The Kanem Bornu was an African trading empire that originated in present-day Chad at Kanem in the Lake Chad, but later, they shifted to Bornu after the exile of the Kanem king Uma b. Idris as the ‘Bulala’ people invaded them.
The Bulala were a mysterious group of people or tribe, and cattle farming was their occupation. They were defeated as the kanem empire got bigger, it paved a way to numerous civil wars, and members of the empire fought among themselves to get the right to rule. The Bornu region is situated on the western side of the lake and then they were known as the ‘Bornu empire.’ They are among the longest-serving African empires.
The empire is later believed to have controlled by the ‘Sayfawa dynasty’ after it had been shifted to ‘Kanem.’ Initially, the empire was regulated by Nomadic tribes and then the ‘ Sayfawa dynasty,’ which consisted of Muslim kings.
The kings were honored with the title ‘Mai.’ Mai Dunama Dibbalemi is considered most significant among all the other kings for his huge territorial expansion using cavalry. The empire reached its height during the end of the 13th century; it subdued Saharan oases in the historic Fezzan region (Southwestern part of present-day Libya). Defeated tribes were forced to pay tribute by providing slaves. Many Kanem kings had visited Islam holy sites around North Africa as pilgrims.
Moreover, they created an Islamic educational institution like madrasa. One of them was at Fustat in Egypt around 1324 C.E. They gain the support of the Arab traders after the adoption of Islam as a religion. Muslim missionaries were introduced in the empire and were granted gifts such as camels, silver and gold coins, slaves for teaching Koran. Around the 17th century, both the states of Kanem and Bornu were merged, which consolidated the Sayfawa dynasty. The empire could continue until the end of the 19th century before they were invaded by the French.
The Illustration depicts the Kanem Bornu empire who were at their peak during the 9th century and were concentrated around Lake Chad.
Accounting Graduate, Sketch Artist (Charcoal, Graphite, Pen), Nigeria
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