Modibbo Raji
[1] After a long career as a teacher, Qadi, Naib (deputy Imam) and Wazir (vizier) in the Gwandu Emirate under his mentor Abdullahi dan Fodio and his successors, Modibbo Raji emigrated in the 1850s and eventually settled in Adamawa.
He died c. 1865 and was buried in Yola leaving behind his writings both in Arabic and Fulfulde, and a large scholarly community of his sons, daughters, students and associates.
The community subsequently moved to Degel (in present-day Sokoto State, Nigeria) where Modibbo Raji continued his early education.
[2] A few years after the death of Abdullahi dan Fodio in 1828, Modibbo Raji was initiated into the Tijjaniyya Islamic sect by al-Hajj Umar al-Futi.
[1] Modibbo Raji decided to emigrate during the reign of Emir Khalil of Gwandu, a decision that may have partly emanated from his initiation into the Tijjaniyya sect.
[1] Another possible reason was his increasing disillusionment with what was in his view, the setting of decadence in the Caliphate which he clearly alluded to in his Fulfulde poem Alaamaaji Ngirbuki (Signs of Collapse).
On arrival in Yola, Modibbo Raji was warmly welcomed by the emir Lamido Lauwal who sought to discourage him from proceeding to the East.
At the eastern boundary of Adamawa Emirate, Modibbo Raji was unable to continue his journey because of troubles in the Sultanate of Bagirmi in the present-day Republic of Chad.
He therefore remained in the sub-emirate of Kalfou (in the present-day Far North Region of Cameroon) and founded the settlement of Dinawo (religious town) while waiting for the return of peace to Bagirmi to continue his journey.
[2] Upon his death, his sons and companions moved out of Yola to settle in and around the nearby town of Girei where they established the most prominent Islamic scholastic community of their time.
One of Modibbo Raji's students Muhammad Tanu Mo’ililal was a prominent Islamic scholar and writer in the later part of the 19th century in Yola.
Inna Jangirde (1877-1947) who is a descendant of Modibbo Raji on her mother's side, was a noted Islamic teacher in Yola who once taught prominent members of the ruling house of Adamawa.
Later in 1919, he was appointed by Lamido Muhammad Abba as the fourth Galadima of Adamawa,[10] a title that has now been held by successive descendants of Modibbo Raji for over 100 years.
[1]: 432 Other grandchildren of Modibbo Raji were appointed as district heads of Chubunawa, Maiha (Sardauna Muhammadu Girei),[1]: 407 Ga’anda, Mambilla (Usman Muqaddas)[11] and Madagali (Dan Galadima Dahiru Aminu, a great-grandson) at various times in the early to mid-20th century.
[1]: 410 [13] Later descendants of Modibbo Raji have played prominent roles in the civil service, politics, military, business, academia and various professions in post-independence Nigeria.
In this audio file, the elegy is recited by Hadijatu Adda Yola a widow of Modibbo Raji's grandson Galadima Bello Ahmad.
