On Scholars and Scholarship in the History of Borno

Hamsatu Zanna Laminu's Scholars and Scholarship in the History of Borno, a study of the ulama in the history of Borno, is an intriguing work of scholarship. Although unable to read Arabic texts or manuscripts herself, the author had local connections and was able to supplement her sources with field work. Presumably fluent in the relevant local languages and able to access important works of local and Nigerian scholars such as Muhammad Nur Alkali, including locals willing to translate or summarize Arabic manuscripts for her, she was able to create a coherent overview of the ulama's role in Borno. Although less impressive than Bobboyi's dissertation, which likely benefitted from greater resources and research funding, Laminu was able to explicate in just under 100 pages the development of the ulama, the different roles of court-affiliated ulama and independent ulama, and, finally, explore the life of the first Shehu as an example of the ulama's important role in the annals of Kanem and Borno. 

Undoubtedly, this work was unable to go into great depth like Bobboyi. Thus, we are lacking an attempted tabaqat of scholars of Borno from c. 1500-1800. Perhaps not engaging with the works of Lange on a more accurate chronology for the Sayfawa limited her ability to contextualize different ulama in their respective eras. To be fair, Muhammad Nur Alkali, Kyari Tijani, Shaykh Abubakar al-Miskin, and the unavoidable H.R. Palmer are all drawn upon as sources, with Palmer's translated mahrams. In the case of this 1992 monograph, the lack of Dierk Lange's work among her sources on the Diwan may have been an additional impediment to establishing a clearer chronology. Yet the usual references provide enough for a schematic overview of the Islamization of Kanem and the role of Muhammad b. Mani. Later episodes in the relation of the ulama and the Sayfawa are also explored through the mahram texts as well as chronicles such as the work of Ahmad b. Furtu. Fieldwork complements this as Laminu's travels around Borno and discussions with various descendants of the Borno ulama shed additional insights into their evolution and social, cultural, and political roles in an Islamic state and society. 

Where one would have wished for more nuance or analysis is Laminu's suggestion that Islamic education was an avenue for social mobility, even open to the lowly peasant. She did not stress the point, but the extent to which that was true is suggestive. Despite their close ties to the state through the maljis and the state or elite-affiliated networks of the ulama operating sangaya who received land, tax exemptions, gifts, slaves, and livestock from the Sayfawa and other political elites, charismatic malams could develop a popular following. Their importance as educators and participation in marriages and a number of other rituals and rites required interactions with the ruled. If some of them also came from the lower classes, that could be an additional factor in understanding why the independent ulama could, as in the case of the Manga revolt of 1824, lead movements against the central government. 

Ulama and the State in Borno

In our quest here at the blog to read all the relevant Nigerian scholarship on Borno, we finally read Bobboyi's dissertation, The 'Ulama of Borno: A study of the relations between scholars and state under the Sayfawa, 1470-1808. Due to their local proximity, access to oral and written sources, and a deeper familiarity with Kanuri history and culture, we have been trying to find more of the often inaccessible studies on Kanem-Borno by African scholars. Sadly, these excellent secondary sources are not easy to find. Lamentably, some of the precious primary sources at Nigerian archives or museums are not cited enough by outsiders, so we have to rely on Kanuri and other Nigerian scholars who have read the documents and have access to excellent sources on oral history to add context and fill in the gaps in our knowledge. 

For instance, Bobboyi's dissertation, and other studies by Nigerian scholars, cite late Sayfawa-era primary sources excluded in other studies, particularly two texts by Maina Muhammad Yanbu. These sources, although late in the history of the dynasty, should be more widely known, cited, and translated to add to the list of known internal textual sources on Kanem. But besides the use of important oral and written sources, Bobboyi's study establishes a clearer idea of who and what the ulama of Kanem-Borno were during the Borno period of the dynasty, with hints of continuity from their earlier Kanem phase. We get an inkling of the reputable scholars and their disciplines, the educational curriculum, how they were fully integrated into the state apparatus of Kanem-Borno as an Islamic administration, the role of the mahrams in shaping ulama-state relations, and Borno Sufism. This last chapter was probably the weakest, but given the limitations of the sources, a step forward in contextualizing the earlier history of Sufism in Kanem-Borno. Once we have read more of the Nigerian scholarship, we shall return to these topics in light of other perspectives on the administration of Kanem-Borno and Islamic influences.