Kanem in Transition: Conversion to Islam

J.C. Zeltner's map of Kanem in the 1570s (Pages d'histoire du Kanem: pays tchadien). 

Whilst perusing notes on the works of Palmer, Bobboyi, Lange, Patterson, Ahmad b. Furtu, Nachtigal and old mahram documents, the ascent of the Sayfawa dynasty under Hummay (r.1075-1086) attracted our attention. Although Lange has argued that the rise of Hummay as mai of Kanem marked a change in dynasties and not a conversion to Islam, we have argued for dynastic continuity based on oral traditions, medieval Arabic external sources, and local (Borno) traditions and texts. Putting aside the possibility of a dynastic change from the Banu Duku to the Banu Hummay, if we examine the mahram attributed to Hummay's reign, a praise song to Hummay, and traditions recorded in subsequent mahram and girgam texts, one can track the trajectory of Kanem's Islamization in the 11th century, especially through relations with Kawar.

Beginning with the mahram attributed to Hummay and translated in H.R. Palmer's Bornu Sahara and Sudan, one finds intriguing clues about the gradual conversion of the ruling elite. According to the "Mahram of Umme Jilme," which was certainly written after the time of Hummay and likely incorporated oral traditions, Islam came to Borno through Muhammad b. Mani. Muhammad b. Mani apparently lived for 120 years and during his time in Kanem, spent time reading parts of the Koran during the reigns of Bulu, Arku, Hawa, and Umme (Hummay). Since the source has incorporated oral tradition the lifespan of 120 years is perhaps an allusion to different generations of the same family. If so, the mahram likely records the gradual religious change among the rulers of Kanem from Bulu (r. 1007-1023) to 1086. Intriguingly, each successive mai of Kanem gave progressively larger amounts of camels as gifts for Muhammad b. Mani's efforts, culminating with the finest gift from Hummay (100 pieces of silver, 100 pieces of gold, 100 camels, and 100 slaves). Since the preceding kings gave smaller amounts of gifts to Muhammad b. Mani, we can assume that this is meant to indicate the full transition to orthodox Islam. Even more fascinating is the allusion to the "secret" reading with Muhammad b. Mani during the time of Hummay (Bornu Sahara and Sudan 14). Why was his reading with this prominent Islamic teacher done in secret?

Besides giving ample gifts to Muhammad b. Mani, Hummay also declared other tribes haram: Tura Tuzan, Gamayambara, Kayi Malakayi, Dihiluri, Diri Laima, and Ajama Bulumi (14). The last of them, Ajama Bulumi, brings to mind mai Bulu who reigned at the beginning of the 11th century. Another perhaps familiar name, Kayi Malakayi, may be an allusion to an influential family of Kay (Kayi) origin who were already Muslims. The Tura Tuzan (spelled Tura Tuzar on page 14) was explicitly described as a "the pillar of my kingdom" (15). Consequently, the mahram emphasizes the exemptions made for the family of Tura Tuzar (or his clan?) and Muhammad b. Mani for their services to Hummay. Consequently, their goods were haram, and they were exempted from serving the men of the king on their lands and paying diya and tribute. While it is ambiguous, the implication here is that the Tura Tuzan and the aforementioned tribes or families also played a role in the Islamization of Kanem and serving the king. As compensation, they were freed from the tribute obligations, the quartering of troops, and from government interference. 

While this short mahram, of which 2 copies of the Arabic text have been found, raises more questions than answers, the central recipient, Muhammad b. Mani, was remembered in Kanem-Borno tradition for several centuries. Ahmad b. Furtu, the imam chronicling the campaigns of Idris Alooma (r. 1564-1596), claimed descent from the tribe of Muhammad b. Mani (A Sudanic Chronicle 34). Furthermore, Hamidu Bobboyi's research on this mahram found Muhammad Mani Aisami remembered in oral traditions as a progenitor of the Kangu Kanuri (Bobboyi 118). Further elaboration of this tradition can be seen in Palmer's third volume of Sudanese Memoirs. Muhammad Mani Aisami was said to have accompanied the Sayfawa to Njimi (31). In addition, the 4 sub-tribes of the Kangu included the Wandala, Adiribu, Zulamari, and Limanwa (32). Another tradition reported that the Kayi, Kangu, Farfari, and N'gumma lived together in the time of mai Hajj Fannami, in Mobber (29). Indeed, a lawan named Kadai of Gotofo in Mobber also claimed descent from the Kangu, who fed horses of the mai (30). Consequently, Kangu identity and tradition of descent from a major figure in the Islamization of Kanem(-Borno) do lend credence to the authenticity of the mahram.

Although these aforementioned traditions suggest deep ties between the Kangu and the Sayfawa dynasty through Muhammad b. Mani, who taught the Sayfawa (in Islamic terms), the prominent role played by the Tura Tuzan is suggestive. Beginning with mai Bulu, the Diwan demonstrates maternal ancestry connecting Kanem's rulers with Kawar. His successor, Arku, was also said to be the son of a woman from Kawar, though Tamaghar instead of Banu Kay (Diwan 67). If reliable, one can see by the late 10th century a marriage alliance between the ruler of Kanem, Ayuma, that was continued by his son and grandson. In fact, Hawa, whose description in the Diwan is also problematic, was the son of a Tamaghar woman and invested by the (Fatimid?) caliph. His mother, whose name is rendered by Lange as Ark.kay.waw.n, which bears a slight resemblance to Arku's name. One can detect even stronger evidence of ties to Kawar in the Diwan reporting Arku settling colonies of slaves in Dirku, Seguedine, and Zaylan (southern Fazzan). A mosque was even specified in the case of Seguedine (Diwan 67). If this tradition is authentic, one can detect an Islamic affinity or at least strong interest from Arku, who otherwise would likely not have sent slaves to a mosque. When one recalls the mahram of Hummay, a similar pattern can be found of gradually increasing Islamic influence from the reign of Bulu onwards.

"The Song of the Babuma to the Sultan Umme Jilme" in Palmer's Bornu Sahara and Sudan.

Arku appears to have been a pivotal figure in this era of transition. Another source, a text written in 1751, copied in the 19th century and published in Kano, was translated to English by Palmer in Bornu Sahara and Sudan. According to Palmer's translation, Arku gave the kingdom to his son due to sickness, but continued to rule nonetheless. If this tradition is reliable, then the lengthy reign of 44 years assigned to Arku might have included a sizable part of it as a co-reign with his son, Hawa. However, the source translated by Palmer skips Hawa, referring to Abd al-Djalil (r.1071-1075) as his son. Hummay, the next mai in most accounts, is remembered for ruling an implausible 50 years but not formally taking the title of king (97). Due to the problematic nature of this source, one must use it with extreme caution. Nonetheless, the tradition of Arku abdicating the throne yet still retaining much power might explain the short reigns of Hawa and Abd al-Djalil in the Diwan. This source also refers to the Tura Al Babawa and the exchange of horses during the reign of Katuri, the grandfather of Bulu by the reckoning of the Diwan. However, the Diwan assigned an implausible 250 years-long reign to Katuri, suggesting a perhaps mythical person or clan ancestor (Diwan 66). If, however, we assume the historicity of Bulu and therefore his father, Ayuma, perhaps Katuri did reign in the 900s when the trade in horses was increasing. While purely speculative and relying on problematic sources and translations, it is plausible and would indicate burgeoning cultural, economic, and religious interactions with Kawar. 

The growing scale of interactions with Kawar, and by extension, North Africa and the Middle East, undoubtedly favored the Islamization of Kanem's ruling class. Additional evidence of the significance of Tura peoples in this phase of Kanem's history can be seen in the various mahram texts exempting Tura beneficiaries. For instance, the third volume of Sudanese Memoirs contains several Tura mahrams. According to one, supposedly written in 1806, the Tura people were aware of their diverse roots in Mecca, Medina, Istanbul, Egypt, Tripolitania, Benghazi, Sennar, Zeila, Agades, and Dirku, where they spent 220 years. However, the same tradition reports their time of 350 years in Borno (Palmer 12). If the dating here is somewhat accurate, the Tura had come to Borno in the mid-15th century. That pushes back their time in Dirku to the 1200s. This is only roughly reliable, but does accord with the contemporary sources from the 13th century that placed Kanem under the suzerainty of Borno by the time of Dunama Dibalemi. Palmer, whose text here may be ambiguously reporting oral traditions rather than the mahram itself, continues to list the descent of various Tura sub-groups back to their allegedly sharifian origin. In Dirku, the chiefs were Zulama, Dirkuma, and Amarma, with the first referring to the Fazzan. Given the long-standing trade relations between Kawar and the Fazzan, it is no surprise to see this place in the genealogical chain. However, the Arwalinwa Tura descend from Khuza'a ibn Balani. The tradition attributes the origin of other Tura to various chiefs, slaves of a pagan king named Gau Dala Shaliwa, and the Beni Hasan. Interestingly, the Tura Beni Ishak were said to be the people of this pagan king, Gau Dala Shaliwa, and also to be associated with Gazbi in Kawar (al-Qasaba of medieval Kawar). Their chiefs, named Guzuma, Fugu, Arwalingwamma, and Magadam, were likely people with deep roots in Gazbi (Palmer 12). The Guzuma Tura leader at Lalori, in Borno, also collected taxes from members of his group (Bobboyi 128). Naturally, to make sense of the traditions of origin recorded here requires careful examination of the original texts of the mahrams and corroboration with other sources. But what emerges clearly from here is the sense that the Tura in Borno retained strong memories of their places of origin in Kawar, even after centuries of life in Borno. The name Khuza'a ibn Balani also bears a superficial resemblance to the Tura Tuzan mentioned in the mahram of Hummay. Is it possible that the Tura of Borno were also descendants of the Tura family viewed by Hummay as a pillar of his kingdom?

As for the other mahram Palmer attributed to the reign of Hummay in Bornu Sahara and Sudan, it is far too ambiguous. The ruling king is named as Karkarma, son of Tigiram (16). While Tigiram sounds like a possible match with the name of Hummay's mother in the Diwan (T.k.r.m.), this problematic text with insertions from the time of Idris Alooma make it quite difficult to interpret. If it truly is from the era of Hummay, then the recipients of the mahram were Muallim Bikur and the following imams of the Saiyids: Daltuta, Dafaruna, Kiywaza, and Afanuna. In exchange for their prayers, willingness to marry the daughter of the mai, and mediation of the disputes of women, they are exempt from the tribute obligations, taxation, and other burdens of regular subjects. Unlike the other mahram, this one, in the possession of the Masbarma family, includes the marriage alliance with the mai through his daughter. If authentic, the mahram demonstrates the high status of Muslim recipients and the extent to which Hummay sought to incorporate Islam in the kingdom. Essentially, the head imam of the mosque was granted exemptions from taxes, probably received a large grant of land, and was incorporated into the ruling class through marriage.

Besides mahrams and chronicles or the Diwan, variant girgams may provide additional evidence of the transition to Islam. One girgam in the possession of Kashim Biri, was translated by Palmer in Volume III of Sudanese Memoirs. According to this girgam, Hummay did not perform the pilgrimage or die in Egypt, but his father Jil did. Instead, Hummay died at "Arikwa of many mosques" (36). According to his notes, Palmer traced Arikwa to the Kawar region (40). Yet to make things even more confusing, another girgam translated by Palmer referred to the place of death of Hummay as Rukanna in Kanem. If it seems unlikely for Kanem to have any place with many mosques by c.1086, perhaps Palmer was closer to the truth with Kawar as a possible site for Hummay's death. If so, this illustrates just how central ties to Kawar were for the consolidation of Islam among the ruling dynasty of Kanem. As Kawar already had Muslim communities by the 9th century, and remained a major point on Kanem's trade routes to the north, it was inevitable that Kawar contributed to the Sayfawa dynasty's conversion. 

Consequently, Hummay was indeed raised in an Islamized environment. His 4 predecessors were increasingly tied to Islam and, if the Diwan is to be trusted, probably converted to Islam by the time of Hawa (r. 1067-1071). Hummay may have been able to emerge as the most powerful ruler to fully establish Islam in the royal court due to the brief reigns of his predecessors. If our theory of Hawa and Abd al-Djalil having short reigns due to the longevity of Arku's life, there may have been conflict over dynastic succession which threatened the full embrace of Islam among the royal court. Hummay, whose praise song by the Babuma was included in Bornu Sahara and Sudan, emerges as a strong leader with access to horses. His defeat of the Dalla of Mobber, forcing the latter to flee in a papyrus boat (on Lake Chad?) and the seizure of captives demonstrate military prowess. Undoubtedly, the praise song must be used very cautiously given its anachronisms and its genre conventions, but Hummay was clearly the mai associated with Njimi, building a mosque in the dendal and strengthening Kanem through the redistribution of captive labor. Such a ruler was capable of implementing a fuller embrace of Islam than his predecessors. Kawar also played a pivotal role in this process as the region was increasingly incorporated into the orbit of Kanem. 

Sources

Bobboyi, Hamidu. 1992. The ’Ulama of Borno : A Study of the Relations between Scholars and State under the Sayfawa, 1470-1808. Dissertation.

Ibn Furṭū, Aḥmad (Dierk Lange, trans). 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.

Lange, Dierk. 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.

Palmer, H. R. (Herbert Richmond). The Bornu Sahara and Sudan. Nigeria. J. Murray, 1936.

------. 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.

Vikør, Knut S.The Oasis of Salt: The History of Kawar, a Saharan Centre of Salt Production. Bergen, Norway: Centre for Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, 1999.