Fachi is an oasis surrounded by the

Ténéré The Ténéré ( Tuareg: Tenere, literally: "desert") is a desert region in the south central Sahara. It comprises a vast plain of sand stretching from northeastern Niger into western Chad, occupying an area of over . The Ténéré's boundaries ...

desert and the dunes of the Erg of Bilma in eastern

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesAgram mountain outcropping. It has an estimated population of 2,000 people. It is also a stopping point of the

Agadez Agadez ( Air Tamajeq: ⴰⴶⴰⴷⴰⵣ, ''Agadaz''), formerly spelled Agadès, is the fifth largest city in Niger, with a population of 110,497 based on the 2012 census. The capital of Agadez Region, it lies in the Sahara desert, and is also ...

to the

Kaouar The Kaouar (or Kawar) is a series of ten oases in the southern Sahara in northeast Niger, covering about from north to south, and east to west. They are on the eastern edge of the Ténéré desert, between the Tibesti Mountains in the east ...

caravans of the Azalay. Fachi is west of

Bilma Bilma is an oasis town and commune in north east Niger with, as of the 2012 census, a total population of 4,016 people. It lies protected from the desert dunes under the Kaouar Cliffs and is the largest town along the Kaouar escarpment. It ...

and east of the

Aïr Mountains The Aïr Mountains or Aïr Massif ( tmh, Ayăr; Hausa: Eastern ''Azbin'', Western ''Abzin'') is a triangular massif, located in northern Niger, within the Sahara. Part of the West Saharan montane xeric woodlands ecoregion, the ...

. Apart from water, dates, and salt, Fachi produces no provisions, and depends entirely upon trade in these products with passing caravans. Frequently raided by

Tuareg The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym: ''Imuhaɣ/Imušaɣ/Imašeɣăn/Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group that principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern Alg ...

and other Bedouins in its past, the town is built within high fortifications, known locally as a ''ksar'', built from ''banco'' salt blocks; they are now unused. Fachi's population is largely from the Kanuri and

Toubou The Toubou or Tubu (from Old Tebu, meaning "rock people") are an ethnic group native to the Tibesti Mountains that inhabit the central Sahara in northern Chad, southern Libya and northeastern Niger. They live either as herders and nomads or as ...

peoples, in whose language the town is called ''Agram''. ''Fachi'', its official name, is from Tuareg and

Hausa Hausa may refer to: * Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa * Hausa language, spoken in West Africa * Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states * Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse See also ...

peoples, who at one time lived there in larger numbers.

References

*Samuel Decalo. Historical Dictionary of Niger. Scarecrow Press, London and New Jersey (1979). * Jolijn Geels. Niger. Bradt London and Globe Pequot New York (2006). . Communes of Niger Sahara Oases of Niger Agadez Region {{Niger-geo-stub