List of sultans of Sokoto

The sultan of Sokoto is the hereditary leader of the Sokoto Caliphate, a Sunni Muslim 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. ^[1] The sultan of Sokoto is the leader of the Qadiriyya Sufi order, historically the most important Muslim position in Nigeria and senior to the Emir of Kano, the leader of the Tijaniyya Sufi order.^[2] The post has become increasingly ceremonial since British rule defeated the caliphate and replaced it with the Sokoto Sultanate Council in 1903, but the sultan – considered a spiritual leader in the Muslim community in Nigeria – can still carry much weight with Fulani and Hausa people from northern Nigeria.

Sokoto Caliphate in the 19th century

Entrance to the modern Sultan's palace in Sokoto

Usman dan Fodio, the founder of the dynasty of Sokoto State 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, who ruled from 1817 to 1837. Since the creation of the title, there have been nineteen Sultans of Sokoto, all men from the Torodbe scholar caste who are descended from Usman dan Fodio. Siddiq Abubakar III 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 military government of Nigeria.^[3]

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.^[4] The Torodbe clan at first recruited members from all levels of Sūdānī society, particularly the poorer people.^[5]

List of sultans

Sultan of Sokoto
Flag of the Sokoto Caliphate
Incumbent
Abubakar IV since 2 November 2006
Details
Style	His Eminence His Highness His Excellency
First monarch	Muhammed Bello 1817–1837
Formation	1807
Residence	Gidan Bello
Appointer	Sokoto Sultanate Council with approval from the Sokoto State Government

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 caliphs and other independent sovereign Muslim rulers that claim legitimacy from a community of Muslims); Mai, occurring in various sultans' surnames, is another autochthonous title.^[6] The table below shows the historical list of the sultan of Sokoto, beginning from 1817.

No.	Image	Name	Birth and death	Reign started	Reign ended	Lineage	House
1		Muhammed Bello (محمد بلُّو)	1781 Unknown – 1837 Wurno (aged 58)	21 April 1817	25 October 1837	Son of Usman dan Fodio	House of Bello
2		Abubakar I Atiku (أبو بكر عتيكو)	1782 Unknown – 1842 Sokoto (aged 60)	26 October 1837	23 November 1842	Son of Usman dan Fodio	House of Atiku
3		Ali Babba bin Bello (علي ببَّا بن بلُّو)	1808 Sala – 1859 Sokoto (aged 51)	30 November 1842	21 October 1859	Son of Muhammed Bello	House of Bello
4		Ahmadu Atiku (أحمد عتيكو)	c. 1807 Unknown – 1866 Sokoto (aged ~59)	24 October 1859	2 November 1866	Son of Abu Bakr Atiku	House of Atiku
5		Aliyu Karami	1808 Sala – 1867 Wurno (aged 59)	6 November 1866	18 October 1867	Son of Muhammed Bello	House of Bello
6		Ahmadu Rufai	1814 – 1867 Wurno (aged 53)	21 October 1867	12 March 1873	Son of Usman dan Fodio	House of Rufai
7		Abubakar II Atiku na Raba	1812 – 1877 (aged 65)	16 March 1873	28 March 1877	Son of Muhammed Bello	House of Bello
8		Mu'azu	1816 – 1881 (aged 65)	6 April 1877	26 September 1881	Son of Muhammed Bello	House of Bello
9		Umaru bin Ali	c. 1824 Sokoto – 1891 Kaura Namoda (aged ~67)	3 October 1881	25 March 1891	Son of Ali Babba bin Bello	House of Bello
10		Abd al-Rahman bin Atiku	c. 1828 Unknown – 1902 Unknown (aged ~74)	25 March 1891	10 October 1902	Son of Abu Bakr I Atiku	House of Atiku
11		Muhammadu Attahiru I	Unknown – 1903 Mbormi	13 October 1902	15 March 1903	Son of Ahmadu Atiku	House of Atiku
12		Muhammadu Attahiru II		21 March 1903	1915	Son of Ali Babba bin Bello	House of Bello
13		Muhammadu dan Ahmadu		1915	1924	Son of Ahmadu Atiku	House of Atiku
14		Muhammadu dan Muhammadu		1924	1931	Son of Muhammadu dan Ahmadu	House of Atiku
15		Hasan dan Mu'azu Ahmadu		1931	1938	Son of Mu'azu	House of Bello
16		Siddiq Abubakar III	15 March 1903 Dange – 1 November 1988 Sokoto (aged 85)	1938	1988	Grandson of Mu'azu	House of Bello
17		Ibrahim Dasuki	23 December 1923 Dogondaji - 14 November 2016 Abuja (aged 93)	6 November 1988	20 April 1996 (deposed)	Great-great-grandson of Usman dan Fodio[7]	House of Buhari
18		Muhammadu Maccido	20 April 1926 Dange Shuni – 29 October 2006 (near Abuja) (aged 80)	20 April 1996	29 October 2006	Son of Siddiq Abubakar III	House of Bello
19		Sa'adu Abubakar	24 August 1956 Sokoto –	2 November 2006	Current	Son of Siddiq Abubakar III	House of Bello

Genealogical tree of the sultans of Sokoto

Mallam Muhammadu Fodio

1 Usman dan Fodio 1804–1815

Abdullahi dan Fodio Emir of Gwandu

2 Muhammed Bello 1817–1837

3 Abubakar I Atiku 1837–1842

6 Ahmadu Rufai 1867–1873

Muhammed Buhari Emir of Tambawel

4 Ali Babba bin Bello 1842–1859

7 Aliu Karami 1866–1867

8 Abubakar II Atiku na Raba 1873–1877

9 Mu'azu Ahmadu 1877–1881

Umaru Nagwamatse Emir of Kontagora

5 Ahmadu Atiku 1859–1866

11 Abder Rahman Atiku 1891–1902

Abdullahi Barau Sarkin Yamma

10 Umaru bin Ali 1881–1891

13 Muhammadu Attahiru II 1903–1915

16 Hasan dan Mu'azu Ahmadu 1931–1938

Usman Shehu

12 Muhammadu Attahiru I 1902–1903

14 Muhammadu Maiturare 1915–1924

Haliru Ibn Barau Sarkin Yamma

17 Siddiq Abubakar III 1938–1988

15 Muhammadu Tambari 1924–1931

18 Ibrahim Dasuki 1988–1996

19 Muhammadu Maccido 1996–2006

20 Sa'adu Abubakar 2006–

Gallery

US Secretary John Kerry Visits With Sultan Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar Prior To Delivering a Speech in Sokoto

Gate to the Palace of the Sultan

Mosque of Sultan Muhammad Bello

References

1. "The new Sultan of Sokoto Saad Abubakar sits on his throne during his coronation ceremony in Sokoto, Northern Nigeria". The Dream Daily. Retrieved 2024-07-08.
2. All Africa: "Nigeria: Updated - Kano Blasts Claim Over 60" by Ismail Mudashir, November 28, 2014
3. Ajayi, Jacob F. Ade (1989). Africa in the Nineteenth Century Until the 1880s. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-03917-9. Retrieved 2013-02-13.
4. Ibrahim, Muhammad (1987). The Hausa-Fulani Arabs: A Case Study of the Genealogy of Usman Danfodio. Kadawa Press.
5. Willis, John Ralph (April 1978). "The Torodbe Clerisy: A Social View". The Journal of African History. 19 (2). Cambridge University Press: 195–212. doi:10.1017/s0021853700027596. JSTOR 181598. S2CID 162817107. Retrieved 2013-02-13.
6. Sultan of Sokoto: Sarkin Musulumi or Sarkin Fulani?, By Majeed Dahiru 7 December 2017
7. "Profile : The Sultan of Sokoto Bridges Two Worlds in Nigeria : Alhaji Ibrahim Dasuki, the country's most important Islamic leader, has proven to be adept at surviving factional temporal politics". Los Angeles Times. 1991-05-14. Retrieved 2020-04-04.

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.

See also

• Grand Viziers of Sokoto