Islam in Nigeria
has the largest Muslim population in West Africa. The CIA estimates over 50% of the population is Muslim while the BBC estimated in 2007 that slightly over 50% of the population is Muslim. Muslims in Nigeria are predominantly Sunnis of the Maliki school of thought. However, there is a significant Shia minority, primarily in Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Osun, Ilorin and Sokoto states. In particular, a 2012 Pew Forum survey on religious diversity identified 12% of Nigerian Muslims as Shia.
History
Islam was introduced to Nigeria through two geographical routes: North Africa and the Senegalese Basin. The origins of Islam in the country is linked with the development of Islam in the wider West Africa. Trade was the major connecting link that brought Islam into Nigeria. Islam was first documented in Central Sudan by medieval Islamic historians and geographers such as Al-Bakri, Yaqut al-Hamawi and Al-Maqrizi and later works of Ibn Battuta and Ibn Khaldun offered more notes about Islam in West Africa.Islam grew in North-East Nigeria, in particular, the Kanem empire as a result of trade between Kanem and Northern African regions of Fezzan, Egypt and Cyrenaica in the eleventh century. Muslim merchants from the North sometimes remained in settlements along trade routes, this merchant class would later preach the message of Islam to their host communities. The first documented conversion of a traditional ruler was in the eleventh century when Mai Ume Jilmi of Kanem was converted by a Muslim scholar whose descendants later held a hereditary title of Chief Imam of Kanem.
Writings by Ahmad Fartua an Imam during the period of Idris Alooma provided glimpse of an active Islamic community in Bornu while 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 Idris Alooma, although a large part of that country still adhered to traditional religions. Alooma furthered the cause of Islam in the country by introducing Islamic courts, establishing mosques, and setting up a hostel in Makkah, the Islamic pilgrimage destination, for Kanuris.
In Hausaland, particularly Kano, Islam is noted to have penetrated the territory in the fourteenth century from West African traders who were converted by Tukulo
Islam in Southern Nigeria
Islam also came to the southwestern Yoruba-speaking areas during the time of the Mali Empire. In his Movements of Islam in face of the Empires and Kingdoms in Yorubaland, Sheikh Dr. Abu-Abdullah Adelabu supported his claims on early arrival of Islam in the southwestern Nigeria by citing the Arab anthropologist Abduhu Badawi, who argued that the fall of Koush southern Egypt and the prosperity of the politically multicultural Abbasid period in the continent had created several streams of migration, moving west in the mid-9th Sub-Sahara. According to Adelabu, the popularity and influences of the Abbasid Dynasty, the second great dynasty with the rulers carrying the title of 'Caliph' fostered peaceful and prosperous search of pastures by the inter-cultured Muslims from Nile to Niger and Arab traders from Desert to Benue, echoing the conventional historical view that the conquest of North Africa by the Islamic Umayyad Caliphate between AD 647–709 effectively ended Catholicism in Africa for several centuries. Islam in Ancient Yoruba is referred to as Esin Imale as the earliest introduction of the religion to that region was through Malian itinerant traders around the 14th century. Large-scale conversion to Islam happened in the 17th century., located in Abuja
Yorubas came in contact with Islam around the 14th century during the reign of Mansa Kankan Musa of the Mali Empire. According to Al-Aluri, the first Mosque was built in Ọyọ-Ile in AD 1550 although, there were no Yoruba Muslims, the Mosque only served the spiritual needs of foreign Muslims living in Ọyọ. Progressively, Islam came to Yoruba land, and Muslims started building Mosques: Iwo town led, its first Mosque built in 1655 followed by Iṣẹyin, in 1760; Lagos, 1774; Ṣaki, 1790; and Oṣogbo, 1889. In time, Islam spread to other towns like Oyo, Ibadan, Abẹokuta, Ijẹbu-Ode, Ikirun, and Ẹdẹ before the 18th-century Sokoto jihad. Several factors contributed to the rise of Islam in Yoruba land by mid 19th century. Before the decline of Ọyọ, several towns around it had large Muslim communities, unfortunately, when Ọyọ was destroyed, these Muslims relocated to newly formed towns and villages and became Islam protagonists. Second, there was a mass movement of people at this time into Yoruba land, many of these immigrants were Muslims who introduced Islam to their host. According to Eades, the religion "differed in attraction" and "better adapted to Yoruba social structure, because it permitted polygamy"; more influential Yorubas like soon became Muslims with positive impact on the natives. Islam came to Lagos at about the same time like other Yoruba towns, however, it received royal support from Ọba Kosọkọ, after he came back from exile in Ẹpẹ. According to Gbadamọṣi Islam soon spread to other Yoruba towns, especially, during the intra-tribal wars-when there was a high demand for Islamic teachers-who dubbed as both Koran teachers and amulet makers for Yoruba soldiers during the intra-tribal wars in Yoruba land. Islam, like Christianity also found a common ground with the natives that believed in Supreme Being, while there were some areas of disagreements, Islamic teachers impressed upon their audience the need to change from worshipping idols and embrace Allah. Without delay, Islamic scholars and local Imams started establishing Koranic centers to teach Arabic and Islamic studies, much later, conventional schools were established to educate new converts and to propagate Islam. Islamic religion no doubt, impacted Yoruba culture significantly, according to Ahmad Faosy Ogunbado, "Ifa consultation is Islamized to Istikhara. Celebration of oriṣa festival is transformed or replaced with celebrating eid-el-fitri and eid-el-kabir." Women and men outlook is modified as polygamy is curtailed or modified into "four at a time" while prefixed oriṣa names were changed to "Olu" plus Bunmi, becomes Ọlọrunbunmi. Traditional shrines and ritual sites were replaced with Central Mosques in major Yoruba town and cities.
Fulani War
In the early 19th century, Islamic scholar Usman dan Fodio launched a jihad, which is called the Fulani War, against the Hausa Kingdoms of Northern Nigeria. He was victorious, and established the Fulani Empire with its capital at Sokoto.Maitatsine
A fringe and heretical group, led by the cleric Mohammed Marwa Maitatsine, started in Kano in the late 1970s and operated throughout the 1980s. Maitatsine was from Cameroon, and claimed to have had divine revelations superseding those of the Prophet Muhammad. With their own mosques and a doctrine antagonistic to established Islamic and societal leadership, its main appeal was to marginal and poverty-stricken urban in-migrants, whose rejection by the more established urban groups fostered this religious opposition. These disaffected adherents ultimately lashed out at the more traditional mosques and congregations, resulting in violent outbreaks in several cities of the north.Quranists
Non-sectarian Muslims who reject the authority of hadith, known as Quranists, Quraniyoon, or 'Yan Kala Kato, are also present in Nigeria. 'Yan Kala Kato is often mistaken for a militant group called Yan Tatsine, an unrelated group founded by Muhammadu Marwa. Marwa was killed in 1980. Marwa's successor, Musa Makaniki, was arrested in 2004 and sentenced in 2006, but later released. And another leader of Yan Tatsine, Malam Badamasi, was killed in 2009. Notable Nigerian Quranists include Islamic scholars Mallam Saleh Idris Bello, Malam Isiyaka Salisu, and Nigerian High Court Judge Isa Othman.Islam in Nigerian society
As an institution in Northern Nigeria Islam plays an important role in the society. The five pillars of Islam including the annual pilgrimage and daily prayers are seen as important duties of Muslims. Support for the inclusion of a sharia legal system that governs family law and a religious view about modes of personal conduct have support within the society.According to a 2010 by Pew Research Center, Muslims in Nigeria overwhelmingly were positive towards Islamic religion playing a large role in politics. A majority of Muslims in Nigeria favoured stoning adulterers, whipping and cuttings hands for crimes like theft or robbery and the death penalty for those who abandoned Islam.
Sheikh Adelabu has mentioned other aspects of culture influenced by Islam in Nigeria. He cited Arabic words used in Nigerian languages, especially Yoruba and Hausa names of the days such as Atalata for Tuesday, Alaruba for Wednesday, Alamisi for Thursday, and Jimoh for Friday. By far Ojo Jimoh is the most favourably used. Iusually preferred to the unpleasant Yoruba word for Friday Eti, which means Failure, Laziness or Abandonment. Maintaining that the wide adoption of Islamic faith and traditions has succeeded to lay impacts both on written and spoken Nigerian vernaculars, Sheikh Adelabu asserted nearly all technical terms and cultural usages of Hausa and Fulani were derived from Islamic heritages, citing a long list of Hausa words adopted from Arabic. In furthering supports for his claims, Sheikh Adelabu gave the following words to be Yoruba's derivatives of Arabic vocabularies:
- Alaafia i.e. Good, Fine Or Health from derivative Al-Aafiah
- Baale i.e. husband or spouse derived from Ba'al
- Sanma i.e. heaven or sky adopted for Samaa`
- Alubarika i.e. blessing used as Al-Barakah
- Wakati i.e. hour or time formed from Waqt
- Asiri i.e. Secrete or Hidden derivative of As-Sirr
Sharia law
In 2014, homosexual men were targeted by Hisbah, the religious police. According to a member of the Sharia Commission, homosexuals should be killed by stoning, hanging or pushing them from a high place. In Nigeria, federal law criminalizes homosexual behaviour, but states with Sharia law imposed the death penalty.
Influence on culture
Historically, Islam fostered trade relations between North Africa and West Africa. Arabic traders from Tiaret during the Rustamid dynasty were involved in commerce with Audoghast. This trade routes went further south into the Kanuri and Hausa states of Northern Nigeria. Sharia was also introduced into Northern Nigeria has Islam spread across the region. In addition to law and trade, Islam had some influence in spreading the choice of dressing, language and choice of names.Agbada dressing in West Africa is commonly associated with Muslims and Mallams, Iborun is worn by many Muslims in Southern Nigeria during prayers and crochet hats were once mostly worn by Muslims to had performed the pilgrimage. Some Hausa and Yoruba expressions and words are also influenced by Arabic, the language of the Koran. Assalam Alaykun is a familiar expression for greeting by Muslims and Allahu Akbar is used as a call to prayer. Names such as Mohammed, Ibrahim, Yunusa, Lamidi, Aliu and Suleiman are commonly given to Muslim children.
Traditional Islamic education
Before the 1950s, the most common educational path of Muslim children in Northern Nigeria was Koranic education taught by Mallams. Students converge in the compound of a mallam or at a Koranic boarding school where they recite the Koran and learn Islamic teachings. The teacher or Mallam as they are sometimes called in Nigeria was likely a graduate of a similar school and likely belongs to a Sufi order. These teachers were well versed in Arabic and were influenced by the knowledge and traditions passed down from medieval Timbuktu and from other West African Islamic texts. Traditional Islamic teaching was considered a duty to God and teachers sometimes depended on charity or patrons to make ends meet. Meanwhile, students also assist teachers in raising funds through door-to-door solicitations. In the period preceding Nigeria's independence, political leaders desired Western-trained graduates to fill positions in government. Subsequently, the introduction of a formal School of Arabic Studies in Kano to train Qadis and rise in Western education reduced the number of children attending the Koranic schools. In addition, Islamic studies was introduced into the primary and secondary school curriculum. However, some parents still send their children to the traditional Koranic schools under the tutelage of a mallam. The students are provided shelter by their teacher. The pre-adolescents sometimes subsist through alms begging or house-help jobs, while those above fifteen learn a trade or do petty trading along with their Islamic studies. The studies can be rigorous, with students studying the Koran for fourteen hours per day until they reach a set level of maturity. These students, primarily from rural areas, are called Almajiri—a transliteration of Al Muhajirun, the Arabic word for emigrant—in Nigeria. This act is frowned upon by Western-educated Muslims who are uncomfortable with the alms begging lifestyle of many Almajiri since it is not part of Islamic teachings.Extremism
In Nigeria, Pew Research polled the views of Muslims on extremist groups. 45% favoured Hezbollah, 49% favoured Hamas and 49% favoured Al-Qaeda. Unlike Turkey, Egypt, Jordan and Indonesia, Nigeria was the only country where Muslims were positive towards Al-Qaeda.Boko Haram
Boko Haram aims to create an Islamic state in northern Nigeria. Its first attack was directed towards the Bauchi prison in 2009.- On the night of 14–15 April 2014, 276 female students were kidnapped from the Government Secondary School in the town of Chibok in Borno State, Nigeria. Responsibility for the kidnappings was claimed by Boko Haram, an extremist terrorist organization based in northeastern Nigeria. 57 of the schoolgirls managed to escape over the next few months
- On the night of 5–6 May 2014, Boko Haram militants attacked the twin towns of Gamboru and Ngala in Borno State, Nigeria. Roughly 310 residents were killed in the 12-hour attack, and the town was largely destroyed.
Organization of Nigerian Islam