The sultan of Sokoto is the hereditary leader of the

Sokoto Caliphate The Sokoto Caliphate (, literally: Caliphate in the Lands of Sudan), also known as the Sultanate of Sokoto, was a Sunni Islam, Sunni Muslim caliphate in West Africa. It was founded by Usman dan Fodio in 1804 during the Fula jihads, Fulani jihads ...

, a

Sunni Muslim Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Musli ...

community in West Africa. The position may also be referred to as the 'Sokoto Caliph' or the "Commander of the Faithful" ('' Amir-ul-Momineen'' in Arabic or '' Lamido Julbe'' in Fulani). The current holder of this title, since 2006, is

Sa'adu Abubakar Muhammadu Sa'ad Abubakar () (born 24 August 1956) is the 20th List of sultans of Sokoto, Sultan of Sokoto. As Sultan of Sokoto, he is considered the spiritual leader of Islam in Nigeria, Nigeria's Muslims.Qadiriyya The Qadiriyya () or the Qadiri order () is a Sunni Sufi order (''Tariqa'') founded by Abdul Qadir Gilani (1077–1166, also transliterated ''Jilani''), who was a Hanbali scholar from Gilan, Iran. The order, with its many sub-orders, is widesp ...

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

order, historically the most important Muslim position in Nigeria and senior to the

Emir of Kano The Kano Emirate was a Muslim state in northern Nigeria formed in 1805 during the Fulani jihad when the Muslim Hausa-led Sultanate of Kano was deposed and replaced by a new emirate which became a vassal state of the Sokoto Caliphate. During an ...

, the leader of the

Tijaniyya The Tijjani order () is a Sufi order of Sunni Islam named after Ahmad al-Tijani. It originated in Algeria but now more widespread in Maghreb, West Africa, particularly in Senegal, Gambia, Mauritania, Mali, Guinea, Niger, Chad, Ghana, Nort ...

Sufi order. The post has become increasingly ceremonial since British rule defeated the caliphate and replaced it with the

Sokoto Sultanate Council The Sultanate of Sokoto is a traditional state in Northern Nigeria with headquarters in the city of Sokoto, capital of the modern Sokoto State. Preceded by the Sokoto Caliphate, the council was formed in 1903 after the British pacification of t ...

in 1903, but the sultan – considered a spiritual leader in the Muslim community in

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

– can still carry much weight with

Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people are an ethnic group in Sahara, Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. Inhabiting many countries, they live mainly in West Africa and northern parts of Central Africa, South Sudan, Darfur, ...

and

Hausa people The Hausa (Endonym, autonyms for singular: Bahaushe (male, m), Bahaushiya (female, f); plural: Hausawa and general: Hausa; exonyms: Ausa; Ajami script, Ajami: ) are a native ethnic group in West Africa. They speak the Hausa language, which is the ...

from northern Nigeria.

Usman dan Fodio Shehu Usman dan Fodio (; full name; 15 December 1754 – 20 April 1817). (Uthman ibn Muhammad ibn Uthman ibn Saalih ibn Haarun ibn Muhammad Ghurdu ibn Muhammad Jubba ibn Muhammad Sambo ibn Maysiran ibn Ayyub ibn Buba Baba ibn Musa Jokolli ibn ...

, the founder of the dynasty of

Sokoto State Sokoto ( Hausa: ; Fula: , ''Leydi Sokoto'') is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the extreme northwest of the country. It is bounded by Republic of the Niger to the north and west for 363 km (226 miles), and the states of Zamf ...

and of the Fulani Empire (consisting of the Fulbe Jihad states of which Sokoto was suzerain), never used the high style of Sultan but was simply titled ''Amir al-Mu´minin'' . The first to assume the title of Sultan was Fodio's son

Muhammed Bello Muhammadu Bello (; ; 3 November 1781 – 25 October 1837) was the second Caliph of Sokoto and reigned from 1817 until 1837. He was also an active writer of history, poetry, and Islamic studies. He was the son and primary aide to Usman dan Fodio ...

, who ruled from 1817 to 1837. Since the creation of the title, there have been nineteen Sultans of Sokoto, all men from the

Torodbe The Torodbe; singular Torodo (also called Turudiyya, Banu Toro, Takrur, Toronkawa) were Muslim Toucouleur people, Toucouleur clerics and theocratic monarchs who preached and reigned in Futa Toro, a region located in the north of present-day Senega ...

scholar caste who are descended from Usman dan Fodio.

Siddiq Abubakar III Sir Siddiq Abubakar III, (15 March 1903 – 1 November 1988) was a Nigerian Muslim leader (Sarkin Musulmi). He was the 17th Sultan of Sokoto between 17 June 1938 and 1 November 1988, making him the longest-reigning Sultan. Life and career ...

was the longest serving Sultan, holding the position for 50 years from 1938 to 1988. The shortest reign was that of Muhammadu Attahiru I, who held the position for five months in 1902–03. The 17th sultan, Ibrahim Dasuki, was forcefully deposed in 1996 by the

Sani Abacha Sani Abacha (; (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) was a Nigerian military dictator and statesman who ruled Nigeria with an iron fist as military head of state from 1993 following a palace coup d'état until his death in 1998. Abacha's seiz ...

military government of Nigeria. Prior to the beginning of the Fulani Jihad of 1804, the ethnic category Fulani was not important for the Torodbe and their literature reveals the ambivalence they had defining Torodbe-Fulani relationships. They adopted the language of the Fulani and much ethos while maintaining a separate, non-ethnic identity. The Torodbe clan at first recruited members from all levels of Sūdānī society, particularly the poorer people.

List of sultans

As mentioned above, the sultans were also styled ''Amir al-Mu´minin'' and ''Sarkin Musulmi'' ("King of the Muslims"), basically the autochthonous form of the former, which is the Arabic style of

caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

s and other independent sovereign Muslim rulers that claim legitimacy from a community of Muslims); Mai, occurring in various sultans' surnames, is another autochthonous title.Sultan of Sokoto: Sarkin Musulumi or Sarkin Fulani?, By Majeed Dahiru
7 December 2017 The table below shows the historical list of the sultan of Sokoto, beginning from 1817.

Genealogical tree of the sultans of Sokoto

Gallery

References

Sources and references

*Falola, Toyin, (2009) ''Historical Dictionary of Nigeria'' Scarecrow Press: Lanham, Maryland *Burdon, J. A. (1907) "Sokoto History: Tables of Dates and Genealogy" ''Journal of the Royal African Society'' Volume 6, #24.

List of sultans

Genealogical tree of the sultans of Sokoto

Gallery

References

Sources and references

See also