In the early decades of the twentieth century, Maiduguri (also called Yerwa), in present-day Borno State, was a thriving hub of Islamic learning. Long before the spread of Western schooling, Muslim communities across Kanem–Bornu had built enduring systems of Qur’anic instruction, manuscript study, and Arabic literacy. By the 1910s, under British colonial administration, Maiduguri emerged as both an administrative centre and a site where Koranic education encountered new educational reforms.
This study, grounded in documented scholarship, explores how Koranic teachers (màlàm or mu’allim) maintained religious education, responded to change, and influenced the evolution of literacy in colonial-era Maiduguri.
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Historical Context: Islam and Education in Borno
Islam entered Kanem, Bornu, centuries before the British conquest, shaping scholarship, governance, and daily life. Qur’anic schools (tsangaya or makarantar allo) and mosque-based instruction were already embedded within the social structure of Borno by the nineteenth century.
As scholars such as Ahmad and Alao observe, Arabic literacy was widespread among Kanuri elites, and manuscript culture flourished through local copying of religious texts. When the British established colonial rule after the fall of Rabih az-Zubayr in 1903, they found an educated Muslim class, a structured emirate administration, and a resilient Islamic schooling network.
By 1907, Maiduguri, known to Kanuri as Yerwa, was selected as the new provincial capital. The city’s growing population included traders, farmers, soldiers, and scholars. Qur’anic teachers operated in neighbourhood mosques or family compounds, teaching boys and young men through long-standing systems of recitation and memorisation.
Koranic Teachers and the Tsangaya System
The Koranic teachers of early twentieth-century Maiduguri were custodians of a system that emphasised devotion, discipline, and literacy. Their schools, called tsangaya in Hausa or makarantar allo in Kanuri, taught students to read and memorise the Qur’an. Instruction focused on Arabic script, pronunciation, and moral conduct.
Teaching took place in open courtyards or mosques, with wooden tablets (allo) used for writing verses in charcoal or ink. Students might live with the teacher or in small groups, forming almajirai communities. Teachers held strong moral and spiritual authority; they guided not only children but the wider community on ethical and religious matters.
Livelihoods varied: some relied on zakāt (alms) or gifts, others combined teaching with farming or trade. Their social standing rested more on piety and learning than on wealth. The tsangaya system was thus both an educational and moral institution, a framework for transmitting faith and social values.
Colonial Influence and the Arrival of Western Schooling
Colonial education policies introduced Western-style schools into Northern Nigeria to train clerks and interpreters. In Maiduguri, records indicate the establishment of a Borno Provincial School around 1915, considered the first Western-type institution in the city. Its curriculum included English, arithmetic, hygiene, and vernacular studies, primarily serving the sons of chiefs and officials.
(Quest Journals, 2021; Muhammad, 2013).
This new model of schooling introduced competition and sometimes tension between traditional and colonial systems. Many families preferred Qur’anic education, fearing that Western schools might erode Islamic values. Nonetheless, the presence of the provincial school gradually encouraged a dual approach: some children attended both the tsangaya and the colonial school.
While there is little archival evidence that colonial schooling was compulsory in Maiduguri during the 1910s, British administrators actively promoted it through the Native Authority system. Qur’anic teachers, meanwhile, continued their work largely independent of government interference, maintaining deep influence within their communities.
Adaptation and Hybrid Learning
By the late 1910s and early 1920s, the boundaries between Islamic and Western education had begun to blur. Some màlàm started to incorporate Arabic literacy and Ajami (Hausa or Kanuri written in Arabic script) into their lessons. Others accepted employment as translators or clerks, using their literacy skills in colonial courts and offices.
This hybridisation reflected broader socio-economic adaptation. Islamic schooling retained its moral and spiritual primacy, but Western literacy offered new opportunities. Thus, a generation of bilingual literates, educated in both Qur’anic and Western systems, emerged in Maiduguri.
Such integration also demonstrated the resilience of Islamic education: it evolved without losing its essence. As Ahmed and Yahya (2022) note, Qur’anic schools in Borno displayed remarkable flexibility, shaping the educational landscape that endures in northern Nigeria to this day.
Continuity and Challenges
Despite adaptation, challenges persisted. Poverty among Qur’anic pupils (almajirai) led to growing concern from both colonial officers and Muslim leaders. Some teachers lacked stable support, leading students to beg for sustenance, a practice that became more visible in expanding urban Maiduguri.
Nonetheless, many Qur’anic teachers remained highly respected, often consulted for religious arbitration, guidance, and literacy services. Their role extended beyond teaching: they were moral exemplars, mediators, and preservers of Islamic law and culture.
Legacy and Lasting Influence
The early twentieth-century Koranic teachers of Maiduguri helped preserve a centuries-old intellectual tradition under changing political rule. Their persistence ensured the continuity of Islamic education and Arabic literacy across generations.
Modern Qur’anic schools and Islamiyyah institutions in Borno trace their lineage to these early màlàm. Even today, their pedagogical methods, recitation, repetition, and community learning, remain central to Islamic education across northern Nigeria.
By adapting without capitulating, these teachers exemplified cultural resilience. They bridged two worlds: the spiritual authority of Islam and the bureaucratic order of the colonial state. Their influence endures in both religious scholarship and social leadership across the region.
The Koranic teachers of Maiduguri in the 1910s were more than educators; they were guardians of an intellectual and moral heritage. Under the shadow of colonial reform, they sustained faith, literacy, and cultural continuity. Their story reveals how indigenous systems of knowledge coexisted with imported institutions, shaping the educational and spiritual identity of modern Borno.
Author’s Note
This account is based solely on verified historical and academic sources. Where exact details, such as the names of teachers or the precise administrative status of early schools, are uncertain, they are presented cautiously. The article highlights continuity, adaptation, and resilience in the face of colonial educational reform.
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References
Ahmed, A. & Yahya, M. (2022). The Development of Islamic Education in Northern Nigeria: Continuity and Change. ResearchGate.
Quest Journals. (2021). “The Evolution of Western Education in Borno State, Nigeria.” Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Science, Vol. 9(4), pp. 31–42.
Muhammad, A. (2013). Colonial Education Policy in Northern Nigeria and Its Impact on Islamic Learning. University of Maiduguri Press.
Alao, A. (2010). “Islamic Scholarship in Kanem-Bornu: A Historical Survey.” Journal of Islamic Studies, Oxford University Press.
Ahmad, A. & Alao, S. (2019). Islam, Literacy and Society in Pre-Colonial Borno. Brill Academic Publishers.
WorldData Archives. (2022). “Northern Nigeria under Indirect Rule: Administration and Education Reports, 1914–1925.” Public Record Office, London.
