From Women Rulers:

Queen Amina headed the northern Nigerian Hausa city-state of Zaria. It is thought that perhaps the Hausa were matrilineal people at that time since having a woman as queen was not all that rare. A great military leader, Amina brought most of the other Hausaland city-states into her orbit, and is credited with encouraging them to surround themselves with huge defensive mud walls. She also opened up trade routes to the south, enriching Zaria's economy with gold, slaves and cola nuts.

From Wikipedia:

Amina (also called Aminatu) was a princess of the royal family of the http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Zazzua&action=edit - Zazzua area in what is now the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zaria - Zaria providence of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigeria - Nigeria . She was born in 1533 and was sixteen when her mother became queen, and during this point in her life she became involved in the http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Zazzua&action=edit - Zazzua military, earning much admiration for her bravery. Her military achievements brought her great wealth and power. She is also credited as the architect of the earth walls around the city of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zaria - Zaria for which the providence is named. It is a subject of debate as to whether or not Amina was actually queen, but she was responsible for conquering many of the cities in the area surrounding http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Zazzua&action=edit - Zazzua . She is estimated to have died at around 1610.

The http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arabic - Arabic meaning of Amina is "faithful". People with the name Amina are said to be robust, constructive, and fast-moving, with the ability to achieve the ultimate goals in life.