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Updates: 

I added a population history.

Country overview: 

Short name	NIGER
ISO code	NE
FIPS code	NG
Language	French (fr)
Time zone	+1
Capital	Niamey

 

The area now known as Niger was part of French Sudan at the beginning of the 20th century. As the French administration got better organized, the area became a military territory, separate from the colony of Upper Senegal and Niger to its west. Niger became a territory within French West Africa on 1922-10-13. It obtained full independence on 1960-08-03.

Other names of country: 

1. Danish: Niger
2. Dutch: Niger, Republiek Niger (formal)
3. English: Republic of Niger (formal)
4. Finnish: Niger
5. French: Niger, République f du Niger m (formal)
6. German: Niger m
7. Icelandic: Níger
8. Italian: Niger m
9. Norwegian: Niger, Republikken Niger (formal)
10. Portuguese: Níger, República f do Níger m (formal)
11. Russian: Голландия (variant), Республика Нигер (formal)
12. Spanish: Níger, República f de Níger (formal)
13. Swedish: Niger
14. Turkish: Nijer Cumhuriyeti (formal)

Origin of name: 

Named for the Niger River, from Tamashek gher n-gheren: river among rivers

Primary subdivisions: 

Niger is divided into seven régions (regions) and one communauté urbaine (urban commune).

Region	HASC	ISO	FIPS	Population	Area(km.²)	Area(mi.²)
Agadez	NE.AG	1	NG01	321,639	634,209	244,869
Diffa	NE.DF	2	NG02	346,595	140,216	54,138
Dosso	NE.DS	3	NG03	1,505,864	31,002	11,970
Maradi	NE.MA	4	NG04	2,235,748	38,581	14,896
Niamey	NE.NI	8	NG08	707,951	670	259
Tahoua	NE.TH	5	NG06	1,972,729	106,677	41,188
Tillabéri	NE.TL	6	NG09	1,889,515	89,623	34,604
Zinder	NE.ZI	7	NG07	2,080,250	145,430	56,151
8 divisions				11,060,291	1,186,408	458,075
Region: Niamey is a urban commune. HASC: Hierarchical administrative subdivision codes. ISO: Codes from ISO 3166-2. FIPS: Codes from FIPS PUB 10-4. Population: 2001-05-20 census Capitals have the same name as their regions.

Further subdivisions:

See the Departments of Niger page.

The regions are subdivided into departments, which are further subdivided into entities of three types: rural communes, urban communes, and administrative stations (postes administratifs).

Territorial extent: 

Niamey is enclaved within Kollo department of Tillabéri region.

Change history: 

1. 1932-09-06: Part of Upper Volta transferred to Niger
2. 1947-09-04: Districts of Dori and Fada N'Gourma restored to Upper Volta
3. As part of French West Africa, Niger was divided into sixteen cercles (districts): Agadez, Birni N'Konni, Dogondoutchi, Dosso, Filingué, Gouré, Madaoua, Magaria, Maradi, N'Guigmi, Niamey, Tahoua, Téra, Tessaoua, Tillabéry, and Zinder. Their capitals had the same names as the districts.
4. 1961-12-31: Law of territorial organization created 31 circumscriptions. De facto, the 16 colonial cercles continued to exist, and served as a level of division above the circumscriptions. Four cercles (Dogondoutchi, Filingué, N'Guigmi, and Téra) had only one circumscription.
5. 1964-07-17: Niger reorganized into seven departments, subdivided into 32 arrondissements which corresponded to the former circumscriptions.
6. 1988-04: Capital of Niamey department moved from Niamey to Tillabéri.
7. 1992: Tillabéri department split from Niamey (whose FIPS code was NG05 before the change). Status of Niamey changed from department to urban commune.
8. 2001-08-10: Law No. 2001-023 changed the status of departments to regions.

Other names of subdivisions: 

1. Agadez: Agadès (obsolete)
2. Tillabéri: Tillabéry (variant)

Population history:

Region	1960	1977-10-07	1988-05-10	2001-05-20	2010-07-01
Agadez	62,000	124,985	205,108	321,639	487,313
Diffa	123,000	167,389	186,792	346,595	473,563
Dosso	450,000	693,207	1,016,469	1,505,864	2,016,690
Maradi	561,000	949,747	1,385,170	2,235,748	3,021,169
Niamey		242,973	392,165	707,951	1,222,066
Tahoua	687,000	993,615	1,305,417	1,972,729	2,658,099
Tillaberi	748,000	928,849	1,322,025	1,889,515	2,500,454
Zinder	609,000	1,002,225	1,406,943	2,080,250	2,824,468
Total	3,240,000	5,102,990	7,220,089	11,060,291	15,203,822

 

All data are from source [2]. Other sources sometimes disagree.

Sources: 

1. [1] 2001 census data are from the Institut National de Statistique - Niger  website (retrieved 2009-06-05).
2. [2] Annuaire statistique des cinquante ans d'indépendance du Niger . Institut National de la Statistique, 2010-08 (retrieved 2012-08-21).
3. [3] L'Évaluation des effectifs de la population des pays Africains, Tome I. Groupe de Démographie Africaine, Paris, 1982.