Kano State is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the northern region of the country. According to the national census done in 2006, Kano State is the most populous state in Nigeria. The recent official estimates taken in 2016 by the National Bureau of Statistics found that Kano State was still the largest state by population in Nigeria. Created in 1968 out of the former Northern Region. In 1991 its northeastern portion was split off to form Jigawa state. The Hausa and Fulani make up the majority of Kano State’s population. The Hausa language is the dominant language in the state, as it is in most of Northern Nigeria. The state’s capital and largest city is the city of Kano, the second most populous city in Nigeria after Lagos.

Modern Kano is a major commercial and industrial centre. It’s also was a site of number of prior kingdoms and empires, inclduing the Kingdom of Kano which was centered in Dala Hill (Dutsen Dala) and reigned from 1000 AD to 1349. The Sultanate of Kano was established with Yaji I being as its first Sultan in 1349. Kurmi Market was opened, in the 15th century which helped Kano become a center of commerce in the Hausaland, and the market is still open in the 21st Century which its historic relevance is reflected in the state nickname “center of commerce” founded by the Emir of Kano Muhammadu Rumfa in 1463 CE. In 1903, the British Empire conquered the Kano Emirate, incorporating it region into the Northern Nigeria Protectorate. The major ethnic groups in pre-colonial Kano City were the Hausa, Fulani, Barebari (Kanuri), Tuareg, Arab, Nupe and some tribes from the southern Nigeria.

The discovery of stone tools indicates prehistoric settlement of the site, which was selected for the capital of the Hausa state of Kano in the reign (1095–1134) of King Gajemasu (Gijimasu). Construction on the famed city wall began during his reign and continued in the following centuries. The wall has more than a dozen gates and is about 12 miles (20 km) long, 40 feet (12 metres) wide at the base, and 30 to 50 feet high. Besides the old walled area (recognized as Kano city in 1961) and Bompai, Kano has four other districts: the Fagge, inhabited by people from other parts of Nigeria as well as other countries; the Sabon Gari, housing migrants from the south and east; the Syrian Quarter; and the Nassarawa, site of modern government buildings and exclusive European and African residences.

In the first quarter of 2022, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency sounded an early warning of floods in some states, including Kano state. The agency asserted that their warning was based on the amount and distribution of rainfall that had been observed in the nation during the rainy season. According to the Kano State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), 25 local government districts experienced flooding as a result of the extreme rain’s aftermath. Also in 2018 study of Tudun Wada found that both temperature and rainfall were likely to increase with climate change, causing increased stress on crops, and would require increased climate change adaptation for agricultural practices.

Many large markets exist within Kano today, such as Kurmi Market, Kantin Kwari Market, Sabon Gari Market, Dawanau Market Kofar Wanbai Market, Galadima Market, Yankura Market and Bata Market. Many of these markets specialize in a certain product, such as textiles or grain.