[2] The first languages written in the script were likely old Taseelhit or medieval Amazigh, Kanuri, or Songhay.
[3] During the pre-colonial period, Qur'anic schools taught Muslim children Arabic and, by extension, Ajami.
[2] After Western colonization, a Latin orthography for Hausa was adopted and the Ajami script declined in popularity.
[1] Ajami remains in widespread use among Islamic circles[3] but exists in digraphia among the broader populace.
Ajami is used ceremonially and for specific purposes, such as for local herbal preparations in the Jula language.