Great Mosque (Kano)
Great Mosque (Kano)
- The Great Musjid of Kano is the oldest Musjid in Nigeria, built in the 15th century for Muhammad Rumfa . It was made of mud and was a tower-style Musjid called a soro.
- Prior to Rumfa’s reign and conversion to Islam, the central Musjid of Kano was located in two possible locations. The first possibility is the Sharifai quarter, inhabited by the descendants of the 15th-century Berber scholar al-Maghili. The second possibility is the Yan Doya quarter, inhabited by Wangara muslims from the Mali empire.
It was moved to a new site by Muhammad Zaki in 1582, and rebuilt in the mid 19th century by Abdullahi Dan Dabo. After the Sokoto jihad, Emir Suleiman, who was regarded as the Imam of Kano, led Friday prayers himself in the Musjid. Subsequent emirs have delegated the authority to an appointed Imam. - It was destroyed in the 1950s, and rebuilt with British sponsorship.
- İt is in good condition now, and open to prayers.
- In December 1980, adherents of Maitatsine, known as Yan Tatsine, launched an assault on the Musjid’s attendees during Friday prayers in an attempt to seize control of the Musjid. The conflict persisted for eleven days, initially engaging with the police and later escalating to involve the army. The intense confrontation concluded only after Maitatsine and his followers, who were defending their headquarters, were killed. The officially reported death toll surpassed 4,000, although other sources indicate a higher toll.