The history of islam in africa facts about the muslims. Until the mid20th century, it remained largely confined to the coast and closely bound up with the history of the swahili towns situated on it. What is behind the conflict between islam and the west. The role of islam in west african politics goes back to the beginnings of the encounter between islamic culture and traditional african political leadership in the. Then follow these steps to fill in the charts below. Diversity and tolerance in the islam of west africa aodl. Pdf islam and west african anthropology researchgate. Brills islam in africa is designed to present the results of scholarly research into the many aspects of the history and presentday features of islam in subsaharan africa. It was home to its greatest historian, ibn khaldun and the birthplace of its bestknown traveler, ibn batuta. Introduction of islam in africa contributed by prof.
Spread of islam in west africa all parts the religion of. Over time, however, islam played a growing role in west african society. Since northern africa is heavily muslim and southern africa is heavily christian, the great meeting place is in the middle, a 4,000mile swath from somalia in the east to senegal in the west. Download the development of islam in west africa ebook pdf or read online books in pdf, epub, and mobi format. The history of islam in east africa stretches back to around ce. Pdf west african anthropology carries the burden of a chasm between what is considered traditional or authentically african and islamic. The introduction to the author, the headings and accentuation of some. Boko haram and the islamic states west africa province. Trade and commerce paved the way for the introduction of new. Almost onethird of the worlds muslim population resides in the continent. It changed the peoples views of their rulers, and in some people, even the way they viewed the world.
After the berbers islamisation, the religion spread into the western. Western africa the islamic revolution in the western sudan. Toynbees chapter is reproduced in its entirety below. Our focus is primarily on the west african and sa helian. France and islam in west africa, 18601960 by christopher. According to the political spreading of islam by the. The clash between the west and islam will be vital to the course of world events over the coming decades. These conquests continued from east to west resulting in the development of islam from the west of china to all of north africa, even including andalusia, towards the end of the 8th century. It contains a lot of brief, yet informative articles.
Click download or read online button to the development of islam in west africa book pdf for free now. Adama is the author of numerous articles and books, including. This lesson explains the gradual spread of islam into west africa. Islam was introduced to northern nigeria during the 11th century.
This paper was submitted to my ancient and precolonial africa class at carleton university ottawa, canada on november 26, 2012. Islam in subsaharan african contexts the web site cannot be found. Islam has had a lasting impact on africa, affecting its languages, architecture, and culture. Many christians and muslims in subsaharan africa describe members of the other faith as tolerant and honest. Among them are alkhwarzimi, ibn munabbah, almasudi, albakri, abul fida, yaqut, ibn batutah, ibn khaldun, ibn fadlallah alumari, mahmud alkati, ibn al mukhtar and abd alrahman alsadi. Islam has gained more converts in africa than has christianity, which labors under the burden of identification with european imperialism. Nazeer ahmed, phd africa, alone among the continents, has a majority muslim population. Just like in west africa these merchants brought islam with them which, which was adopted by the elites who wanted religious as well as commercial connections to the rest of the mediterranean world. Transsaharan trade brought islam to west africa in the 8th century. Traders bring islam to ghana between the years 639 and 708 c. Islam has a large presence in north africa, the horn of africa, the swahili coast, and much of west africa, with minority but significant immigrant populations in south africa. In doing so, it discusses the influence of the berbers and the transsaharan caravan trade of the saharan region. The influence of islam on west africa introduction ha. A brief introduction the spread of islam in west africa.
In the 16th century it was introduced in katsina and in the 17th century in zaria and zamfara. It was during the early 19th century, however, that islam first became. Furthermore, contrary to the conventional belief that a predominantly oral culture has always existed in africa, a rich literate culture thrived among africans historically going back as far as a millennium. The most important connection that islam made globally was the establishment of. We shall also find out the activities of the almoravids. A past of which to speak west african mosque architecture. The factors responsible for the spread of islam in west africa proceedings of 72nd the ires international conference, mecca, saudi arabia, 23rd24th june 2017 64 presence of muslims long ago. Interactive student notebook the influence of islam answer.
Islam has a large presence in north africa, west africa, the horn of africa, the southeast and among the minority but significant immigrant population in south africa. East african muslims are mostly shafiites and some. The spread of islam among the yoruba began late, well after the nineteenth century conversions of wolof a west african state that ruled parts of senegal from 60 to 1890, and increased after fulbe an ethnic group spread over many countries, predominantly in west africa conquests of the 1800s. This website is for people of various faiths who seek to understand islam and muslims.
Africa was the first continent into which islam spread from southwest asia, during the early 7th century ce. In many of the swahili states these muslim communities started out quite small but at their height between the th and 16th century, most of the. The first converts in mali were traders who benefited from having a religious as well as a commercial connection to their trading partners in the north and the rest of the mediterranean. Spread of islam in west africa all parts the religion. To some outside observers, this is a volatile religious fault line the site, for example, of. Because islam spread to west africa from north africa, muslims there fol lowed the maliki school of law dominant in north africa. Oct 09, 2016 the berbers were early converts to islam and islam spread along those preexisting trade routes between north and west africa. Traders bring islam to ghana between 639 and 708 c. Islam in africa is often adapted to local cultural contexts and belief systems, thereby forming the continents own orthodoxies. Apr 15, 2010 christianity and islam also coexist with each other. This book is a major contribution to the social, political and intellectual history of the largest colonial state in africa, the french west african federation. East africa includes a broad swath of territory embracing the modern nations of somalia, kenya, uganda, rwanda, burundi, tanzania, malawi and mozambique. Impact of islam on west africa islam impacted west africa in many ways.
Containment, mixing, and reform from the eighth to the twentieth century pdf political islam in west africa and the sahel pdf spread of islam in west africa. In this chapter, you will explore how islamic faith and culture influenced west. Interactive student notebook the influence of islam. To some outside observers, this is a volatile religious fault line the site, for example, of alqaedas first major terrorist strike, the. Islam reaches west africa, and a history of the islamic empire of ghana. The great mosque of djenne is an islamic landmark in mali. Download pdf the development of islam in west africa. Western africa western africa the islamic revolution in the western sudan. The history of islam in africa ohio university press. Islam, islamic history, islamic civilization, islam in africa, islam in south africa. Despite all of these changes, west africa maintained some continuity as well. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. By focusing on the specific subject of the development of french policy towards islam, it sheds light on a wide range of issues, from the grand strategy of french imperialism to the.
Several important early empires developed in west africa, such as ghana. Chapter 3 religion in west africa 71 myth and ancestors in west african religion 71 religious ideas and the material world 82 religion and politics 86 the moral order in traditional thought 87 cosmology and causation in west african religion 88 sacri. Islam, the west, and the future by arnold j toynbee this is a chapter of a book by arnold j toynbee, civilization on trial, published by oxford university press 1948. Muslim geographers and historians have provided excellent records of muslim rulers and peoples in africa. The moroccan occupation of the niger bend in 1591 meant that the domination of the western sudan by mande or mandeinspired empiresghana, mali, songhaiwhich had persisted for at least five centuries, was at last ended. It was seriously practiced first in kano during the 14th century.
Sep 19, 20 impact of islam on west africa islam impacted west africa in many ways. The beginning of the 21 st century saw the emergence of new global threats to transnational security in west africa as a result of the spread of jihadist terrorism across borders. Trade and commerce paved the way for the introduction of. Spreading of islam without any violence in central, east and. For the first time in a single volume, the history of islam in africa presents a detailed historic mapping of the cultural, political, geographic, and religious past of this significant presence on a continentwide scale. Using narrative analysis as an approach, we examine the most common stories that actors identifying with islam and the west use to organize their. On the other hand, in east africa, where islam came from the arabian peninsula, muslims followed the shafli school of law that prevailed in arabia. The introduction of islam into east africa followed a somewhat different path from that in west africa. The famous scholar ibn munabbah wrote as early as 738 c.
Here is a look at islam in a few west african countries. Article is composed of three parts, which 1how islam spread into subsaharan region of west africa, and the great civilizations it established there, taking its inhabitants out of paganism to the worship of one god. Islam reached the savannah region in the 8th century c. Bringing together two dozen leading scholars, this.
How islam spread into subsaharan region of west africa, and the great civilizations it established there, taking its inhabitants out of paganism to the worship of one god. Step 1 write the letter of each photograph that shows an example of the influence of islam on west africa and a brief explanation of that example. While the presence of islam in west africa dates back to eighth century, the spread of the faith in regions that are now the. Spread of islam in west africa islam reached the savannah region in the 8th century c. Almost onethird of the worlds muslim population resides today in the. Following asia, including the middle east, africa has the largest number of muslims in the world. Pdf radical islam and transnational security in west africa. Africa gave the islamic world its first muezzin, bilal ibn rabah. The nickname boko haram was given by local communities to. How can we speak about deeply divisive cultural and political issues in ways that foster conflict transformation rather than an intensification of conflict.
Diversity and tolerance in the islam of west africa. The first west africans to be converted were the inhabitants of the sahara, the berbers, and it is generally agreed that by the second half of the tenth century, the sahara had. Margari hill, stanford university january 2009 available in pdf format 1. In this chapter, you will explore how islamic faith and culture influenced west african. Islam arrived in subsaharan west africa as early as the 8th century, travelling with arab traders from north africa. Islam and society in a west african town berkeley, ca, 1992, esp. 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.
A map of religions in africa shows that while christianity dominates the southern part of the continent, islam has majority control of the north and center. Extremist islamic movements are prevalent in northern nigeria, niger. Islam in africa has to varying degrees incorporated tribal and preislamic practices, and the muslims of africa have accepted claims of several selfproclaimed mahdis. Presented in six galleries of audio and video interviews, transcripts, photographs, maps, documents, and multimedia presentations, these resources shed muchneeded light on how muslims in west africa accept religious difference and create productive interactions among christians, muslims, and practitioners of other faiths. The swahili language remains central to many east african muslims, hence the occasionally heard phrase, swahili islam. Other aspects stayed the same, like the beliefs of the pagan people and how they lived.
Th e report then zooms in on east africa, where the three religious families of traditional religion, islam and christianity are all present in large numbers. Africa was the first continent, that islam spread into out of arabia in the early seventh century. Boko haram and the islamic states west africa province boko haram emerged in the early 2000s as a small sunni islamic sect in nigeria advocating a strict interpretation and implementation of islamic law, and has evolved since 2009 to become one of the worlds deadliest terrorist groups. Doc impact of islam in western africa prior to 1500 a. Different societies in africa have generally appropriated islam in both more inclusive ways, or in the more radical ways, as with the almoravid movement in the maghreb and sahara. Islam is, in fact, the only civilization that ever put the survival of the west in doubt. A map of religions in africa shows that while christianity dominates the southern part of the continent, islam has. In most countries, relatively few see evidence of widespread antimuslim or antichristian hostility, and on the whole they give their governments high marks for treating both. Spreading of islam without any violence in central, east. Islams spread from ad to 1750 ad impacted africa socially, culturally, and politically by instituting the slave trade, creating a rise in education, and adding muslim leaders to west africas history. The histom1 ofls1am il1 africa ohio university press. The history of the islamic faith on the continent of africa spans fourteen centuries. The series will take up issues of religious and intellectual traditions, social significance and organization, and other aspects of.
At first, muslim traders and merchants lived side by side with the nonmuslims of west africa. The songhai kings were pushed southeast into their original homeland of dendi, farther down. Muslims crossed current djibouti and somalia to seek refuge in presentday eritrea and ethiopia during the hijrah arabic. They were the first negro people who accepted islam.