| Official Name: | Katsina-Ala | ||||||
| Settlement Type: | LGA and town | ||||||
| Pushpin Map: | Nigeria | ||||||
| Subdivision Type: | Country | ||||||
| Subdivision Name: |  Nigeria | ||||||
| Subdivision Name1: | Benue State | ||||||
| Subdivision Type2: | Local Government Headquarters | ||||||
| Subdivision Name2: | Katsina-Ala | ||||||
| Leader Title: | Local Government Chairman and the Head of the Local Government Council | ||||||
| Leader Name: | Hon. Avalumun Orya Atera | ||||||
| Unit Pref: | Imperial | ||||||
| Population As Of: | 2006 | ||||||
| Timezone: | WAT | ||||||
| Utc Offset: | +1 | ||||||
| Coordinates: | 7.1667°N 9.2833°W | ||||||
| Module: |
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Katsina-Ala is a Local Government Area (LGA) of Benue State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Katsina-Ala where the A344 highway starts. It is also the location of an important archeological site where artifacts of the Nok culture have been found.
Some major markets in Katsina Ala Local Government Area includes the Tomanyiin (held on Thursdays), The Tor Donga market (held on Mondays), the Gbor Tongov market (held on Fridays), the Abaji market (held on Wednesdays), the Amaafu market (held on Tuesdays) and many other smaller markets.
The LGA of Katsina-Ala has an area of and a population of 224,718 at the 2006 census. The town center is the location of one of the oldest schools in Nigeria, Government College Katsina-Ala, founded in 1914, and has produced many prominent members in Nigerian society.The postal code of the area is 980.[1] The community, which lies on the banks of the Katsina Ala River, a major tributary of the Benue River, is mainly occupied by Etulo, Tiv, Hausas and fulanis. The major language of communication in Katsina Ala is Tiv[2]
Terracotta statues were found at Katsina Ala in the middle of the twentieth century.They include realistic representations of human heads, with some animals, and parts of larger statues.The statues are similar to others found at Nok, about 209 km to the north, and are thought to have been made by people of the same culture.[3] The human figures most likely represented ancestors or spirits.According to Bernard Fagg, an archeologist who undertook extensive studies into the Nok culture, the works at Katsina Ala constitutes a distinctive sub-style.[4] Statues from Taruga and from Samun Dukiya are similar, but have typical stylistic differences.[5]
Iron working began at the site in the fourth century BC, somewhat later than iron working at Taruga.[6] Smelted tin beads have also been found on the site, some of which could be imitations of cowrie shells.[7]