Islam

Islam spread over North Africa with lightning speed in the 7th through 8th centuries, but later on it lagged behind the natural obstacle, of the Sahara Desert. Very soon, however, the young and dynamic religion penetrated the Sub-Saharan Africa with trade caravans and ships. The rulers of the Ancient Mali and the Songhai state were Muslims; Muslim merchants lived in Swahili cities on the coast of East Africa. By the 17th – 18th centuries the great empires of West Africa declined, but Islam did not disappear. It gradually adapted to the African reality and took deep roots.

The new rise of Islam is related to the Fulbe people, the shepherds, whose herds can be seen from the valley of Senegal to Lake Chad and further east. In the 18th – 19th centuries the majority of Fulbe converted to the orthodox Islam and launched religious wars against pagan people and against those Muslims who, according to their standards, were not firm enough in their beliefs. There emerged new states based on the principles of Islam: Futa-Jallon, Masiina, Sokoto, the Empire of al-Hajj Umar.

The number of followers of Muhammad grew even faster in the colonial times: the colonial masters did not object to this, as it was easier for them to deal with adherents of a world religion than with followers of obscure traditional cults.

The Central Mosque of the capital.  Burkina Faso. The Kakabe. V. F. Vydrin. 2003		When electrification reached a remote village, the solar panel was installed on the top of the mosque. Kolin, Vydrin V., 2007.		Celebration of the end of Ramadan, the month of the Muslim fast. Senegal, Kolin, Vydrin V., 2007.
Minarets can be seen from afar. The majority of population are Dan christians, but the Jula muslim minority is very active and quite visible. Danane, Vydrin V., 2002		Midday prayer time Sokotoro, Vydrin V., 2001		Public reading of Arabic prayers with comments in the Kanembu language. Maiduguri, Bondarev D., 2005