Origin of islam in nigeria pdf

First major centralized state in northern nigeria was kanembornu, the occurrence of which belongs to the late 8th century a. Islam came into nigeria in the 9 th century and this was the time islamic education began in the country. The origins of islam in the country is linked with the development of islam in the wider west africa. Islamic domination and islamic education began in the bornu empire. It was of the same scale as the one initiated by the europeans. Islam, which literally means surrender or submission, was founded on the teachings of the. Adebayo rafiu ibrahim introduction the southwestern nigeria is predominantly occupied by the yoruba speaking people and it cuts across. Portraits of ordinary muslims nigeria muslims frontline. Introduction history of islam in nigeria jihad islamic law sharia islam and politics islamic movements, islamic reform selected web resources there has been considerable recent media coverage of the implementation of islamic sharia law in the northern states of nigeria. Margari hill, stanford university january 2009 available in pdf format 1. Arrival of islam in nigeria islam penetrated nigeria through the northern part of her borders. Islam arrived in nigeria in the 11 th and 12 th centuries through trade, migration, and through the travels of the scholarmysticwayfarer along trade routes, through the regions of kanem and bornu had been in contact with muslim traders as early as the 9 th century.

This paper is an aspect of a wider research project on the introduction of islam into southeast nigeria, the only region in nigeria that was not touched by the nineteenth century islamic jihad and. And while they are generally regarded as one as hausafulani, they are, in fact, two separate, albeit similar, ethnic entities dominating the northern region of nigeria. Manifestation, effect and the aw y forardw nwaomah, s. Records show that islam was first accepted by a kanern ruler, umme jilmi 1085 1097. Sep 21, 2017 the european contribution to the spread of christianity in subsaharan africa. One feature common to several nigerian communities culture is that they fully respect their traditional rulers. The hausas and the fulanis make up a significant portion of nigeria by population and even landmass. From the above history of islamic education in nigeria, the spread of islam and the islamic education system can be more prevalent in the northern and southwestern tribes or ethnic groups in nigeria than in the east. Numerou s ancient afric an civilizations settled in the region that is to day nige ria, such as the kingdom of nri, the benin empire, and the oyo em pire. To the 15th century in nigeria was strengthened islam, it was brought here through the desert tradersmuslims.

The author is deepy indebted to arif shamim of karachi and farooq siddiqui of texas for their intellectual contribution to this work in addition to thus speaks the bible and hindu fundamentalism. The origin of islam can be traced back to 7th century saudi arabia. It contains a selection of titles from the library catalogue, an introduction on islam in nigeria, and a selection of links to relevant web resources. Pdf on jan 1, 2011, egodi uchendu and others published dawn for islam in eastern nigeria. The origins of islam in the country is linked with the development of islam in the wider west. Reviewing the manifestations from traditional characteristics to the modernizing influence facilitated by the muslim individuals and islamic organisations.

Pdf islamic education in northern nigeria abdalla u. Introduction the spread of islam in nigeria dates back to the. It is on record that islam as a religion became prevalent in nigeria in the 9 th century during the reign of mai idris alooma, who ruled the borno empire till 1603. The northern area of the state was where hausa and bornu people lived.

The focus on the concept of patriarchy and its effects on gender relations began to shift to other factors in gender relations like race, class, colonial history and others as other branches of feminism, like the postmodern feminism, came up. Muhammad dictated the quran, the holy book of islam, which muslims believe to be the. The educational legacy left by the early generation of itinerant and indigenous muslim scholars in the 15th and 16th centuries respectively is what led to the. Christianity has contributed to the formation of customary laws. By the time they reach adulthood, many achieve high levels of islamic scholarship. This january 2000 new york times article offers an overview of islam in nigeria. Islam is a monotheistic religious tradition that developed in the middle east in the 7th century c. Trade was the major connecting link that brought islam into nigeria erinle oluwashola idris 2020. The histom1 ofls1am il1 africa ohio university press. They learn to recite the scriptures and learn about the practices, teachings, and morals of islam. Shehu usman dan fodio, one of the major progenitors of islam was able to establish an islam based government in northern nigeria prior to the advent of colonialism. After nigeria gained independence from britain in 1960, marking the end of colonial times for nigeria, ahmadu bello, the premier of the northern region, injected fresh drive into the spread of islam in nigeria. In particular, international attention has been drawn to the application of sharia law to criminal offences and the. Most of the participants in the early movements were interested in sectarian concerns such as guiding the muslim community and correcting its faith.

Scholars like ibn munnabbeh had written that as early as 738 trade and commerce from northern africa helped to bolster the spread of the new religion9. The history, the current prevalence and the approach to a patient jewel llamas april 2017 introduction female circumcision, also known as female genital mutilation fgm or female genital cutting fgc, is practiced in many countries spanning. Islam in the nonmuslim areas of northern nigeria m. The ethiopians were probably of hamitic origin, mixed later with arabs from arabia.

Islam was introduced to nigeria through two geographical routes. Aug 05, 2019 the islamic movement in nigeria is challenging the ban, arguing that it is a peaceful movement which has borne the brunt of stateorchestrated violence. Islam with sharia and islamic religion well entrenched in the lives of the people. A chronicle of foundations of islamic education in nigeria, from preindependence to date. Religious archives showed islam had been adopted as the religion of the majority of the leading figures in the borno empire during the reign of mai king idris alooma 15711603, alth. Historical times, that is when history is known with reasonable accuracy and some detail, started on widely different dates in the different regions of africa, very roughly as follows. Islam is one of the most popular religions in africa. Nigeria, the most populous black nation in the world, is divided along, not only cultural lines, but also along religion. The muslims started the slave trade in this region. Islam also influenced many other parts of social life of nigerian communities.

Islam a brief overview of the history of islam the origin of islam is placed around 610 ce when muhammad, a highly spiritual and religious man who spent months in praying and self contemplation in a secluded cave near the town of mecca, is thought to have received divine messages. I thought i should chip in to say that efforts of usman dan fodio in spreading islam in nigeria was holy war. Nigeria s population of 177,155,754 as of june 2014 is not actually represented in politics, a prime example being the series of christian presidents. Today, islam is one of the two dominant religions in africa, the other being christianity. Facts about christianity, islam and traditional religions in nigeria. Nigerias movie production industry, nicknamed nollywood, is the secondlargest in the world by volume.

History has shown that islam arrive nigeria sometime between a. The results of the report suggests that, when it comes to nigeria, islam will become the majority religion in next 20 to 30 years. Islam became the fundamental basis for sociopolitical values and organization. Islam is the second largest religion in the world after christianity, with about 1. In nigeria, an oba yoruba for king, emir arabic for commander, or village leader should not be greeted while standing up. Abstracts of most of the publications and details about the availability and borrowing of titles can be found in the library catalogue. The origin and growth of islam on the african continent. There has been a surge in sales of books dealing with the topic of islam. The islamic movement in nigeria is challenging the ban, arguing that it is a peaceful movement which has borne the brunt of stateorchestrated violence.

History of religion in nigeria before and after colonization. Presently with a population of over 180million people 2015 estimates, nigeria is the most populous african country and her population is nearly equally divided between christianity and islam, while the remainder is shared by the other religions but, the exact ratio is unknown. By 2050, there would be 230 million muslims in nigeria and 154 million muslims. A brief history of islam the spread of islam javad haghnavaz department of islamic thoughts faculty jolfa branch islamic azad university jolfa, iran abstract islam is a religion for all people from whatever race or background they might be. As part of its latest incarnation, boko haram declared its affiliation to the islamic state, also known as isis and isil, in march 2015a move that soon brought schisms within the group. Oct 21, 2017 islam was first documented in nigeria during the 9th century. Islam in the nonmuslim areas of northern nigeria, c.

Sep 21, 2017 the origin and growth of islam on the african continent. Religion and the making of nigeria duke university press. Introduction history of islam in nigeria jihad islamic law sharia. The first town of contact was bornu in the northeastern. Yusufu turaki presented the following paper at the african. Boko haram then resumed its clandes tine existence and intensified its terrorism. Subsequent rulers, dunama 1 10971150 and dunama ii 1221 59, continued the tradition of islamic learning such that by the end of the th century, kanern had become a centre of islamic learning fafunwa, 1974. Today, islamic studies is taught as a religious course in nigerian universities. To request permission to photocopy or reprint materials, email. Evidence for islam in southeast nigeria article pdf available in the social science journal 471.

Numerous ancient african civilizations settled in the region that is today nigeria, such as the kingdom of nri, the benin empire, and the oyo empire. Islam is thus the youngest of the great world religions. According to secular history the origin of islam can be traced back to 7th century saudi arabia. It should therefore be noted that in sharply divided societies, like nigeria where islam and christianity are in competition, ethnic sentiments are wielded and this invariably threatens the.

It came to northern nigeria about five or six hundred years before christianity metuh 1985. Nowhere, in all their colonies, did the british find islam observed as thoroughly as in northern nigeria. However, sufism is represented primarily in northern nigeria. Estimates suggest 8085 million nigerians identify as muslim roughly 50% of. Several islamic reform movements have taken place in nigeria since the late 1970s, including the izala movement, maitatsine, and darul islam.

By the 16th century, it had become quite dominant in the major capitals of this region and was spreading to the middle. The movement is unique in that it combines a sectarian, radical islamic agenda with violence. It came to northern nigeria as early as the eleventh century and was well established in the state capitals of the region by the sixteenth century, spreading into the countryside and toward the middle belt uplands. A large percentage of nigerias population are religious and in religion, they have found succor from economic hardship and failure of government systems. An introduction to islamic movements and modes of thought in nigeria. And well be looking at some interesting facts about christianity, islam and traditional religions in nigeria. The histor y o f niger ia can be traced t o prehistoric settle rs nigeria ns living in the area as early as 1100 bc. Although its roots go back further, scholars typically date the creation of islam to. I slam reached ni geria through the borno empire between 1068 ad and hausa states around 85 ad during the 11th century, while. This also coincided with the time islamic education began in the country especially in the northern part. The writer notes that while religion in nigeria often can be exploited by.

They pray five times each day, read the koran holy scriptures, fast during the month of ramadan, give alms to the poor, and aspire to make the pilgrimage hajj to the muslim holy land in mecca. All tribes in nigeria had traditional belief systems peculiar to each one before the advent of british colonization which established christianity and before the islamic jihadists enforced islam in their conquered territories. The titles from the online catalogue deal with the origins and spread of islam in nigeria, the nineteenthcentury jihad, islam and politics, sharia law, and various islamic movements. Yusufu turaki presented the following paper at the african theological fellowship continental conference at the akraji christaller memorial centre in. Islam reached nigeria through the borno empire between 1068 ad and hausa states. And of course, also the installation of a new trado political system of governance across much of northern nigeria that replaced traditional institutions with fulani heads. A case study of boko haram, journal of religion in. Facts about christianity, islam and traditional religions in nigeria this article brings you the history of religion in nigeria.

Whereas, many support the fact that there is no justification for the events of that dreaded day, some are trying to find answers as to where does this hatred originate and how to avoid such an attack from occurring in the future. The origin of christianity in the north of nigeria. When and how 266 centrality and importance to the debates for societal change. The emirs courts were filled with learned and pious jurists who always based their decisions on basis of quran, hadiths and other.

There, islams advance was stopped by the resistance. Since the country has over 371 ethnic groups and more than 520 languages, it is understood that one single religion cannot unite such a diversity of beliefs, ethnicities, cultures, and philosophies. While the presence of islam in west africa dates back to eighth century, the spread of the faith in regions that are now the modern states of senegal, gambia, guinea, burkina faso, niger, mali and nigeria, was in actuality, a gradual and complex process. This also coincided with the time islamic education began in the country especially in the northern part of nigeria. With over 180 million people, nigeria accounts, not only for christianity and islam but also other types of religion. The history, the current prevalence and the approach to a patient jewel llamas april 2017 introduction female circumcision, also known as female genital mutilation fgm or female genital cutting fgc, is practiced in many countries spanning parts of africa, the middle east and southeast asia. The portuguese attempted to introduce a catholicinfluenced form of christianity between the 16th and 18th centuries in the kongo kingdom, but it did not last for long. After the turn of the century, nigeria has seen remarkable change in many areas of life. To gain weight and conform with african standards of beauty, nigerian girls can consume food all day in fattening rooms. And well be looking at some interesting facts about christianity, islam and traditional religions in nigeria nigeria, the most populous black nation in the world, is divided along, not only cultural lines, but also along religion. The emirs courts were filled with learned and pious jurists who always based.

The history of nigeria can be traced to prehistoric settlers nigerians living in the area as early as 1100 bc. Professor of biblical studies mission and religion and society babcock university, ilishanremo, ogun state, nigeria email. Since nigeria received its independence in 1960, the government has built many schools and universities. Hausa introduction, location, language, folklore, religion. Nigeria has the highest rate of twin births per year globally. A case study of boko haram, journal of religion in africa 42. However, there were at least 250 other ethnic groups who were either muslims or adherers of other religions. This article brings you the history of religion in nigeria. Islam was introduced to northern nigeria in the 11th century. A history of the arrival of islam in igboland find, read and cite. Abdulkadir 2 introduction islam is an ideal religion because of its claim to universality, just like christianity.