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| Title: | Between Niger and Nile: New Light on the Fulani Mahdist Muhammad al Dadari |
| Authors: | Abu-Manga, Al-Amin Hunwick, John O.  Kanya-Forstner, Sydney O'Fahey, Rex S. Lovejoy, Paul E. |
| Year: | 1997 |
| Periodical: | Sudanic Africa |
| Volume: | 8 |
| Pages: | 85-108 |
| Language: | English |
| Geographic terms: | Sudan Chad |
| Subjects: | Mahdis Mahdiyya History and Exploration Religion and Witchcraft |
| External link: | https://www.jstor.org/stable/25653299 |
| Abstract: | The identity of the 'Faki Dadari from the Fallata tribe' who played a key role in the choice of the Khalifa 'Abdull¯ahi as the Mahdi's successor in 1885 has long been something of a puzzle. Based on new evidence from Nigeria and the Sudan, together with a re-examination of some published Sudanese sources, the authors identify this Mahdist leader with greater precision and solve part of the mystery surrounding his life and career. The evidence also underscores the importance of the links between the Central and Nilotic Sudan during the 19th century, and suggests that some reinterpretation of the Mahdiyya itself may be in order. The authors present a number of tentative conclusions concerning Mu.hammad al-D¯ad¯ar¯i's significance. His career provides more insight into the complexity of what might be termed 'trans-Sudanic Islamic connections'. It also illustrates the importance of the 'western', and in particular the Fulani, element in the Mahdist movement. However, the 'western' dominance imposed by the Khalifa 'Abdull¯ahi did not survive his death and the overthrow of the Mahdiyya in 1898. The 'ashr¯af' and their northern riverain supporters not only regained their primacy in the 20th-century Mahdist movement but also gained control over the historiography of Mahdism. App., notes, ref. |
