Fulani Jihad

The Fulani Jihad refers primarily to the Usman dan Fodio Jihad, launched in present-day Nigeria from 1804 to 1810. This, however, was just the fourth in the series of Fulani Jihads. Others were those of Bondu, Futa Jalon, Futa Tooro, Massina, and Toucouleur. Usman dan Fodio, himself, was of the Fulani people, also variously known as Peul, Fulbe, Fula, and Fellata. Traditionally, the Fulani are nomads, but over the years, some of them have settled into urban and agricultural life. They are scattered in the West African countries of Senegal, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, and Cameroon.

The word jihad is from the Arabic language and literally means “struggle.” In its ordinary sense, it could mean struggle of any kind. In its Islamic use, it could refer to the following:

• 1.
  A struggle against aggressive evil: Aggressive evil in this sense means an offensive attack against the Muslim or his faith. In such a situation, violent combat is permissible for self-defense; but even in this situation, women, children, crops, and animals must not be destroyed. Such a struggle is regarded as a holy war.
• 2.
  A struggle within the mind or soul of a Muslim against sin in his or her life: Prophet Muhammad praised this type of jihad above the first.

Many factors were responsible for the Fulani Jihad. These include religious, political, and socioeconomic factors. Before the launch of the jihad, the Fulani settled among the various Hausa kingdoms. The latter were nominal Muslims and treated the Fulani as second-class citizens. The rulers of these states imposed heavy taxation on the populace, which was endured grudgingly. All these factors combined to fuel the fire of jihad when it was launched.

The immediate cause of the jihad was the treatment meted out to Usman dan Fodio, an Islamic cleric serving at the court of the ruler of Gobir. At Gobir, he taught Bawa, the ruler, and his nephew, Yunfa, who succeeded the former as ruler of Gobir. It is on record that Bawa had allowed Usman to establish an independent Muslim community. However, when Yunfa ascended to the throne, he not only undermined the authority of Usman over the independent community but also attacked it and threatened to assassinate Usman. Usman and his faithful resisted the attack at Degel, to no avail. He then fled to Gudu, where he remobilized and launched the Jihad of 1804 to 1810. The King of Gobir and the other Hausa rulers were defeated.

Following his victory, Usman established an Islamic empire with headquarters at Sokoto, which is known to this day as the Sokoto Caliphate. Usman's supporters were drawn mainly from his fellow Fulani and some disgruntled Hausas. It can therefore be concluded that apart from being a religious war, the Fulani Jihad was launched to address ethnic, political, and economic issues.