Why is Kaduna called the Croc City?
If you have ever been to Kaduna, or had a conversation with people from the northern part of Nigeria, you would have heard that Kaduna is called the Croc City. The question most people have is “Why is Kaduna called the Croc City?”
In this article, we’ll dig into the linguistic roots and the historical presence of crocodiles in the Kaduna River that together birthed the nickname.
Origin of the name “Croc City”
In my bid to find answers, I learnt that the name Kaduna came from the word Kada which means crocodile in Hausa, with Kadduna sometimes used as the plural form. Over time, Kadduna evolved into the modern name Kaduna – river of crocodiles.
But that was not the only explanation I got. The Gwari’s or gbagyi people call river Odna and there is a folklore that it has been how the name kaduna came about over time; the Kaduna river.
But what is the case? is it that there is a merge of the both? I mean kada and odna? to have Kaduna? Which the river is named after? That they had to name the state and capital “Kaduna”?
Are there really crocodiles in Kaduna?
That is a big question as crocodiles do not roam the streets of Kaduna as you would expect nor are they widely seen in the Kaduna River which is named after crocodiles.
There are stories of people saying that they have seen crocodiles, but it is not a very common occurrence. In fact, a larger percent of people you would ask, will say they haven’t seen one before.
So why are the people of Kaduna bent on calling Kaduna the Croc City?
Have you ever seen crocodiles in Kaduna before? Share in the comment section, please.
Ekemini Joseph loves to travel and share his findings with others. A broadcast journalist by day and tech enthusiast at other times.
Nice Insight, I enjoyed reading the article…
Great. Thanks for sharing.
You got me intrigued only to leave me hanging. Was really hoping to see the article conclude with the evidence of crocodile presence in Kaduna, either now or sometime past.
Good writing overall. And no I’ve not seen a crocodile in Nigeria yet, except pictures of those eaten in Rivers and down south. Sad stuff
oh, in the article, I mentioned that people affirmed seeing crocodile before, but at the moment, not sure there is any and crocodile do not crawl in corners of Kaduna as you would expect, actually
In a nutshell, the name Kaduna came from a combination of the words ‘kadda’ + ‘Odna’, however there are no historical proofs of actual crocodile existence in the state. Interesting!
I wonder if there are any living patriarchs that could possibly tell us more!
so, in a nutshell, the name Kaduna came from a combination of the words ‘kadda’ + ‘Odna’, however there are no historical proofs of actual crocodile existence in the state. Interesting!
I wonder if there are any living patriarchs that could possibly tell us more!