Abia is an acronym from the four main groups of people in the state as at the time it was formed in 1991: Aba Bende Isuikwuato Afikpo.
2. Adamawa
Adamawa was named after a warrior, Modibbo Adama Bin Ardo Hassan, that conquered the region in the beginning of the 19th century.
3. Akwa-Ibom
Akwa Ibom is named after the Qua Iboe (or Kwa Iboe) River.
4. Anambra
The state got its name from the corrupted version of Oma Mbala (Ànyịm Ọma Mbala), a popular river in the area.
5. Bauchi
There are three versions of how Bauchi got its name are:
‘Bauchi’ is Hausa word meaning the southern flanks of Hausaland. Tribes living in the southern parts of the Hausaland were referred to as “kasashen bauchi” and the area they lived in later came to be known simply as Bauchi. The second version the state was named for Baushe, a famous hunter who settled there before the 19th century. The third states that ‘bauchi’ is Hausa word for slavery since it was a center for slave raiders.
6. Bayelsa
Bayelsa is a combination of the acronyms of three local government areas which were pulled out of old Rivers state — Brass LGA known as BALGA, Yenegoa LGA known as YELGA and Sagbama LGA known as SALGA. The mathematics involved in the formation of their names is BA + YEL + SA = BAYELSA
7. Benue
The state was named after the “europeanised” corruption of ‘Binuwe’, the Batta word for ‘Mother of Waters’.
8. Borno
The alternative name of the Kanuris, the predominant ethnic group in the state, is ‘Borno’ which gave inspiration for the naming of the state.
9. Cross River
The state took its name from a River called Oyono or Cross River.
10. Delta
The state is where the River Niger forms a delta as it enters the Atlantic Ocean.
11. Ebonyi
Ebonyi is the anglicised version of ‘Aboine’, a river that cuts through Abakaliki, the state capital.
12. Edo
The Bini people who dwell in the area had always referred to themselves as Edo or Iduu.
