ppt on sukur a unesco site for its vernacular features. it covers the town plan, no of people and the life they led.

1. SUKUR CULTURAL
HERITAGE

2. INTRODUCTION
◦ Sukur Cultural Landscape Is A UNESCO World
Heritage Site in the Adamawa State Of Nigeria.
◦ Located In The Northeastern Part Of Nigeria.
◦ It Is Situated In The Mandara Mountains, Close To
The Border With Cameroon
◦ Sukur Is Africa's First Cultural Landscape To Receive
World Heritage List Inscription.
◦ Sukur' Means "Vengeance"
In Margi And Libi Languages.
◦ It Also Means "Feuding" In The Bura Language That
Occurred Among The Sukur People.
◦ The Sukur Cultural Landscape With Its Palace,
Terraced Fields With Ritual Features And Villages
Has Survived Unchanged For Many Centuries

3. LOCATION
◦ Sukur Cultural Landscape Is Located About 120 Km South Of Maidaguri In Northeast Nigeria, In The Mandara
Mountains Along The Cameroon Border.
◦ Sukur is located in Madagali local government area of Adamawa state of Nigeria along Nigeria/ Cameroon border,
some 290 km from Yola, the Adamawa state capital of north eastern Nigeria

5. ◦ The traditional terraced system of agriculture and its associated ritual systems are still
flourishing
◦ However, the traditional buildings are vulnerable to changes in materials and
techniques – particularly the thatched roofs that require frequent maintenance
◦ The key features of the cultural landscape have not been significantly modified since
they were laid down. The way in which they have been maintained since that time has
been in traditional form using traditional materials and techniques
◦ The stone structures in form of houses, farm terraces and walkways still remain the
most distinct feature of Sukur landscape
◦ Sukur landscape has survived unchanged for many centuries and is a good surviving
example of a strong traditional cultural system that has managed to survive.
◦ It Is As Remote As Any Place In Nigeria, A Beautiful Settlement Of Perhaps 2,000
People High In The Mountains With No Direct Vehicular Access.

6. CLIMATIC CONDITIONS
◦ Sukur Faces Extreme Weather Patterns Like Windstorms From The North East
And Rainstorms From The South West. These Are Known To Cause Damage To
Structures And Sacred Places. The Field Team And The State Party Note That
There Is An Observable Increase On The Effect Of Erosion On The Landscape
Which May Require Mitigation Measures In Order To Reduce The Impact. The
Absence Of The Sukur Community For About A Year Disrupted The Usual Practice
Of Repairing The Agricultural Terraces, Which Helped Curb Erosion In The Listed
Property.
◦ The Sukur Cultural Landscape Is Situated Within The Lake Chad Drainage Basin,
An Area That Is Known To Have Been Affected By Drastic Climate And
Environmental Change. Those Most Vivid Changes Can Be Traced To The Mid
Holocene Associated With The Desiccation Of The Sahara Desert And The Retreat
And Shrinkage Of Lake Chad. Environmental Degradation Has Worsened In
Recent Times With A Shift Towards More Arid Environmental Conditions. The
Materials Used In Maintaining The Traditional Architecture At Sukur Like Thatching
Grass And Timber Are Getting More Scarce Prompting People To Look For
Alternative Materials Like Zinc And Iron.
◦ The Dislocation Of The Residents Clearly Impacted On The Terraced Farming
Landscape And Its Traditional Processes But Little Information On This Was
Available To The Mission.

7. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
Some of the basic materials used in vernacular architecture in Northern
Nigeria are:
A. Stone: used for structural purpose, for foundation, decorations, temples
and other worship places;
B. Mud: adobe daga, pise are also referred to as mud used for walls, roofs
and sometimes furniture;
C. Vegetable Materials: for roofing, reinforcement and whole building
construction as that of the pastoralist (Fulani) which are portable and
dismountable; and
D. Modern Materials: due to changes in population over the time and the
impact of the colonial masters materials like Zinc for roofs Louvers for
windows.
In the Nigerian context, vernacular architecture in the North is expressed
informs deriving from the culture influences of Brazil, North Africa Sudan
and Europe.

8. ◦ Sukur people have used stone for building construction for over centuries.

11. Site Planning
◦ The settlement is in two parts. The upper part, where the palace is located,
is called the Sakur Sama and the other is Sakur Kasa
◦ The palace located on the hilltop, in a large enclosure has residence of
the Hidi (chief). It is a circular structure built from local granite made into dry
stone walls and niches. The enclosure also includes a pen for bulls and a
horse stable
◦ The entrance to the palace grounds has many gates and one gate is
flanked by two large monolithic granite blocks and is fitted with gates.
◦ The access path paved with granite stone slabs is from the north and east
and is paved; it is of 5.7-metre (19 ft) width.
◦ Looking down the hill, the plateau is seen laid into extensive terracing for
agricultural farming which is one of the unique features of this site and
termed as of "a sacred quality"

12. ◦ In the lower part of the settlement, village huts are simple circular
structures of common folk. They are built of clay with roof of
thatch, and with woven floor mats.
◦ A group of such houses are surrounded by a compound wall of low
height.
◦ Another integral feature, with each house of a person practicing
smithy of the settlement, is the ruins of iron-smelting furnaces,
which are shaft-type furnaces provided with bellows
◦ The burial grounds located near the palace are simple stone
structures representing cemeteries, exclusive to clans and social
groups of the settlement.
◦ All the above features of the settlement presents a heritage status
of the political and economic structure of the Sukur people.

13. Vernacular architecture in Northern Nigeria
requires an interdisciplinary approach due
to the fact that it not only covers over 200
different tribes and group but that materials
available are basically in anthropological
forms.
Construction using vernacular architecture
in Northern Nigeria is based on cooperative
venture skills translated from the older
generation which have developed carefully
over a long period of time.
As such, various building styles have
evolved which include; Sudanese Style,
Impluvial Style, Hill Style and the Beehive
Style