Ajami Literature and the Study of the Sokoto Caliphate

Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za which maybeseeninthemanuscriptcollectionofJos Museum’. and, moreoftenthannot,forlinguisticratherhistoricalstudies. of thehistorySokotoCaliphate,hasbeenonlypartiallyexploitedbyscholars century andauthoredthe b. MuhammadSalim,knownas‘AbdullahiSuka,flourished inthemid-seventeenth conclusively astheauthorof thesaidHausa not absolute)dateis Phillips’s assertionthat‘thefirst before theeighteenthcenturyisdifficulttotracewithany degreeofcertainty. John nineteenth centuries,thedevelopmentof Despite theproliferationof Pre- and Hausa.The manuscripts, writtenintheArabicscript,arelocallanguages,principallyFulfulde Although manyoftheSokotocaliphalwritingsareinArabic,asignificantnumber The SokotoCaliphate(1804–1903), Hamid Bobboyi study oftheSokotoCaliphate Ajami CHAPTER intellectual heritage. years, theirdescendantsandsuccessorsmadesignificantcontributionstothisveritable history ofthecaliphate.Thetriumvirateitselfauthoredover250worksand, ofliteraturewhichwasimmensevalueindocumentingandevaluatingthe body have beenoneofthemostprolificinCentralBiladal-Sudan,leavingbehindalarge Shaykh ‘Abdullahi(d.1829),andhisson,MuhammadBello(d.1837),isreputedto (theShehu)(1754–1817)withtheassistanceofhisbrother,‘Uthman danFodio standing theroleitplayedinestablishmentandconsolidationofcaliphate. an attempttoexplorethesignificanceof jihad ajami 9 ajami literature andthe Riwayar AnnabiMusa 2 literature literature, despiteitspotentialinbroadeningourunderstanding Atiyyat al-mu’ti ajami ajami manuscripts inthelateeighteenthand 1 writing forwhichwehave[a]reliable(though established undertheleadershipofShaykh , ajami 5 by thefamousKanoscholar‘AbdullahiSuka there isnofirmindicationto identifyhim ajami literature intheCentralBiladal-Sudan ajami manuscript. Itisalsopossible that literature withaviewtounder- 4 While ‘AbdAllah 3 This chapteris AJAMI LITERATURE ANDTHESTUDY OFTHESOKOTO CALIPHATE and Europeanlanguages. literature, usingbothAfrican Opposite: Anexampleof ajami 123 Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za restoration andconservation. Baba Institute,awaiting A manuscriptattheAhmed 124 THE MEANINGSOFTIMBUKTU subject. the developmentofHausaIslamicverse,adoptedamorecautiousapproachto literature: the ‘innovation’ introduced bytheSokotoreformers. ‘innovation’ introduced we knowittoday, arguedHiskett,wasessentiallyanIslamiccreationandpossibly into themainstreamofIslamicliterarytradition.ThusHausa‘literateverse’as remained patentlyun-Islamicandthoughtheysurvivedcouldnotbeintegrated Mervyn Hiskett,whoundertookamoreextensiveworkonHausa with anyfirmnessthe authored some both Muhammadb.Masanih(d.1667)andal-Sabbagh(fl.1640–41) scholars likeMuhammadal-Wali b.Sulaymanal-Fallati(fl.1688–89). and thatitwascoherentenoughtohaveattractedthe attention ofseriousIslamic Fulfulde the lateeighteenthcentury, thereissome evidence tosuggestthatsomeformof Although thehistoryofHausaliterateversecouldnot befullyascertainedbefore Manhaj al-faridfima Africa. taries onthe could findthemselvesinlistsofkingsthatruledandhistoricalchronicles, 12 7 ajami Hiskett drewattentiontotheexistenceoftwodominantformsHausaoral How much Shaykh ‘Uthman dan Fodio andhiscolleagueselaboratedonthe How muchShaykh‘Uthman danFodio Sughra kirari literature wasinexistencebythesecondhalfofseventeenth century ajami ‘ (praise epithets)and of al-Sanusi,onethemajor textsforthestudyof rifat ‘ilmal-tawhid manuscripts, Waqar Yakin Badr 6 but againthereisnocredibleevidencetoattribute was anArabicversionofsomeFulfuldecommen- to eitheroneofthem. wakar yabo 10 (praise songs). 8 ajami While theseforms 11 tawhid The latter’s literature and in West 9 they al- Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za of Hausaland). popularity inthiscategoryisShaykh‘Uthman’s Fulfulde Onepoemwhichhasenjoyedsome those authoredbyShaykh‘UthmandanFodio. literature playedinthismobilisationprocesswhenhewrote: (d.1829)wasemphaticontherole Zamfara andKebbi.‘AbdullahidanFodio establish asubstantialpresencewithintheruralandnon-literatecommunitiesofGobir, cance of isation framework’oftheSokotoreformmovementthatweneedtolocatesignifi- in hismobilisationefforts,hadthistosayFulfuldepoemtitled himself,inemphasisingthestrategicimportanceofusing Shaykh ‘UthmandanFodio asserting itsindependencefromtheGobirauthoritiesin1804. until heestablishedanautonomous when Shaykh‘Uthmanwasonly20yearsold,hebeganactiveteachingandpreaching oneofthemostcrucialstagesinthisprocesswasthatmobilisation.From1774, and wasagradualprocesstakingseveraldecadestocome tofruition.Theinitial dan Fodio The establishmentoftheSokotoCaliphateunderleadershipShaykh‘Uthman The reform tradition literary substratumwhichtheycouldbuildupon. existing literaturecannotbefullyestablished,buttherewasapparentlyaFulfulde discern thesocialillsofHausalandanditsreligiousproblems andcontradictions. movement appearstohavebeenondevelopingaconscious Muslimpersonality, ableto andhislieutenantsatthisstageofthe The focusofShaykh‘UthmandanFodio apparent socioreligiousprotestfoundexpressioninseveral any seriousandsystematicmanner. The poemproceedstohighlightsomeoftheseills: conspiracy ofsilencebyleaders ofthoughtwhichmadeitdifficulttoaddressthemin by his preaching and his qasidas [odes] in by hispreachingandqasidas[odes] traveled forthatpurposetotheEastandWest, callingpeopletothereligionofGod Then werosewiththeShaikh,helpinghiminhismissionworkforreligion.He When wecomposeitinFulfuldetheunletteredalsogain. When wecompose[apoem]inArabiconlythelearnedbenefit. I intendtocomposeitinFulfuldesothatFulbecouldbeenlightened. My intentionistocomposeapoemonthe[prostration]of To minnjusbirifulfuldeJaahiliFaydoye To minnjusbiriarabiyyaaalimitannafi‘ Mi yusbirangolFulfuldeFulbefuyeetoye Nufare ndeamyusbangoenbaabuwolkire customs contrarytoMuslimLaw. ajami literature andhowitwaseffectivelyexploitedbythecaliphalleadersto 17 This poemadmitsthemanyevilsprevalentinHausasociety andthe 14 jama‘a Ajami (congregation) whichwasabletobegin [Hausa andFulfulde]destroying urjuza ajami , called 13 forgetfulness It iswithinthe‘mobil- poems, particularly Babuwol kire Boneji Hausa AJAMI 16 LITERATURE ANDTHESTUDY OFTHESOKOTO CALIPHATE ajami ajami : This 15 (Ills difficult to imaginetheSokotodifficult but unlettered followers. Itwould be across theirmessageto theirteeming achieve thisobjective. effective exploitation of effective without takinginto accountthe emerging asamassmovement Ajami in helpingthe of thereform movement, particularly role duringthemobilisationphase literature played animportant jihad leaders put ajami to jihad 125 Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za 126 THE MEANINGSOFTIMBUKTU and its trials and tribulations with a view to instilling the fear of God intotheirhearts. and itstrialstribulations with aviewtoinstillingthefearofGod it,constituted remindingpeopleaboutthehereafter,‘Uthman understood itspleasures (Hausa) or mobilisation phaseofShaykh‘Uthman’s reformmovementandsubsequentlyisthe The secondcategoryof one’s fatherandmother. and followersoftheSunna,forlatter, accordingtotheshaykh,was superiortoboth undesirable charactersandencouragedkeepingthecompanyofpious,learned which discouragedsocialintercoursewithoppressiverulers,innovatorsandother Another poembyShaykh‘Uthmanwhichfallsintothiscategoryis who saw nothing good inwhattheshaykhandhisdisciplesweretryingtoaccomplish. who sawnothinggood on onegroupoftheseundesirablecharacters,therumour-mongers andhate-mongers Oh! Thesepeoplearenotontherightpath. Some ofthemhavetheir‘bante’apronslooselyblowing‘SabalSabal’. theynevercoverproperly Their body Another illisthatwomendonotlearn From itsillsisthatthe This actionisthenfollowedbyenslavement. Some ofitsillsarethecaptureafreeMuslim,notslave. ‘Thou shallnotsalutewhilestanding’ Some illsarethesalutationsmade[duringsalutations] Others arecryingoverthedead. Some illsaretattoosonthefaces Hayya ebeyimbengaladoudatal. Wodbe bentejefedesabal Balli dimabbebokurumbecuddata Goddi bonejimairireubenjangata Zakka momashiyajibobeittata Goddi bonejimairijulananngata E mairijulyimbendonnata Goddi bonejimaarishar’udoggata Na yojeyado,jagginekitokkoye Goddi bonejimaribojuldonanngoya A hinnatagoodoe-dounguski Goddi bonejimaaribo,diccaki Goddi bonejimairibo,simaki Goddi bonejimairibo,bukkaki The One ofitsillsisperformingprayerswithoutablution. And manyofitspeopledonotdistributeestatesinaccordancewiththeLaw. zakat waju of theiranimalstheyneverpay. (Fulfulde) poetry. 18 ajami Shaykh ‘Uthman’s Fulfuldepoem shari‘a literature whichplayedanimportantroleduringthe does notprevail. Wa’az , asSultanMuhammadBellob.Shaykh Hasotobe Wasuyeji further elaborated (Advice), wa’azi 20 19 Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za indeed classic: realisation thatitisonlythehereafterwhichreal.Theexamples poems attempttounderscorethetransientnatureofthisworldandbringhome Shaykh ‘Uthman dan Fodio fallsintothiscategoryof Shaykh ‘UthmandanFodio shown clearlytheimportance ofthesesubjectsinShaykh‘Uthman’s sermons, the rudimentsof Caliphate attheearlystageofitshistoryisdidacticverse thatwasmeanttoteach The thirdcategoryof exampleofarepentancepoem,illustratingquitevividlytheirsupplicatorynature. good discourse ofthe those whowillsufferthetorment Shaykh ‘Uthman’sShaykh fleeting natureoftheworldanddayresurrection: ‘Abdullahi danFodio’s Hausa The Fulfulde these poemsbearnodateanditisdifficulttoassignthemproperlythisperiod. ajami Viewed fromthevantagepointofavailablemanuscriptcollections,thiscategory is veryprobablethat the issueofrepentance( Those determinedtofetchitwillfindabsolutelynothing. This miserableworldislikeamirage. The cloudwillsoondisappearandtheshadevanishes. This miserableworldislikeashadeofcloud. So slipperythatanyonegettingholdofitwillbeleftemptyhanded. This miserableworldislikethesnake’s body. every unbelieverwillsuffertorment. Judgment willbegiven,thedivisionmade; there willbenonetolaugh! There willbenowaistwrapper, nay, notevenaloincloth; All mankindweshallassemble. On theDayofResurrectiontherewillbesummons; The wealthyouhavehiddenaway, willnotransomyou,youhear? You willforgetsonandgrandchild. When thedayofyourdeathcomes, All theheirsnowdrinksoup. Everything ofhishaspassedaway Woe tousonthedayitshallbesaid‘Whatofsoandso?Today hehaspassedaway.’ literature appearsquiteextensive.Themainproblem,however, isthatmostof qasida wa’azi fiqh Yimre Jahima with thetitle , ajami literature. Shaykh‘Uthman’s tawhid ajami tuba was effectivelyutilisedtoget themessageacrossto qasida literature relevanttoourunderstandingoftheSokoto 23 and , extends furtherthediscussiononhellfirebymentioning 24 tubuye Duniyayel n ekrfg rmtefr of and seekrefugefromthefire sira , Mulkin audu . MuhammadBelloinhis ) bringstoalogicalconclusionthecyclical (This MiserableWorld) andattributedto , 22 paints amoregraphicpictureofthe Inna gime Wa’azi literature. Thisandsimilar 21 (Mother ofPoems) Jahima Infaq al-maysur Duniyayel (hell). Finally, AJAMI raises are 26 and it LITERATURE ANDTHESTUDY OFTHESOKOTO CALIPHATE 25 had is a 127 Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za 128 THE MEANINGSOFTIMBUKTU the Shehuauthored,couldhavebeenversifiedineitherHausaorFulfulde. Shaykh ‘Uthman,MalamUsmanMiga,called elaborate genealogyoftheProphetandvariousaspectsProphet’s biography. possible thatsomemajorworkslikethe (d.1668), and Hiskett’s analysis,theworkwasbasedon once again and theresultantconsequences.Asfarasmobilisingpeoplefor of SultanMuhammadBellohavegivendetailedaccountsthesemomentousevents well established.The mented other Babuwol kireorSujudal-sahwi movement’s unletteredfollowers.IhavealreadymadereferencetoShaykh‘Uthman’s The eventsleadingtothe Hijra the Related tothe On was notmerelyachroniclerof thecaliphate’s battlesandvictories.Throughhereduca- her manypoemsonthesubject.Itis,however, importanttonotethat NanaAsma’u principal personalitieswhogaveaccountofsomethese battles,ascanbeseenfrom In lateryearsNanaAsma’u,thedaughterofShaykh‘Uthman, becameoneofthe tenets ofthe ising for It couldalsobearguedthat example of Fodio’s the reportofbattlesandcelebrationjihadists’victory inthem.‘Abdullahidan attributed toanyoftheprincipalactorsatthisstagehistory. Hausa andFulfulde,isagainquiteextensivebutcouldnotbeaccuratelydatedorfirmly extant worksinthiscategoryof Qadiriyya country oftheSudanandhesetthistoverseinhisnon-Arabicqasida thatHeshouldshowhimthesovereigntyofIslaminthis began toprayGod the unbelievers,andcommenceHolyWar, begantoincitethemarms–andhe when hesawthegreatnessofcommunity, andtheirdesiretobreakawayfrom perpetuatethegloryofIslamthroughhim– Then ourShaikh‘Uthman–MayGod tawhid madh al-nabi , Hausa Poem jihad jihad , oneoftheextantworksisaHausacompositionbydisciples ajami sira … shari‘a and forunderstandinghowitshouldbeconductedinaccordance withthe gime furu’a 33 sira literature in Umm al-Barahin and consolidation (emphasis mine) (Praise oftheProphet)literature.Thisgroup played avitalrole.Inthewordsof‘AbdullahidanFodio: literature butpursuedmoreforspiritualanddevotionalpurposeswas . SultanMuhammadBello’s recounting theMuslimvictoryatKalambaina Tazyin al-waraqat which arebeingtransmitteduptothepresentday. hijra ajami ajami (Prostrations onForgetfulness).Thiscouldhavecomple- and ajami of Muhammadb.Yusuf al-Sanusi(d.1486). literature playedanequallyimportantroleinmobil- is ‘AbdullahidanFodio’s jihad literature. of ‘Abdullahi dan Fodio andthe of ‘AbdullahidanFodio of Shaykh ‘Uthman dan Fodio havebeenfairly of Shaykh‘UthmandanFodio Ihya al-Sunna Jawharat al-tawhid urjuza 34 Musan samuwarjalla Closely relatedtothe , titled (Revival oftheSunna),which Wakar sira Yimre jihadi of Ibrahimal-Laqani 35 ajami hijra 32 is a good example. is agood . , whichgivesan 29 was concerned, Infaq al-maysur verse, bothin , isoneofthe jihad According to 28 27 poems is It isalso 30 called An 31 Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za classical Arabists. and expandeditsscopetotreatavarietyofsubjectsissuesnormallyreservedforthe Many Sokotoscholarswhowrotein the courseof itwillberecalled,wasdisenchantedwith dation ofthecaliphate.‘AbdullahidanFodio, mightnothavebeenfullyextinguishedevenaftertheconsoli- ‘Abdullahi danFodio caution. Itcouldbearguedthattheradicaltraditionwhichwaspopularisedby For theSokotoCaliphate,however, weneedtoapproachthissubjectmatterwithsome the neworder. Thisbringsustoanexaminationof ments usedtooverthrowthe Whenevertheleadershipfailedtomeettheseexpectations,veryinstru- expectations. couldonlycomewithhugesacrificesandgreat ofShaykh‘UthmandanFodio, leadership political protest.Drasticchange,likethatwitnessedinHausalandunderthe The lastcategoryof Political protest helping torestoretheemotionalbalanceofsociety. experiences aswellherdeterminationandresilienceinensuringcontinuity elegies whichNanaAsma’uleftusbearstestimonytothetraumaticnatureofthese of pivotal rolesinitsestablishment.Thelargebody dation oftheSokotoCaliphatebutalsodemisealmostallthosewhoplayed It isalsoimportanttorecognisethatNanaAsma’unotonlywitnessedtheconsoli- wider population. many ofShaykh‘Uthman’s worksintoHausa,whichmadethemmoreaccessibletothe consolidation oftheemergingcaliphate.NanaAsma’uandherbrother‘Isatranslated tional activitiesandvastsocialnetwork,shegreatlyenhancedtheroleof Malam MuhammaduNaBirnin Gwari(fl.1850)wasoneofthosevoices: Fodio’s positionand,asthe‘transgressions’mounted, thesevoicesbecamemorestrident. towns, notonthebattlefield. And thecollectingofconcubines,andfineclothes; horsesthatgallopinthe And theappointingofignorantpersonstohighestoffices; unbelievers andthetitlesoftheirsovereignty. In ordertoobtaindelightsandacquirerankaccording tothecustomof Whose purposeistherulingofcountriesandtheirpeople; And followavariceineverythingincumbentuponthem… Who saythatwhichtheydonotandfollowtheirdesires; I wasleftamongtheremainder, theLiars. When mycompanionspassedandaimswentawry; jihad 36 37 She alsoenrichedthe ajami as early1808: literature whichthischapterwillconsideristhatdealingwith status quoante 39 ajami ajami could alsobeeffectivelyexploitedtosubvert were notunsympatheticto‘Abdullahidan landscape throughherprolificwritings 38 ajami ajami as ‘subversive’literature. literature oneulogiesand ajami AJAMI in the LITERATURE ANDTHESTUDY OFTHESOKOTO CALIPHATE 129 Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za 130 THE MEANINGSOFTIMBUKTU the effectiveexploitationof imagine theSokoto across theirmessagetoteemingbutunletteredfollowers. Itwouldbedifficultto mobilisation phaseofthereformmovement,particularlyin helpingthe character.and Ihavefurtherexaminedtherolethat it mighthavebeentheSokotoCaliphatewhichgavethis literature itscurrentidentity the study oftheSokotoCaliphate.Ihaveexamineddifficulties oftracingthehistory I haveinthischapterattemptedtoexplorethesignificance of Concluding remarks interest in alsoexpressedimmense Raji,like‘AbdullahidanFodio, It isinterestingthatModibbo Raji, Modibbo The secondvoiceisthatofMuhammadRajib.AliAbiBakr(d.after1865–66). Muhammadu NaBirninGwari: Alamaaji ngirbuki but themindhaseagerlyleftwhilelimbshavebeenstationary. In reality, hasremainedmotionless,unable tocommencethejourney; thebody I wouldthenretracetheProphet’s footstepsinMedina. Had itbeenthatIhavewheretorunto,wouldescaped. [to seewhattoconfiscate]. Riding aroundonhorsesinordertopeerintothecompounds confiscating thepeople’s propertywithunlawfulacts. And you,theKing’s courtiers,stopgoingroundthetowns; and thewomenofpalace?Comelistentowhatbenefitsyou… andHaremmessengersconcubines; Where arethebodyguards, over all,forthecommunityofMuhammad… Spread outjusticeasacarpetinEastandWest; SouthandNorth, Muhammad. It isthewordofMessengerGod, Know yethattyrannywillbedarknessontheDayofResurrection; You neitherfindonewhodoesjusticenortheguidestowhatisright. Leaders havebecomeanirresponsiblelot,abunchofdangerousthugs. and theabandonmentofmosques. the principalconcernbeingerectingtallbuildings Tyranny, cheatingandinjusticearesorampant; The Hadithsoftheprophetandsayingsrighteouspointtoit… The signsofcollapseareuponus; ajami Islamic verseintheCentralBiladal-Sudanandaddressed theargumentthat hijra 41 , preferablytoMedina,retracingthefootstepsofProphet: as hewaspopularlyknown,wroteaFulfulde (The SignsofCollapse),echoingsimilarsentimentstothose jihad emerging asamassmovementwithouttakingintoaccount ajami 40 to achievethisobjective. ajami literature played qasida ajami 43 literature inthe which hetitled jihad leaders put during the 42 Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za well asduringtheeraofconsolidation.Thesignificance Finally, Ihaveexaminedtheroleof graphy andhowthishaschangedoverthecenturies. assisted withbetterinsightintothedevelopmentoflanguage–specific languages’ includingNupe,KanuriandYoruba. Thisrecoveryeffortwillbegreatly Nigeria, weshouldalsoexploretheavailabilityof While HausaandFulfuldeareusuallyregardedasthetwodominant well asinformationontheirauthors. their knowledgeoftheoraltraditions–togetrenditionthesedocuments,as oral tradition–oldermenandwomen‘guilds’oftheblindwhowereknownfor of clear someofthelingeringproblems.Researchersshouldalsofocusoncustodians manuscripts soastoprovidealargerandmorevariedresourcepool,whichcouldhelp literature. Itismyopinionthatgreatereffortsshouldbemadetorecovermore the keyproblemswhichmakeitdifficulttotakefulladvantageofavailable The chapterhasalsoraisedtheproblemofauthorshipandaccuratedatingassome cognisance ofestablishedtrendsradicalIslamicthoughtwithintheSokotoCaliphate. ature duringthesecondhalfofnineteenthcenturywasfurtherhighlighted,taking ajami literature duringthe ajami literature inother‘Islamic ajami hijra as ‘subversive’liter- and ajami jihad languages in ajami AJAMI periods as periods ortho- LITERATURE ANDTHESTUDY OFTHESOKOTO CALIPHATE ajami 131 Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za 132 THE MEANINGSOFTIMBUKTU ikt 17:2–3)referredtotheKirariin Hiskett(1975: 9 Hiskett(1975). 8 1–11). ForadiscussionontheissueseeHiskett(1975: 7 19–20). Phillips(1999: 6 32–33). Fordetailson ‘Abdullahi SukaseeHunwick&O’Fahey(1995: 5 19). Phillips(1999: 4 ThemostusefulexploitationofthisresourcetodateremainsBoyd&Mack SeeHiskett(1975)andFurniss(1996). 3 SeeHunwick&O’Fahey(1995). 2 Althoughthe Theperiod1804–1903representstheapproximatedatesofexistencecaliphate. 1 NOTES 7SeAuaa ta.(04 82) The 18–25). (2004: See Abubakar etal. 27 74–94). Bello(1951: 26 197–198). Saidu(1979: 25 misappropriatorsof thievesandadulterers, Shaykh mentionedthehate-monger, ‘Uthman 24 206–207). Saidu(1979: 23 29–31). ReproducedinHiskett(1975: 22 3–8). (2004: Abubakaretal. 21 91–94). Bello(1951: 20 201–202). SeeSaidu(1979: 19 198–199). SeeSaidu(1979: 18 203–205). SeeSaidu(1979: 17 SultanMuhammadBellogavesomeglimpsesintohisfather’s propagationtechniquesandstrategiesduringthisphase 16 18–25). (2004: See Abubakar etal. 15 85–86). Fodio(1963: 14 3–40). SeeLast(1977: 13 35). SeeHunwick&O’Fahey(1995: 12 Itmustbepointedoutthat 34–37). SeeHunwick&O’Fahey(1995: 11 18)believesthatIslamicverseinHausawasprobablycomposedduringthepre- Hiskett(1975: 10 8AFulfulderenderingofthe 28 1Hset(95 35) TheFulfulde 53–58). Hiskett(1975: 31 Hiskett(1975). 30 68–71). PoemquotedbyHiskett(1975: 29 (1999). SeealsoHiskett(1973)andFodio(1963). seeLast(1977). ofthecaliphate, Forageneralhistory tours. commencedhispreaching theleaderofreformmovement, started asearly1774whenShaykh ‘Uthman danFodio, jihad ert Siu17:207). learnt’ (Saidu1979: onewhodefiesjudgementofthe corruptjudges, rulers, SeeBello(1951). of themovement. thesehavenotcometolight. after1745–46), Ibrahimal-Fallati(d. Tahir b. ThoughtherearereferencesinthefieldtoFulfuldepoems composed byShaykh indication ofany ‘literate versetradition’. andthereisnoevidencethatitwaseverwrittendown’. any significantextent, (1936). also possiblethattheKanuri aucitcletos oee,theproblemofdatingmakesitdifficulttoattributethem the periodunderdiscussion. However, collections. manuscript 14–0 hnmn fteepeswr rnltd usuallyinto Hausa. (1840–70) whenmanyofthesepoemsweretranslated, particularly duringthemiddleperiod Thisproblemmayaffectmanyotherpoems, and whichonewasatranslation. Thequestionimmediatelyarisesastowhichofthetwopoemswasoriginal 26–67) andisfirmlyattributedtohim. formandbearsneitheratitlenordate ofcomposition. fragmentary writtenbywhatcouldbetermeda ‘steady Thepaperisquiteold, Bureau. Sokoto StateHistory omne n10,Skt a o salse ni bu afadcd ae.Scnl,themobilisationphase Secondly, Sokotowasnotestablisheduntilabouthalfadecadelater. commenced in1804, Ihya al-Sunna girgam qasida rdto nBrucudhv a t rgn nsmlrcrusacs SeePalmer tradition inBornucouldhavehaditsoriginssimilarcircumstances. furu in , of ‘Abdullahi danFodio’s ’ poemswhichdealwiththevariousbranchesof urjuza Kano Chronicle om hasturnedupintheuncatalogued Arabic collectionofthe form, qadi and ‘the sa xml fti aeoyo as ieaue Itis ofHausaliterature. as anexampleofthiscategory Wakar sira al-Manhaj al-farid Mallam [scholars] whofailedtofollowwhathe loapasi bbkre l (2004: also appearsin Abubakar etal. zakat is aproseworkandnotan icifmkr,ava mischiefmakers, , fiqh jihad abound inthevarious jihadi period ‘but notto ad.Itisin hand’. ricious Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za 6Aogohrwrs Nana Asma’u translatedthe Amongotherworks, 36 28). Hiskett(1975: 35 71–75). (2004: See Abubakar etal. 34 AFulfulde 105). Fodio(1963: 33 Boyd J&MackB(1999) Bello M(1951) HamidB&DewaS(Compilersandtrans)(2004) Tahir US, Abubakar MB, REFERENCES dwellingthereforyearsout ‘MyheartflewtoMadina, Comparewith ‘Abdullahi danFodio’s poem: (2004). Abubakaretal. 43 90–103). (2004: Abubakaretal. 42 434–436). Hunwick&O’Fahey(1995: 41 101). Hiskett(1975: 40 121–122). Fodio(1963: 39 Nana Asma’u’s poemsonthesesubjectsinclude 38 v–viii). tableofcontents, SeeBoyd&Mack(1999: 37 bemadeofShaykh ‘Uthman’s however, Aspecialmentionmust, 32 Palmer R(1936) Last M(1977) Furniss G(1996) (1963) Fodio A ad G(99 h infcneo hh’ emn n om nAai In YB Usman(Ed.) Saidu AG (1979) The significanceofShehu’s sermonsandpoems in Ajami. Phillips JE(1999) Hunwick JO&RSO’Fahey(Eds)(1995) Hiskett M(1975) Hiskett M(1973) Committee Bookman Publishers Sokoto Caliphate Madison very similarinmeaningtothepoemtranslatedinto very Arabic by ‘Abdullahi danFodio. fdsr n twl o eun u ysnkp ybd wyfo t ofsd’(93 122). confused…’(1963: of desireanditwillnotreturn;Butmysinkeptbodyawayfromit, Modibbo dan Ali; Alhinin MutuwarHalima. Sonnore Gidado;Zahra;Hawwa;Bingel;Na’Inna;Mustafa; Alhinin Mutawar Shaykh ‘Uthman translatedthe Muhammadu AnotherpoembyShaykh ‘Uth mss4/28/205. Bureau, SeeSokotoStateHistory al-Shaykh. b. ‘Isa The SokotoCaliphate Tazyin al-waraqat Infaq al-Maysurfitarikhbiladal-Takrur a lob on nteJh yad olcin J9/15. canalsobefoundintheJohnRylandscollection, , h on,SaharaandSudan The Bornu, oty proseandpopularcultureinHausa Poetry, A history ofHausaIslamicverse A history ThelifeandtimesoftheShehuUsmandanFodio The swordoftruth: prosAai:HausaandcolonialNigeria Spurious Arabic: . Zaria: Department of History, Ahmadu Bello University for the Sokoto State History Bureau AhmaduBelloUniversityfortheSokotoStateHistory DepartmentofHistory, Zaria: . h olce ok fNn sau agtro sa a oio(1793–1864) daughterofUsmandanFodiyo The collectedworksofNana Asma’u, dtdadtasae yMHset bdn IbadanUniversityPress Ibadan: EditedandtranslatedbyMHiskett. . qasida Ma’ama’are odn Longman London: . rbcltrtr fArc:ThewritingsofCentralSudanic Africa Arabic literatureof Africa: titled odn JohnMurray London: . . Qadiriyya odn SchoolofOrientaland African Studies London: . Sonnore Abd Allah; SonnoreBello;Mo’Inna;Bukhai; Tabbat haqiqa odn Luzac London: . saalbei h oooSaeHsoyBra,41/0,andis 4/15/206, Bureau, is availableintheSokotoStateHistory dnug:EdinburghUniversityPress Edinburgh: . aio:ArcnSuisPorm Universityof Wisconsin- AfricanStudiesProgram, Madison: . Ma’ama’are of Shaykh ‘Uthman danFodiointoHausawhile ‘Isa b. Fulfulde poems which wasrendered e ok OxfordUniversityPress New York: . (Vol. 1). Yola: Sokoto Bicentenary SokotoBicentenary Yola: 1). (Vol. Studies in the history ofthe Studies inthehistory man, Miyetti ya Allah neldo into Hausabyhisson Vl ) edn Brill Leiden: 2). (Vol. AJAMI bdn Sam Ibadan: . LITERATURE ANDTHESTUDY OFTHESOKOTO CALIPHATE 133 Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za 134 THE MEANINGSOFTIMBUKTU