nupe