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A Professor of Arabic Literary Criticism at the University of Ilorin, Khalil Muhammad Usman Gbodofu, has called for the systematic collection and preservation of manuscripts authored by Fulani scholars who lived and migrated across South-West Nigeria before the rise of the Old Oyo Empire.
Professor Gbodofu made the call while presenting a paper titled “Nupe Ajami Scripts in Gbodofu Family, Ilorin Emirate: Translation and Comment” at Ruhr University Bochum.
He explained that early Fulani communities documented knowledge, trade activities, and social life using Arabic-based Ajami scripts long before the emergence of Nigeria’s current geopolitical structure.
According to him, recovering and preserving these manuscripts would offer rare firsthand insights into the historical development of the South-West.
“These manuscripts are invaluable. They predate many colonial narratives and can help reconstruct the intellectual and cultural history of Yorubaland and its neighbours,” he said.
The scholar also emphasised the need to preserve and study manuscripts produced by Ilorin-based scholars from the early 18th century, especially those written before and during the Islamic reform movement led by Sheikh Alimi.
He noted that many of the documents—written in Arabic and Ajami—contain records on law, theology, medicine, and governance that remain largely unexplored.
He added that their proper documentation and analysis would further highlight Ilorin’s historical significance as a hub of Islamic scholarship and intercultural exchange.
