Nasarawa State is one of the 36 states of Nigeria; its capital is Lafia. It was created on 1 October 1996 from Plateau State. It is grouped in the North Central geopolitical zone.
Nasarawa State was created on 1 October 1996 from the western part of Plateau State, with its capital at Lafia. It is in the North Central geopolitical zone. It is named after Nasarawa, the historic emirate and town that also gave its name to a colonial province.
The state's own account traces it to British colonial rule. The area was first organised as the Lower Benue Province in 1900. In 1902, after the Emir of Nasarawa submitted to the British, it was renamed Nasarawa Province and its headquarters moved from Akpanaja to Nasarawa town. In 1926 the northern provinces were reorganised: Plateau Province was formed from parts of the Muri, Nasarawa and Bauchi provinces, and other parts of Nasarawa Province went to Benue Province. Wikipedia adds that from the early 1800s the Fulani jihad had brought the area under the Sokoto Caliphate, through the emirates of Keffi, Lafia and Nasarawa.
Both sources describe the same later path. The area was part of the Northern Region until 1967, when it joined the new Benue-Plateau State. In 1976 it became part of Plateau State, and in 1996 western Plateau was separated to form Nasarawa State.
The state borders Kaduna State to the north and Plateau State to the east. Taraba State lies to the south-east, and Benue State lies to the south across the Benue River. Kogi State lies to the south and west, and the Federal Capital Territory to the west. It has thirteen local government areas: Akwanga, Awe, Doma, Karu, Keana, Kokona, Lafia, Nasarawa, Nasarawa Eggon, Obi, Toto, Wamba and Keffi. The state government also lists eighteen development areas.
The state government names more than twenty peoples, among them the Alago, Eggon, Gwandara, Mada, Migili, Gbagyi, Ebira, Afo, Tiv, Jukun, Agatu, Hausa, Fulani and Kanuri. Wikipedia places the Tiv in the south-east of the state.
Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy. The state government says more than 70 per cent of the population farms. Crops named in the sources include yams, maize, millet, groundnuts, soya beans and sesame. The state is rich in minerals, including coal, barytes and gemstones. The salt villages of Keana and Awe and the Farin Ruwa Falls in Wamba are among its best-known sites.
The 2006 census counted 1,869,377 people, according to National Population Commission figures reproduced by City Population. The state government gives about 1,826,883 for the same census. The figures are listed below with their sources. Nigerian census results are disputed.
The state government gives the state's extent as roughly latitude 7°45′ to 9°25′ North and longitude 7° to 9°37′ East, and its area as about 26,875 square kilometres. Statoids gives 26,633 square kilometres.
The Benue River forms much of the southern border. Its floodplains cover about a quarter of the state, especially in Awe, Doma, Nasarawa and Toto LGAs. They give way northwards to rolling plains and then to hills. These include the Mada hills, running from Wamba through Akwanga to Nasarawa Eggon, and part of the Jos Plateau in the far north-east. The rainy season runs from March to October, and the dry, harmattan season from November to February.
- 1 October 1996 — Nasarawa State was created from Plateau State
Tiv · Idoma · Jukun
Tiv · Idoma
Benue State · Kaduna State · Plateau State · Kogi State · Federal Capital Territory · Taraba State
- Nassarawa
Each figure is shown with its year and source. Where sources differ, all figures are listed.
| Measure | Figure | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 2,886,000 | 2022 | Nasarawa (State, Nigeria) – Population Statistics |
| Population | 1,869,377 | 2006 | Nasarawa (State, Nigeria) – Population Statistics |
| Population | 1,826,883 | 2006 | About Nasarawa State |
| Population | 1,863,275 | 2006 | States of Nigeria |
| Population | 1,207,876 | 1991 | Nasarawa (State, Nigeria) – Population Statistics |
| Area km² | 26,876 | — | About Nasarawa State |
| Area km² | 26,633 | — | States of Nigeria |
- Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 — Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 · link
- States of Nigeria — Gwillim Law, Statoids · link
- List of Nigerian states by date of statehood — Wikipedia · link
- States of Nigeria — Wikipedia · link
- Country Guidance: Nigeria — General remarks — European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA), February 2019 · link
- About Nasarawa State — Nasarawa State Government · link
- Nasarawa State — Wikipedia · link
- Nasarawa (State, Nigeria) – Population Statistics — Thomas Brinkhoff, City Population · link
Last updated 24 September 2026. Spotted an error or have a source to add? Tell us.