Gender in Kanuri Ajami Manuscripts, Images, and Interviews

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Fieldwork Team: Dr. Mustapha Hashim Kurfi (Principal Investigator), Hauwa Usman (Local Project Manager), Alhaji Abubakar Maikudi Aishat (General Field Facilitator). Technical Team: Prof. Fallou Ngom (Project Director and former Director of the African Studies Center at Boston University), and Eleni Castro (Technical Lead, BU Libraries).

The collections on Gender in Nigerian Ajami Manuscripts are copied as part of the African Studies Center’s African Ajami Library. Access Condition and Copyright: These materials are subject to copyright. All rights reserved to the author. For use, distribution or reproduction contact Professor Fallou Ngom (fngom@bu.edu). Required Citation: Materials in this web edition may be cited as: Kurfi, M. H., Hauwa U., Ngom, F., and Castro, E. (2020). African Ajami Library: Gender in Nigerian Ajami Manuscripts. Boston: Boston University Libraries: http://hdl.handle.net/2144/41953. For Inquiries: Please Contact Professor Fallou Ngom (fngom@bu.edu).

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    Ghargham Hajiya Kaltume Bulama Gana (The biography of Hajiya Kaltume Bulama Gana)
    (2019) Muhammad, Aliyu
    This document deals with the biography of Hajiya Kaltume Bulama Gana, a Northern Nigerian Muslim woman who is educated in and practicing Islamic arts as a profession. She established a non-profit organization that educates children, including young women and girls affected by the Boko Haram insurgency so that they can become self-reliant and acquire new vocational skills. Written in 2019, this Kanuri Ajami text contains two parts: The first part deals with the life and works of Hajiya Kaltume Bulama Gana, and the second is an interview transcript with her. In the interview, she discusses her non-profit organization, her Herwa Heart of Art Initiative. This part provides details on how she established the organization and her successes and challenges. In the last part of the interview, she discusses how philanthropists and the general public can support her organization in order to use the arts to assist the orphans and children displaced and traumatized by Boko Haram in Borno state and beyond.
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    Ghargham a kar mai-a Tarihi-a Aisa Kǝli Ngǝrmaram, 1497 – 1504 (The history, leadership and legacy of Aisa Kǝli Ngǝrmaram, 1497 – 1504)
    (2018) Unknown
    This text written in 2018 is a rare Kanuri Ajami document. It contains a biography of the leadership and legacy of Aisa Kǝli Ngǝrmaram – the Kanem-Bornu legendary figure who ruled under the famous Sayfawa dynasty (1497–1504). Historically, the introduction of Arabic script to Northern Nigeria can be traced as far back as the 11th century, starting with the Kanuri people. This text starts with a brief history of the Sayfawa dynasty and then discusses the influence of the Kanem-Bornu empire in the region, highlighting the successes it had achieved, especially in spreading Islam. The document then deals with the life and legacy of Aisa Kǝli Ngǝrmaram. There are very few known written sources on Aisa Kǝli Ngǝrmaram. Oral traditions hold that this legendary figure played a significant role in the formation and ruling of the Kanem-Bornu Kingdom. Aisa Kǝli Ngǝrmaram was the mother of the famous ruler Mai [Emir/King] Idris Alooma, who was too young to reign at first, and as a result she ruled the Kingdom for seven years. It is reported that she would dress like a man to receive education amidst male counterparts and would go to the battlefields. It was believed that during her reign, the Kanem-Bornu had stabilized, which paved the way for her son to take over the mantle of leadership after her. Aisa Kǝli Ngǝrmaram was educated in the Islamic tradition and she mentored her son (the future king/Mai) to be educated in the tradition as well.
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    Images of Hajiya Kaltume Bulama Gana and the Herwa Heart of Art Initiative
    (2020-12-21) Kurfi, Mustapha Hashim; Usman, Hauwa; Maikudi Aishat, Alhaji Abubakar; Hajiya Kaltume Bulama Gana; Herwa Heart of Art Initiative
    Photographs of Hajiya Kaltume Bulama Gana and her non-profit philanthropic Islamic Arts organization called Herwa Heart of Art Initiative. The organization trains young girls in Northeastern Nigeria to become self-reliant and acquire new vocational skills.