Islam is a major religion in Nigeria with a population percentage of 53.5% of the country’s population (2018 estimate) and is predominantly in the northern half of Nigeria with a significant minority in the south. Northern Nigeria is governed under Sharia law.
Islam came to Nigeria through two main geographical routes: North Africa and the Senegalese Basin. The religion was introduced during the 11th century, primarily through trade, with merchants from North Africa and the Senegalese basin playing a significant role in its spread.
In Northern Nigeria, Islam was first documented in Central Sudan by medieval Islamic historians and geographers such as Al-Bakri. The religion was brought by merchants and clerics, and it gradually spread throughout the region. By the 16th century, Islam had moved into the countryside and towards the Middle Belt.
The Sokoto Caliphate, founded by Fulani Islamic scholar Usman dan Fodio during the Fula jihads in the 19th century, became one of the largest empires in Africa, stretching from modern-day Burkina Faso to Cameroon and including most of northern Nigeria and southern Niger.
In Southwestern Nigeria, Islam also came through the Mali Empire during the 14th century. The earliest introduction of the religion to that region was referred to as ‘Esin Imale’, which folk etymology states comes from the word ‘Mali’. Large-scale conversion to Islam happened in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Yorubas came in contact with Islam around the 14th century during the reign of Mansa Kankan Musa of the Mali Empire. Progressively, Islam came to Yoruba land, and Muslims started building Mosques in various towns like Iwo, Iṣẹyin, Lagos, Ṣaki, and Oṣogbo.
The spread of Islam in Nigeria was a peaceful process, mediated by Muslim clerics and traders, until the Fulani jihad of 1804. The subsequent defeat of the jihadists at the hands of the British did not stop the spread of Islam. The British used the administrative structures of Islam in implementing their policy of indirect rule and recognized Islam as the State religion wherever Muslims were in power. After independence, a new impetus to the spread of Islam was given by Ahmadu Bello, the premier of the Northern Region.
In summary, Islam came to Nigeria through trade and the influence of merchants and clerics from North Africa and the Senegalese Basin. It was first documented in Central Sudan during the 11th century and gradually spread throughout Northern Nigeria, with the Sokoto Caliphate becoming one of the largest empires in Africa.
In Southwestern Nigeria, Islam came through the Mali Empire during the 14th century, with large-scale conversion happening in the 18th and 19th centuries. The British recognition of Islam as the State religion and the influence of regional leaders like Ahmadu Bello further contributed to the spread of Islam in Nigeria.
