1st October: National Day of Nigeria
A brief about Nigeria’s Islamic written heritage
Among the 106 countries included in the “World Survey of Islamic Manuscripts” (the flagship project undertaken by Al-Furqan Islamic Heritage Foundation between the years 1989 – 1994) was Nigeria.
Nigeria’s Islamic written heritage was surveyed in 1989, by Abdur Rahman I. Doi.
This survey brought to light a wealth of information about the Country’s collections of Islamic manuscripts, by indicating: the cities and libraries that hold these manuscripts, the approximate number of manuscripts within each collection, the subjects and languages in which they are written, the conditions in which they are and whether they have been catalogued and studied, the particular significant manuscripts which they contain, etc.
According to this Survey, Nigeria has just over 23,630 manuscripts, held in 115 libraries (private and institutional). These libraries have mostly been established between 1800 – 1990, and their collections vary between 200 and 5,000 manuscripts.
| Source note: This information was published in the following book: “World Survey of Islamic Manuscripts” (English version), 1997-2002, Al-Furqan Islamic Heritage Foundation, London, UK, Vol. 2, pp. 407-430. Please note that some of the images used in this online version might not be part of the published version of this article within the respective book. Disclaimer: The data figures, the names, and other details are overall reflecting those of the time when the Survey was conducted. Important note: The Foundation is striving to update these details in progress; and, Your help in this regard would be much appreciated. Please use the feedback form (below) to send us your comments and feedback. |