liberty that their masters grant them. For some
infractions, the penalties for slaves are actually
lighter than those for free individuals. The law
prescribes freedom for certain slaves upon their
master’s death, such as the umm walad, who has
borne her master’s child, or the mudabbar, to
whom he has promised liberation.
Slavery in the Islamic world has historically
been milder than the plantation slavery practiced
in the Americas in the 18th and 19th centuries.
While forced labor in fields and mines is not
unknown, Islamic slavery has tended to favor
domestic servants, often treated as members of
the family, or slave armies, preferred owing to
their personal loyalty to the sUlta n. In fact, slaves
sometimes rose to positions of extensive authority.
In slave dynasties, such as the medieval Egyptian
Mamluks, soldiers originally from the slave class
actually oversaw governments. On the other hand,
Islamic slavery was not without its brutal episodes.
Muslim slave traders in Africa were notable for
their harshness and for disregarding legal niceties
by including free Muslims among their victims.
During the modern era, Muslim countries
took steps to abolish slavery, largely in response
to pressure from European nations. Modernist
Muslim scholars reinterpreted the Quran to sup-
port the abolition of slavery. They argued that
Muhammad (d. 632) tolerated a practice (slavery)
that God intended to phase out over time as con-
trary to the basic quranic principles of liberty and
equality. However, many Muslim elites resisted
abandoning a privilege granted them in Islamic
law, and slavery has been difficult to eliminate in
the Islamic world. It continues to be practiced in
rural areas and under repressive Islamist govern-
ments, such as in sUdan.
See also harem; hUman rights; Janissary;
mamluk.
Stephen CoryFurther reading: Humphrey J. Fisher, Slavery in the
History of Muslim Black Africa (New York: New York
University Press, 2001); Murray Gordon, Slavery in
the Arab World (New York: New Amsterdam, 1992);
Bernard Lewis, Race and Slavery in the Middle East: A
Historical Enquiry (Oxford: Oxford University Press,
1992); Shaun E. Marmon, ed., Slavery in the Islamic
Middle East (Princeton, N.J.: Marcus Weiner, 1999).Sokoto Caliphate
The Sokoto Caliphate was a 19th-century Islamic
state in Hausaland (modern-day northern Nige-
ria), founded by the preacher and jihadist Shehu
Usman dan Fodio (1754–1817). The Shehu with-
drew from and launched Jihad against the sultan-
ate of Gobir in 1804, in direct imitation of the
prophet mUhammad’s jihad against the Arabs of
mecca. Spreading throughout Hausaland, dan
Fodio’s jihad gained widespread support among
Fulani tribesmen and led to the establishment of
the largest independent African state during the
19th century. The city of Sokoto in northwest-
ern Nigeria was designated capitol of the Fulani
state, which united a region that had been divided
among city-states for hundreds of years. Dan
Fodio established a systematic government, with
ultimate aUthority in the hands of a caliph, and
local authority divided between emirs, who were
responsible for governing specific regions (or
emirates). The first caliph was Dan Fodio’s son
and military commander, Muhammad Bello, who
succeeded his father in 1817. An electoral college
made up of prominent officials chose later caliphs
from among the Shehu’s descendants.
Government in the caliphate of Sokoto was
based upon a classical Muslim model, a hierarchi-
cal system of authority, with ministries and titles
derived from Islamic history. Islamic law (sharia)
was held to be the law of the land, interpreted
according to the maliki legal school. Supported
by an active commercial network and thriving
agricultural production, the caliphate was fairly
prosperous for much of the century. Boasting a
number of accomplished scholars, the Sokoto
administration placed an emphasis upon educa-
tion, which even extended to women at times (for
instance, the Shehu’s daughter, Nana Asm’u, was
a famous scholar who promoted edUcation for
Women). Despite its decentralized government,
the state held together largely due to its prosper-K 630 Sokoto Caliphate