Aisa Kili bint Dunama

A favorite of the seraglio of the ruler of Borno in the 1820s based on a sketch in Denham, Clapperton and Oudney. The woman bears an uncanny resemblance to the magira photographed in Palmer's Bornu Sahara and Sudan.

One of the great female rulers of Borno, Aisa Kili N’girmaramma, remains a mystery. The exact chronology of her regency, the conditions that led to her occupying the throne, and how she was able to lead military expeditions and protect a young Idris Alooma are not clear. However, they are aspects of a pivotal period in Borno’s consolidation as a major regional power. Said to have been the mother of Idris Alooma in some traditions while others others assert she was a Sayfawa ruler related to Dunama, her parentage has been tentatively identified with Dunama b. Salma of the Bulala rulers in Kanem. Using references based on Kanembu oral traditions recorded by Henri Carbou, it is possible to more confidently identify Aisa Kili as a daughter of the Bulala ruler remembered as Kalo, probably the very same Dunama b. Salma who was defeated by Idris Alooma’s grandfather, Idris b. Ali (reigned c. 1497-1519). In fact, her seizure by Borno forces may have contributed to the conflict between Idris b. Ali and the Bulala sultans that reignited during the reign of Muhammad b. Idris (c. 1519-1538). Once in Borno, however, the Bulala princess was married to Ali, the father of Idris Alooma. In spite of Ali’s death in c. 1539, Aisa Kili was able to reign in her own right and protect the interests of her adopted homeland.

Lamentably, it remains quite difficult to historicize and contextualize some of the traditions reported by Carbou. Take the Bulala king, Kalo, for instance. His mother was said to have been named Lafia.[1] The name Lafia appears as a mai named Lefia in H.R. Palmer’s Sudanese Memoirs. But, in Palmer’s sources, Lafia was the father of Jil, who was the father of Anas, who was the father of Salih.[2] Another Bulala sultan, who fought a losing war against Muhammad b. Idris, son of Idris b. Ali (r. 1497-1519), was named in the Diwan as Kaday b. Lafia.[3] Further identification of Kalo may be corroborated in Kanuri traditions of Aissa Kili bint Dunama, said to have been a daughter of the Bulala sultan Dunama b. Salma (r. c.1500-1530).[4] Assuming Idris Alooma’s mother was the daughter of Dunama b. Salma and not the other sons of Salma, who was the father of a Bulala princess remembered in Kanem as Assakele, then it is likely that Dunama b. Salma was in fact Kalo. However, traditions reported in Palmer’s Sudanese Memoirs are contradictory about Idris Alooma’s mother. According to Palmer, Aisa Kili succeeded Ali Gaji and ruled for 7 years. Ali Gaji was said to have married a daughter of the Bulala ruler, Umr. Moreover, Aisa Kili was allegedly a sister of Idris Alooma, and had lived among the Bulala.[5] Idris Alooma’s mother, named Amsa, was said to have been a daughter of Jil ibn Bikoru of the Bulala.[6] According to Lange, Dunama b. Salmama was one of the Bulala kings defeated by the Sayfawa mai, Idris b. Ali (r. c.1497-1519).[7] If so, this agrees with the chronology given by Dewiere (c.1500-1530). As for Aisa Kili, a girgam translated by Palmer listed her as a child of Dunama, and a “princess of the blood.”[8] This same girgam lists the parents of Idris Alooma as Ali and Hamsa, with no indication of Aisa Kili being the mother of Idris. As for contemporary written sources, Ahmad b. Furtu wrote that Idris Alooma was related to the Bulala by marriage or parentage.[9] The only other source asserting a Bulala origin for Idris Alooma’s mother is Muhammad Nur Alkali, who cited tradition that Idris’s mother was the sister of the Bulala sultan, Abdullahi.[10] Consequently, one is left uncertain about the Aisa Kili who was  held by tradition to be the mother of Idris Alooma.

Ruins of Gambaru in Palmer's Bornu Sahara and Sudan.

Later traditions heard by Lange in the areas of Gambaru, Birni Gazargamo and other sites, add little more clarity. At the site of Mar, about 32 km southwest of Gambaru and where Aisa Kili was said to have died, Lange was told a well in the village had been constructed by the orders of Aisa Kili. In the village of Logomani, for instance, he was informed that it was founded by Aisa Kili, who was remembered in tradition as a male.[11] Intriguingly, her name has been translated as referring to her white horse, and tradition remembers her as leading military expeditions.[12] Lange also found that residents of the area of Gazargamo remembered Aisa Kili but not Idris Alooma.[13] Since Idris Alooma did indeed spend time at Gambaru and traditions remember a mother named Aisa Kili who built the site’s palace for her son, it does seem rather likely that Aisa Kili and Amsa are one and the same. 

Lange, in his earlier study and translation of the Diwan, suggested Aisa Kili was perhaps the mother of Idris Alooma’s grandfather, Idris b. Ali. This interpretation is based on the idea that Aisha may have been an important figure at the time who ensured the succession of Idris b. Ali (r. 1497-1519).[14] A defense of Lange’s interpretation can be found in the second volume of Palmer’s Sudanese Memoirs, where Ali Gaji Zeinami was said to have married Amsa, a daughter of the Bulala sultan, Umr.[15] Nonetheless, Nur Alkali makes a stronger case for placing Aisa Kili’s reign to the period of Abdullahi (r. 1557-1564). For instance, the maira Aisa Keli Ngermaram's reign was remembered to have included periods of famine or drought, which correlates with the Diwan on Abd Allah’s reign.[16] Likewise, the girgam published by Palmer places the reign of Aisa right before Idris Alooma’s. But unlike Muhammad Nur Alkali’s assertions, the girgam describes Aisa Kili as a daughter of Dunama, not a sister. To make matters even more baffling, Palmer’s Bornu Sahara and Sudan seems to imply she was a daughter of a Sayfawa monarch as well as a Bulala princess.[17]

Another question one must consider is the possibility that Aisa Kili was the magira but not necessarily the biological mother of Idris Alooma. The confusion found in the oral traditions might have arose due to the memory of Idris as Amsami in remembrance of his biological mother, but later fused her with traditions of the magira, Aisa Kili, who was indeed a major figure who held the throne for perhaps as many as 7 years. This might explain some of the inconsistencies in traditions about Idris Alooma’s mother as well as some of the contradictions in the traditions about relationships between similarly named kings of the Sayfawa from the time of Ali Gaji in the 15th century to Idris Alooma in the second half of the 16th century. Kings with similar names, might have been confused with their predecessors or successors and tradition remembered Aisa as a powerful ruler in her own right, perhaps thereby making her either a successor of Ali Gaji, mother of Idris Alooma, sister of Idris Alooma and sister of Dunama and Abdallah. A praise song even turns her into a daughter of Dunama Dibalemi.[18] This remains plausible since the same traditions sometimes turn Dunama Dibalemi into the father of Ali Gaji. In other words, the most prominent rulers of the annals of the Sayfawa were remembered and sometimes anachronisms emerged as events were traced to their illustrious reigns. 

In summation, Aisi Kili likely was a Bulala princess who, through a series of events and circumstances, briefly held paramount authority in Borno. Based on the Kanembu songs referring to a Bulala princess named Assakele, who was seized by Borno forces, it is likely she was the daughter of Dunama b. Salma (or Kadai). Kanembu sung tradition seems to identify Dunama b. Salma as Kalo. This very same Kalo was also said to have led the heroic resistance against the forces of Borno, presumably the campaign of Idris b. Ali (r. 1497-1519). Idris b. Ali’s son, Muhammad, subsequently led a Kanem campaign that defeated the Bulala sultan, Kadai b. Lafia, a brother of Dunama b. Salma. At some point, probably during the campaigns of Idris b. Ali or Muhammad b. Idris, Assakele was seized by a tsarma of Borno. She later became the wife of Ali b. Idris, who reigned briefly in c.1538-1539 in Borno. If she was indeed the mother or queen-mother of Idris Alooma, who came to the throne in c.1564, she was able to establish  herself politically and even lead military expeditions, perhaps during the troubled period of famines and drought that preceded the coming to power of Idris Alooma. If tradition can be trusted, she even sponsored fired-brick palaces and mosques at Gambaru and may have played a key role in the cordial relations between the Bulala and Sayfawa royal houses. In fact, the Bulala sultan, Abd Allah ibn Jil, who performed the hajj with Idris Alooma in 1565, would have been a cousin of the mai.[19] While much remains unanswered about her exact connection with Idris Alooma, it appears likely she was indeed at least a magira whose leadership skills helped the Sayfawa stay afloat during the turbulent years of famine in the 1550s and early 1560s.

________________

[1] Henri Carbou, La region du Tchad et du Ouadai, tome 2, 47. 

[2] H.R. Palmer, Sudanese Memoirs 3, 29..

[3] Lange, Diwan, 79.

[4] Remi Dewiere, Du lac Tchad à la Mecque, 379.

[5] Palmer, Sudanese Memoirs 2, 42-43. 

[6] Ibid, 44. 

[7] Lange, Diwan, 79. 

[8] Palmer, “The Bornu Girgam,”79. 

[9] Palmer, Sudanese Memoirs 1, 19.

[10] Muhammad Nur Alkali, Kanem-Borno Under the Sayfawa, 200. 

[11] Lange, A Sudanic Chronicle, 132. 

[12] Muhammad Nur Alkali, Kanem-Borno Under the Sayfawa, 148.

[13] Lange, A Sudanic Chronicle, 133.

[14] Lange, Diwan, 80.

[15] Palmer, Sudanese Memoirs 2, 39.

[16] Muhammad Nur Alkali, Kanem-Borno under the Sayfawa, 150. 

[17] Palmer, Bornu Sahara and Sudan, 232-233.

[18] Lange, A Sudanic Chronicle, 132.

[19] Collet Hadrien, “Royal Pilgrims from Takrur According to ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jazīrī (12th–16th Century),” 193.

Searching for Njimi

Part of Gustav Nachtigal's map of Kanem featuring Mao, Gujer, Mondo and other settlements.

Archaeologists researching in Kanem in the last few years have become increasingly certain that Tié, in central Kanem, was the probable site of the Sayfawa royal capital. Carlos Magnavita, Tchago Bouimon, and other researchers studying sites with fired-brick ruins and debris have been able to confirm, through radiocarbon dating, the development of brick construction by the 11th century. The Tié site, which features the most imposing brick enclosure, appears to have been the center of a cluster of multiple smaller sites featuring smaller fired-brick structures. The 11th century and 12th century dates strongly correlate with the known chronology for Kanem's Sayfawa dynasty's Islamization. Nonetheless, the rather small size of Tié and other nearby sites suggest Njimi, the Islamic capital of the Sayfawa, was not a bustling birni-styled capital. Instead of something akin to Birni Gazargamo in Borno, Njimi may have been a rather small royal settlement with imposing fired-brick structures. In order to explore the nature of urbanism in Kanem under the Sayfawa, focusing on the 11th-14th centuries, we shall first examine written sources and traditions on the first towns in Kanem. Then, we shall revisit the works of Magnavita and other specialists to see where the accounts agree and possible conclusions about cities and towns in Kanem.

The earliest unambiguous sources on Kanem date to the 9th century. A precious external Arabic source, written by al-Ya'qubi in the late 9th century, includes a brief description of Kanem. In his brief account, Kanem was said to lack towns and its people resided in reed huts (Levtzion & Hopkins 21). By the late 10th century, al-Muhallabi, whose account on Kanem was later quoted by Yaqut, wrote that Kanem had 2 towns: Manan and Tarazki. Kanem's people still lived in houses of reed huts (including the king's palace) and the population relied on livestock, sorghum, camels, and the "worship" of their king (21). This brief description of Kanem suggests that by about 1 century after the writing of al-Ya'qubi, its people were increasingly sedentary but still unfamiliar with fired-brick architecture. After al-Muhallabi, the next detailed description of Kanem was written by al-Idrisi. One would like to consider al-Bakri, who wrote in the second half of the 11th century, but his description of Kanem repeated the story of Banu Ummaya fleeing to Kanem and preserving Arab customs. Consequently, one must move on to al-Idrisi. Like al-Bakri, al-Idrisi did not see Kanem. However, his is the earliest written account to name the capital of the Islamic Sayfawa, Njimi. 

Bivar and Shinnie's plan of the Tié site in "Old Kanuri Capitals."

According to al-Idrisi, Kanem included the towns of Anjimi, Manan, and a "town" of Zaghawa. Manan was still seen as a small town whose residents bred camels and goats. Anjimi, or Njimi, was said to be 8 days' travel away from Manan, likely to the southeast. Njimi, the capital, was described by al-Idrisi as a very small town, with few inhabitants of very humble origins. It is possible al-Idrisi is unreliable here, since the archaeological evidence of fired-brick sites suggests that Njimi was a center inhabited by the Sayfawa maiwa and court-affiliated elites (not to mention their subordinates, families, and slaves). Intriguingly, the only "town" with any noticeable degree of commerce and manufacturing was Zaghawa, believed by al-Idrisi to have been a well-populated center 6 days from Anjimi and 8 stages from Manan. Since "Zaghawa" may have been a region rather than a real town or city, it is possible that an area likely east of Njimi may have attracted people from different communities for trade. Ultimately, al-Idrisi's account is problematic and may have garbled sources from different time periods. For instance, he believed that Manan was the town where the ruler and governor lived, relying on soldiers who were naked archers (114). Since Njimi was the capital of the Sayfawa by the 12th century, one wonders if al-Idrisi relied on information from outdated sources from the period when Kanem's capital was indeed located at Manan. This may also explain why al-Idrisi emphasized that Manan and Njimi were very small towns, since past sources like al-Ya'qubi thought Kanem lacked any towns and al-Muhallabi only wrote of 2. 

After al-Idrisi, the most detailed description of Kanem was penned by Ibn Sa'id. Relying heavily on the works of Ibn Fatima, who traveled to Kanem in the 13th century during the reign of Dunama Dibalemi, Ibn Sa'id provides one of the best sources for the apogee of medieval Kanem. Like past generations of geographers, he wrote of Manan and Njimi. Some details in his account demonstrate a knowledge of Lake Chad (called Lake Kuri) and a town of Jaja, a center named Badi, and even a pleasure ground of the mai on the west bank of the Bahr el-Ghazal. According to Ibn Sa'id, Manan was located at longitude 51 degrees and latitude 13 degrees, which is further south than al-Muhallabi's coordinates. Njimi, to its southeast, was at longitude 53 degrees and latitude 9 degrees. Manan was the town of the pagan ancestors of the Muslim rulers of Kanem (188). The town of Ni, on a level with Njimi, was where the Sayfawa king had a garden and pleasure-ground and boats, about 40 miles from Njimi (188). If one converts the Arabic mile to km, this suggests a distance of about 70 km between Ni on the Bahr el-Ghazal and Njimi, in Zeltner's estimation (Zeltner 60). Like al-Idrisi, Ibn Sa'id also reported a Zaghawa "town" but specifying its location at longitude 54 degrees and latitude 11 degrees 30 minutes. This Zaghawa "town" was presumably in the Zaghawa region east of Manan. Altogether, Ibn Sa'id's account tells us that Njimi was southeast of Manan, which was south of Kawar, with the Zaghawa "town" somewhere to the east of Kanem. A probably false tradition repeated from Ibn Fatima was the movement of Kanem's capital away from the "Nile" due to the harmful effects of mosquitoes on horses and humans (Levtzion & Hopkins 188). If, however, the story is true, then the rulers of Kanem may have once maintained a court closer to the Bahr el-Ghazal before moving to Njimi. Evidence against this notion can be found in earlier accounts describing Kanem's capital as Manan, which, if northwest of Njimi, would have been located much farther away from the Bahr el-Ghazal.

Magnavita's map of fired-brick sites in Kanem 

Next in the medieval Arabic sources on Njimi is al-Umari. Besides repeating that Kanem's capital was Njimi, he also wrote about Kanem's use of rice, wheat, sorghum, figs, lemons, grapes, aubergines and dates. He also wrote about the ruler of Kanem's ritual seclusion, only appearing before the public at 2 festivals. The main form of currency in Kanem was the dandi, measurements of cloth produced in Kanem and used to set the price for goods (260). This brief account tells us that local weaving in Kanem must have been of a sufficient scale to produce extra cloth for currency or a unit of exchange. It also implies that Kanem's agricultural potential may not have been as negatively impacted by increasing aridity yet. Furthermore, the idea of a notable level of cloth production in Borno in the 14th century is attested to by Ibn Battuta, who wrote of Borno's exports as slaves and a cloth dyed with saffron (302). Although he was describing Borno, this was at a time before the Sayfawa dynasty permanently relocated to Borno as the home province. One can presume that agricultural products, cloth, captives, and probably fish, salts, and livestock were items exchanged at markets in Kanem and Borno during the 1300s, with Njimi possibly being one center.

The last Arabic sources on Njimi from the medieval era are less useful, but occasionally provide glimpses of the city. For al-Qalqashandi, Borno's capital was at Kaka and another town was Kutniski, one day east of Kaka. Supposedly, Kaka was only 40 miles from Njimi, presumably somewhere to the west if it was the center of the Sayfawa rulers of Borno. Again, if 40 Arabic miles was equivalent to around 70 km, then the Sayfawa maiwa must have been relatively close to Njimi despite losing control of the area to the Bulala. Of course, it is also possible al-Qalqashandi confused Kaka with Ni, said to have been 40 miles from Njimi in the 13th century. Last but certainly not least, al-Maqrizi also wrote about Kanem. For al-Maqrizi, Kanem's capital was still Njimi, which he rendered as Aljama. Indeed, it was from Aljama that Kanem launched a raid against the Mabna in 1252/3 (354). Although by the 15th century, Kanem was under the suzerainty of the Bulala sultans, al-Maqrizi intriguingly reported information from earlier centuries when the Sayfawa were still based there. Besides al-Maqrizi and the aforementioned sources, other medieval Arabic sources contain only passing references to Kanem or Njimi. For instance, al-Tijani wrote of Kanem's intervention in the land of Waddan, crushing the revolt of a son of Qaraqush. This rebel's head was later brought to Kanem and paraded around in 1258, presumably in Njimi (215). 

Comparison of sketch plans of Tié by Bivar & Shinnie and Gonzemai in Magnavita's "Early Kanem-Borno fired brick élite locations in Kanem, Chad: archaeological and historical implications."

After the external Arabic sources from the medieval period, one must consider internal sources from Kanem-Borno and oral traditions. One of the earliest, the "Mahram of the N'Galma Duku" published in H.R. Palmer's Bornu Sahara and Sudan, included mention of a plastered mosque with a clay roof built sometime in the late 1100s or early 1200s (Palmer 19). The imam, Ahmad b. Furtu, writing about Idris Alooma's campaigns against the Bulala in the 1570s, also mentioned Njimi. In Palmer's translation, Ahmad b. Furtu described the mai praying at the tombs of the great Sayfawa sultans (Palmer SM, Vol. 1, 25). Naturally, the Diwan includes allusions to Njimi, too. However, only 5 kings were said to have died at Njimi: Bir, Abdallah b. Kaday, Idris b. Ibrahim (who may have died at Dammasak), Uthman b. Dawud, and Uthman b. Idris. Since other kings may have died elsewhere but were later buried in Njimi, we cannot limit the analysis to only these 5 rulers. Bir, who died at Njimi in c. 1296, was a son of Dunama Dibalemi (Diwan 73). Two of the rulers who died at Njimi were said to have been killed by the Bulala: Uthman b. Dawud in c.1379 and Uthman b. Idris in c. 1381 (76). This suggests that by c.1379, the Bulala were enough of a threat to attack Njimi or its environs. Intriguingly, the area of Gujer, to the northeast of Mao, was still observed to contain Kuka inhabitants who came to Kanem with the Bulala (Nachtigal 74). Were the Bulala attacking Njimi from the north?

Unfortunately, oral traditions shed little additional light on Njimi. As reported through the Diwan, Njimi was said to have been established by the Sayfawa when they left Yemen, beginning with Saif. Thus, in Palmer's translation of the Diwan, Saif died at Njimi, or Sima (Bornu Sahara and Sudan 90). Other traditions included in Palmer's collections of traditions point to different figures for the origins of Njimi. For example, Birni Njimi was said to have been built by Dunama Dibalemi in one tradition (Palmer SM, Vol. 2, 79). In another tradition, the founder of Njimi was Mai Brema Melemi (100). This figure, perhaps meant to be the father of Dugu, Ibrahim, suggests that the oral traditions in Gazargamo became garbled on the subject of early Kanem capitals. Indeed, traditions collected by Landeroin for the Tilho Mission are similarly vague. "Birni Njime" was the Sayfawa capital, and supposedly about 40 km east of Mao (Landeroin 354). But, the very use of the word birni may be anachronistic if the word is not of Kanuri or Kanembu origin. As for Nachtigal, who traveled in Borno and Kanem during the late 1800s, Njimi was located somewhere between Mao and Gujer, but closer to the latter. Nachtigal's reasoning here is not clear, and may reflect observations on demographic shifts in Kanem in the centuries after the 14th century. For instance, Nachtigal believed that Mao and Gala were the centers of the most thickly populated parts of Kanem when it was the main province of the Sayfawa (Nachtigal 74). However, this might have be a reflection of the period when Mao was the capital of the alifas of Kanem, tributaries to the Sayfawa in Borno. Nonetheless, Dierk Lange seemingly concurred with Nachtigal, preferring to locate Njimi to the northwest of Tié (A Sudanic Chronicle 159).

Satellite and aerial images of Tié site in Magnavita.

Traditions recorded more recently raise further questions. Bivar and Shinnie, researching old Kanuri capitals, noted an axis of brick ruins at sites from Siguei in the northeast to Mussoro in the southeast. They also knew of Tié, about 30 miles away from Mao (Shinnie & Bivar 7). They found at Tié scattered brick debris at the crest of a large dune and about 2 miles from sources of water. The site was only 243 meters by 218 meters (8). They failed to identify any traces of a wall, either. But, according to Mao tradition, Tié ruins were said to have been the work of the Bulala (9). Since the Bulala may have occupied the site of Njimi after defeating the Sayfawa, it is not too surprising that Mao oral traditions remember the site as a Bulala one. Zeltner, on the other hand, wrote about Njimi, or Cimi, as occupying the area to the northwest of Ciye Isiri. There brick debris and vestiges of a royal palace were observable (Zeltner 147). Bivar and Shinnie, unlike Zeltner, thought the larger brick structure was a mosque, not a palace. By the time Gonzemai examined the site for an MA thesis in the early 2000s, more vestiges of the fired-brick ruins were visible and he identified the structure as a palace. Moreover, local informants indicated that the area of Tié was locally called Cimi-Ye or Njimi-ye in the past (Magnavita, Dangbet & Bouimon). This local name and the discovery of a site with fired-brick ruins support the identification of the area as Njimi, right?

Archaeologists, as of 2022, have now uncovered 90 fired-brick sites, most in the area east of Mao in the provinces of Kanem and Bahr el-Ghazal (Magnavita, Lindauer, Adjibane 40). 13 of these sites cluster around Tié and were built before the Sayfawa abandoned the region (12). According to their dating, the earliest fired-brick buildings in Kanem appeared by the 1000s (21). At the Tié site, a fired-brick enclosure and 2 secondary enclosures cover 3.2 hectares. Walls and passageways demonstrate that Tié included secluded spaces and courtyards (Magnavita & Bouimon). Furthermore, analysis of glass beads from Tié point to long-distance exchange. Most beads were of a high alumina soda glass perhaps made in the greater Indian Ocean area (Magnavita et al 113). Chemical analysis strongly suggests that the sources for glass beads at medieval Kanem's capital was supplied by an unknown trans-Sudanic route that led to the Middle Nile, ultimately coming to Africa from the Red Sea or Indian Ocean coasts (114). These studies suggest Njimi was indeed participating in long-distance exchange networks, and not solely through trans-Saharan trade with North Africa. Perhaps the "town" of Zaghawa and Tajuwa were the areas through which beads from the Indian Ocean reached Kanem. Njimi itself, due to its small size, if the Tié site was indeed Njimi, may have been supplied by a market center further away from Njimi, perhaps located at a site to the east or north. One wonders if Njimi may have functioned as a secluded royal center akin to Gambaru in Borno, but a major market and some type of city existed further away in a site that remains unknown.

A view of the preserved outer wall, plinth and foundation of the building under Mound 1 at Tié, photo by Magnavita.

Otherwise, one must agree with Magnavita and MacEachern that Kanem lacked urbanism. Despite more than 50 fired-brick settlements in a radius of 25 km from Tié's largest central enclosure, none were more larger than 3 hectares (Magnavita & MacEachern 228-229). If correct, this means Njimi really was a tiny settlement surrounded by several other small settlements that also contained fired-brick constructions. These must have been settlements with members of the Sayfawa family or high-status individuals living in these areas who were allowed to also use fired-brick walls or enclosures. Undoubtedly, the more arid environment of Kanem inhibited the growth of large population centers like Birni Gazargamo in Borno, but one cannot help but contrast descriptions from medieval Arabic sources describing Njimi and Manan as cities. If Tié was more akin to Gambaru, a royal Sayfawa center not too far away from the capital, one cannot help but wonder if there was not at least one major trading center for market exchange elsewhere in Kanem. Otherwise, the more complex economy using cotton cloth as a unit of currency and the probable exchange of captives, textiles, salt, trona, leather, livestock, dried fish, and agricultural products would have remained on a smaller scale. In fact, references to Kanem and Kawar  in the trans-Saharan trade often emphasize the slave trade. Yet even slave raiding and slave trading would have required some degree of an organized military with access to weapons, horses, and canoes. Feeding captives before their transit across the Sahara must have also required adequate food production, just as the production of cloth and fabrics probably required full-time artisans and some degree of specialization. Similarly, the trona sites at Foli necessarily required labor to work them, and the rulers of Kanem may have also sponsored the creation of new settlements from captives forcibly relocated to different parts of Kanem. Such a notion is supported by a praise song to Hummay, a late 11th century ruler who allegedly separated slaves taken in battle and settled them in different parts of Kanem. Last but certainly not least, the creation and consolidation of a court-affiliated nobility and land grants to religious specialists (Islamic clerics) required adequate populations of slaves, farmers, and free the elites from full-time farming. 

Since a southward orientation is suggested by the possible relocation of Manan between the late 10th century and the 13th century, the rulers of Kanem may have sought to center their settlements near sources of water and land to the south, especially the fertile land of Borno. If Jaja, which was east of Badi and southwest of Njimi was located in Borno, this fertile area already had towns and must have attracted people from Kanem. This southward migration likely varied in pace and severity with the fluctuations in the levels of Lake Chad, perhaps making parts of Kanem and the Bahr el-Ghazal capable of supporting larger populations than today. Indeed, Kanem by the days of Nachtigal's travels was estimated to only have about 70,000 inhabitants (Nachtigal 91). By that period, much of Kanem's territory was only occupied by nomadic pastoralists, so it is possible that in wetter periods during the medieval era, Kanem's population was significantly higher. If so, larger urban centers characterized by the reed, mud, and thatch structures may have developed, particularly along major routes for trade and exchange. Archaeologists undertaking research in Kanem should also search the area of Gala, Mao, and Gujer for possible sites of larger settlements that attracted trade. Perhaps closer to Manan to Njimi's northwest, and a site further east for trade connecting to eastward routes of exchange with what is now Waday and Darfur should be considered. Whilst this process happened, migration to the southwest for the more fertile lands of Borno may have begun to drain part of Kanem's population by the 1200s.

In conclusion, reviewing the various sources on the Sayfawa dynasty's medieval capital has raised a number of questions. If Tié truly was the site of Njimi, does this mean Kanem lacked an urban tradition until the Sayfawa relocated to Borno? And how does that match the medieval Arabic sources describing cities or towns in Kanem? If Tié as a royal center was more akin to the later Gambaru of Borno, does that mean there could be sites in Kanem that feature urban traits? And did they feature a dendal and similar domestic architecture to later Kanuri architecture? When did large, walled political capitals emerge in Kanem? We have argued that Kanem likely had centers like that for the exchange of goods, provisioning traders, travelers, slaves, and pilgrims, and for a small segment of the population engaged in non-subsistence activities during the dry-season or on a more permanent basis due to their official titles, artisanal labor, or trading activities. Since a large number of sites with fired-brick ruins have been located around Tié and in the area east of Mao, one can agree with Magnavita et al on Tié being a royal center, but was it the economic capital and demographic center with urban features identified in contemporaneous Arabic sources?

Bibliography

Bivar, A. D. H., and P. L. Shinnie. “Old Kanuri Capitals.” The Journal of African History 3, no. 1 (1962): 1–10. http://www.jstor.org/stable/179796.

Cohen, Ronald. The Kanuri of Bornu. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1967.

Hopkins, J. F. P., and Nehemia Levtzion (editors). Corpus of Early Arabic Sources for West African History. Princeton, NJ: Markus Wiener Publishers, 2000.

Lange, Dierk.  A Sudanic Chronicle: The Borno Expeditions of Idrīs Alauma (1564-1576) According to the Account of Aḥmad B. Furṭū : Arabic Text, English Translation, Commentary and Geographical Gazetteer. Stuttgart: F. Steiner, 1987.

__________. Le Dīwān Des Sultans Du (Kānem-)Bornū: Chronologie Et Histoire D'un Royaume Africain (de La Fin Du Xe Siècle Jusqu'à 1808). Wiesbaden: F. Steiner, 1977.

Lovejoy, Paul E. Salt of the Desert Sun: A History of Salt Production and Trade in the Central Sudan. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1986.

Magnavita, C. (2021). Early Kanem-Borno fired brick élite locations in Kanem, Chad: archaeological and historical implications. Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa, 56(2), 153–192. https://doi.org/10.1080/0067270X.2020.1868752

Carlos Magnavita and Tchago Bouimon, “Archaeological research at Tié (Kanem, Chad): excavations on Mound 1”, Afrique : Archéologie & Arts [Online], 16 | 2020, Online since 03 December 2020, connection on 01 November 2025. URL: http://journals.openedition.org/aaa/2863; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/aaa.2863

Carlos Magnavita, Zakinet Dangbet and Tchago Bouimon, “The Lake Chad region as a crossroads: an archaeological and oral historical research project on early Kanem-Borno and its intra-African connections”, Afrique : Archéologie & Arts [Online], 15 | 2019, Online since 15 December 2019, connection on 31 October 2025. URL: http://journals.openedition.org/aaa/2654; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4000/aaa.2654

Magnavita, C., Lindauer, S. & Adjbane, A.C. New Luminescence and Radiocarbon Dates for Kanem-Borno Fired-Brick Elite Sites in Kanem, Chad: Bayesian Chronological Modelling of Settlement Construction. Afr Archaeol Rev 42, 1–23 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10437-025-09611-1

Magnavita, C. & MacEachern, S. (2022). Communities, urbanism and state building in the Lake Chad region. In: J. C. M. García (Ed.), From house societies to states. Early political organization from Antiquity to the Middle Ages (pp. 218–239). Oxbow Books.

Magnavita, S., MacDonald, B. L., Magnavita, C., & Oga, A. (2024). LA-ICP-MS analysis of glass beads from Tié (12th–14th centuries), Kanem, Chad: Evidence of trans-Sudanic exchanges. Archaeometry, 66(1), 100–118. https://doi.org/10.1111/arcm.12898

Nachtigal, Gustav, Allan G. B. Fisher, and Humphrey J (trans.). Fisher. Sahara and Sudan, Vol. 3. Berkeley and; Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1971.

Palmer, H.R. Sudanese Memoirs: Being Mainly Translations of a Number of Arabic Manuscripts Relating to the Central and Western Sudan. 1st ed., new impression. London: Cass, 1967.

___________. The Bornu Sahara and Sudan. London: J. Murray, 1936.

Tilho, Jean (editor). Documents Scientifiques De La Mission Tilho. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1910.

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The Ibo in Haiti

The Igbo peoples have left a cultural legacy in Haiti that survives to this day. The Ibo nanchon in Haitian Vodou, for instance, attests to this Igbo legacy. Whilst perusing runaway advertisements, we focused on Ibo captives in Saint Domingue to look for anything distinctive. As we expected, since the French slave traders were usually not bringing many captives from the Bight of Biafra to Saint Domingue, many Igbo slaves in the colony appear to have been smuggled through other colonies. The above case of Marie, for example, illustrates the example of an English-speaking Igbo in Aquin. One wonders if she was brought to Saint Domingue from Jamaica or another British colony in the Antilles. The "Ibos" of Saint Domingue were also briefly described by Descourtilz and a few other writers on the colony's Africans, often noting their propensity for suicide. 

Another trend we noticed with Igbo captives is a certain degree of ambiguity about their precise "national" origin. Some were listed as Bibi, presumably for the Ibibio peoples of southern Nigeria. Francois, the man above, could have been either one or perhaps from another group in southeastern Nigeria. 

Yet again, another runaway slave was seen as either Bibi (Ibibio) or Ibo. 

Some runaway Igbos from other colonies were identified precisely. For example, Margueritte came to the colony from Mississippi. 

Something we have written about elsewhere is the consistent presence of Ibos in colonial Bainet, in the Sud-Est of Haiti. Three newly arrived Ibos absconded from the Chaumeil habitation in Bainet.

Another Ibo, Marie, was identified as an Anglophone person.

Once again, another Ibo, Etienne, spoke English. This one was "owned" by a free black woman.

As for Saint-Emilion, a runaway described above, he was either Ibo or Chauma. We could not identify Chauma at all, but it indicates once again how ambiguous and problematic the "national" labels assigned to Africans in Saint Domingue truly were.

Alexandre, another Ibo maroon, spoke English.

Jean, an Ibo runaway, similarly spoke English.

We found the above case interesting for its description of an Ibo runaway who spoke Nago (Yoruba). Assuming the Ibo identification is accurate, one wonders if he learned "Nago" in West Africa. 

Islam and Hajj in the Early Modern Sahel

 

Yet another fascinating example of Rémi Dewière's work on Borno and the Sahel's larger connections to the Early Modern world. We particularly appreciate his placing of the Sahel within a broader world with the Islamicate world.

Congos in Saint Domingue

Since captives from West Central Africa comprised a very large proportion of Africans trafficked to French Saint Domingue, we recently read through every runaway advertisement mentioning "Congos" in the colony. Some of the ads actually reveal intriguing details about the background of so-called "Congo" Africans. For instance, Jean-Pierre, named above, knew how to read and write. Was he from a literate background in Kongo or Soyo, perhaps first learning to read and write in Portuguese? The short description of him seems to imply he was literate in French.

Sometimes, "Congo" slaves were given additional descriptors. The above case, a Congo "Monbala" named Choisi, is an example. Monbala may be a reference to the Mbala people of Congo who are to the east of modern-day Kinshasa.

The Congo-Mouyaca may have been the Yaka peoples. This suggests that slaveholders in Saint Domingue did have some kind of basic understanding of the ethnic heterogeneity of so-called "Congos" on the plantations. 

Some of the "Congos" listed appear to have retained their African names. Angoulou, above, is an example of this. Someone familiar with names and the languages of Central Africa might be able to identify their origins more precisely. 

For instance, the "Congo" named Pierrot was "dit Cimba." Cimba definitely sounds like an African name, probably from a Bantu language like KiKongo. 

One of the "Congo" runaways was said to be a "Congo Binda." We wonder if Binda is actually the Mpinda of Angola. Their language is said to be closer to Kimbundu.

Lucanda was another "Congo" maroon with what appears to be an African name. Lukanda is used as a place name in Congo (DRC) and appears to be used as a name, too.

Another type of "Congo" were the "Congo-bord-la-mer." Like Crispin, we assume they were Kongolese from the area near the Atlantic coast. 

Sometimes, runaway "Congo" were given more than one additional descriptor. In the case of Jolicoeur, he was a "Congo Sondi bord de la mer". If so, he was likely from a coastal area or Kongo and of the Sundi sub-group. 

Another "Congo" named Louis was apparently "owned" by Baudry Deslozieres, a colon whose notes based on conversations with Kikongo-speakers in Saint Domingue was published in the early 19th century. Was Louis one of the unwilling captives who provided information to Baudry Deslozieres?

As for the "Congo Mondivi" group, we are unsure of their origin. The above case,a Joseph around 30 years of age, is ambiguous. There is a place called Mavivi in eastern Congo (DRC), but this seems far too unlikely to have been a source of "Congo" captives. We wonder if the "Mondivi" were the Vili people of Loango.

The "Congo-Mayombe" were one of the more frequently named Kongo sub-groups in the runaway ads. They are undoubtedly linked to the Mayombe.

A useful reminder of how ambiguous these "national" labels were is the case of Vincent. Though he was considered a "Congo" by his "owner" in Saint Domingue, he called himself Senegalese. Given the huge distance and cultural differences between people from the Senegambia and West Central Africa, one wonders if Vincent was trying to take advantage of a certain esteem for "Senegal" captives.

Again, someone with familiarity with Central African languages might have some luck determining possible ethnic origins for "Congo" captives. One of the above 3 maroons, Gazambi, appears to have an African name.

Another pattern we noticed is the frequency with which the name Pedro could be found among "Congo" Africans. We wonder if this is due to some Kongo peoples using Portuguese names in Africa or if it was simply another instance of slaveholders giving their chattel exotic or foreign names.

The "Congo-Monteque" nation most probably refers to the Teke peoples and/or the Batéké Plateau. 

Some "Congo" captives were remarkably mobile. In the above case of Jupiter, we see an example of a slave "owned" by a resident of Kingston, Jamaica yet he escaped to Saint Domingue.

Sometimes "Mayombe" was written in different ways. Thus, we can see the example of so-called "Congo Mayambe" captives in the colony.

In another case of a "Congo" bearing an African name, we can see the case of Minerve, or Pinba. Pinba sounds like the Haitian Creole word Penba, which is used for a "Sly, malicious woman."

Two additional "Congo" captives with what may be African names appear above. Kicony and Bamby are difficult to trace, although kikoni a word in the Taabwa language. 

The "franc Congo" in Saint Domingue likely came from a term used by French slave traders. According to Baudry Deslozieres, the term referred to captives purchased from the "canton of Ambriz." They were considered excellent slaves by the French.

As for the "Missi-Congo" nation, this is presumably an allusion to the Mwisi-Kongo, or MwisiKongo, another term for the Kongolese.

We suspect Mabilla, a "Congo" maroon "due bord de la mer," was from a coastal region.

Macaya is a name of Central African origin that can be found among people of "Congo" origin. It can still be found in the Congo.

As for the "Souty" nation, we assume it is perhaps a reference to the Nsundi or Sundi.

The above "Congo" named Mabiala appears to be another case of a "Congo" with an African name.

Similarly, Bajaca may be an African name for the above "Congo" maroon. 

Some "Congo" slaves spoke other Creole languages of the Caribbean. The above case of Tam illustrates this, since he understood Papiamento.

Yet another "Congo" with an African name can be seen in the case of Matta, or Magloire.

The "Mazelingua" nation could be from Zambia. In Zambia, the name Maselinga exists. 

Recognition of similarities or overlap between the "Congo" and "Mondongue" nations can be see in the case of a woman called Diane. In her own country, she was called Ougan-daga, which bears a resemblace to the surname Ogandaga in Gabon.

As for the "Mazonga-Congo" nation, Narcisse may have hailed from what is now the Pala-Masonga region of Kasai Oriental. Was he of Luba origin?

Another ambiguous "Congo" group were the Masoula. Apparently, 12 of them, labelled Congo in the colony but calling themselves Masoula, ran away. 

Another group we suspect to be of Central African origin, Massangui, were in Saint Domingue. The use of the name for a place can be found in both Congo and Cameroon.