The 500 Most Influential Muslims - The Royal Islamic Strategic ...

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HIS ROYAL EMINENCE AMIRUL MU’MININ SHEIKH
AS SULTAN MUHAMMADU SA’ADU ABUBAKAR III
Sultan of Sokoto
Amirul Mu’minin Sheikh as Sultan Muhammadu
Sa’adu Abubakar III is the 20th Sultan of Sokoto. As
Sultan of Sokoto, he is considered the spiritual leader of
Nigeria’s 74.6 million Muslims, who account for roughly
50 percent of the nation’s population. Although the
position of Sultan of Sokoto has become largely ceremonial,
the holder is still a central figure for Nigerian
Muslims.
Lineage Back to Sheikh Usman Dan Fodio
The Sultan of Sokoto is the spiritual leader of Nigeria’s
enormous Muslim community. He gains this position
by lineage. Abubakar is the 20th heir to the two-century-old
throne founded by his ancestor, Sheikh Usman
Country: Nigeria
Date of Birth: 24 August 1956
Source of Influence: Lineage,
Development, Administrative
Influence: Central figure for
approximately 75.5 million
Nigerian Muslims
School of Thought: Traditional
Sunni, Maliki; linked to
the Qadiriyyah Sufi order by
lineage
Rank: 2010:23 · 2009:16
Dan Fodio. Dan Fodio (1754-1817 CE) was a scholar, leader of the Maliki school of Islam and
the Qadiri branch of Sufism, and an Islamic reformer of the nineteenth century. Dan Fodio
believed that Islam should have a more central role in the life of the people of West Africa
and led an uprising to institute the changes he sought. His figure and his writings are a very
important chapter in the history of Islam in West Africa, and Abubakar, by lineage, holds a
key place in West African Islam, and particularly for the Fulani and Hausa people who follow
Dan Fodio.
An Illustrious Family
The position currently does carry with it some weight—though largely ceremonial since British
colonial rule diminished its political significance. Much of this clout is derived from the
respect that was earned by Siddiq Abu Bakar Dan Usman—17th Sultan and father of Abubakar—who
held the Sultanate for over fifty years. The rule of Abubakar’s father from 1938 to
1988 earned the position significant social capital and popularity with ordinary Muslims.
Administrative Power
Abubakar holds important administrative influence in Nigerian religious life. He is the titular
ruler of Sokoto in northern Nigeria and is also the head of the Nigerian National Supreme
Council for Islamic Affairs. Leadership of this council means that the Sultan of Sokoto remains
the only figure that can legitimately claim to speak on behalf of all Nigerian Muslims.
This role has become increasingly influential over the years with a rise in inter-religious tensions
between Nigeria’s Muslim-majority north and Christian-majority south. The late Sultan
Siddiq Abu Bakar dan Usman was widely respected for trying to ease tensions between
Nigeria’s Muslim and Christian communities, which tend to occasionally spill over into sectarian
violence. Abubakar also possesses military experience in conflict areas.