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'Portraits' of Sheikh Usman dan Fodio

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When I flicked through the papers this morning – online, if you must know – I came across an article in the Daily Trust that extolls the virtues Usman dan Fodio and his generation of northern Nigerian political leaders. It sets them up as good examples of leadership and argues that current President of Nigeria Muhammad Buhari should take inspiration from them to solve the current crisis of leadership in his government. Now, I don't want to get into political arguments here. I only mention this article – here, in a space that I said I'd use to organise my thoughts for my art historical writing – because it was illustrated by a photograph of a smiling elderly man. The caption underneath the photograph identifies the man in the picture as 'Shaikh Usumanu Danfodio'. Now, the founder of the Sokoto caliphate may not have been the only Sheikh named Usman (or Osman or Usumanu) in the family. However, the article makes it pretty clear that it is him that the author ...
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CFP: Arabic Manuscripts In West Africa Their Preservation And Publication

That came into my inbox today and might be of interest to some … CONCEPT OF A PROPOSED INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR TO BE ORGANIZED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF ARABIC STUDIES USMANU DANFODIYO, UNIVERSITY, SOKOTO, NIGERIA IN CONJUNCTION WITH INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC UNION. THEME: Arabic Manuscripts In West Africa Their Preservation And Publication. VENUE: Department Of Arabic, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto. DATE: Monday 7th June - Sunday 13th June 2010 Arabic manuscripts in West African region became an area of serious attraction after Accra Conference to African Anglophone countries when some decisions were taken which consequently resulted in establishing the University of Ibadan in 1948; with a view to exposing the life of the inhabitants of the area and resuscitating their civilization. The authorities did not hesitate in implementing the decisions reached at by exploiting the available Arabic sources which serve...
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Popular Portraits of Sheikh Ahmad Tijani - Another Little (Procrastination) Gem

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Once again I have been procrastinating for few minutes to get over a temporary writing blog and what did I find? Look, the iconography of the Sheikh Ahmad Tijani poster I have collected in Kano has been more influential in West Africa than I originally would have thought. Granted, this is again an image from Senegal, a country with a strong tradition of Sufi Islam and adaptation of imported religious prints into new media, behind glass painting, followed by the subsequent extension of this artistic practice to include a variety of other religious and profane subject matter … anyway, its related to my research so I’m excited about it! So here you go, this is what I found: I guess, the choice of this image speaks of its ubiquity and iconic power in Senegal at least – iconic, here, in the sense of the image’s potential to symbolise not only the depicted person but also the ideas and philosophy associated with his name. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find out when the boo...
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