List of sultans of Sokoto


The sultan of Sokoto is the hereditary leader of the Sokoto Caliphate, a Sunni Muslim community in West Africa. The position may also be referred to as the 'Sokoto Caliph' or the "Commander of the Faithful". The current holder of this title, since 2006, is Sa'adu Abubakar.
The sultan of Sokoto is the leader of the Qadiriyya Sufi order, historically the most important Muslim position in Nigeria and senior to the Emir of Kano, the leader of the Tijaniyya Sufi order. The post has become increasingly ceremonial since British rule defeated the caliphate and replaced it with the Sokoto Sultanate Council in 1903, but the sultan – considered a spiritual leader in the Muslim community in Nigeria – can still carry much weight with Fulani and Hausa people from northern Nigeria.Image:Sokoto caliphate.png|thumb|upright=1.2|Sokoto Caliphate in the 19th century|leftUsman dan Fodio, the founder of the dynasty of Sokoto State and of the Fulani Empire, never used the high style of Sultan but was simply titled Amir al-Mu´minin. The first to assume the title of Sultan was Fodio's son Muhammed Bello, who ruled from 1817 to 1837. Since the creation of the title, there have been nineteen Sultans of Sokoto, all men from the Torodbe scholar caste who are descended from Usman dan Fodio. Siddiq Abubakar III was the longest serving Sultan, holding the position for 50 years from 1938 to 1988. The shortest reign was that of Muhammadu Attahiru I, who held the position for five months in 1902–03. The 17th sultan, Ibrahim Dasuki, was forcefully deposed in 1996 by the Sani Abacha military government of Nigeria.
Prior to the beginning of the Fulani Jihad of 1804, the ethnic category Fulani was not important for the Torodbe and their literature reveals the ambivalence they had defining Torodbe-Fulani relationships. They adopted the language of the Fulani and much ethos while maintaining a separate, non-ethnic identity. The Torodbe clan at first recruited members from all levels of Sūdānī society, particularly the poorer people.

List of sultans

As mentioned above, the sultans were also styled Amir al-Mu´minin and Sarkin Musulmi ; Mai, occurring in various sultans' surnames, is another autochthonous title. The table below shows the historical list of the sultan of Sokoto, beginning from 1817.
ImageNameBirth and deathReign startedReign endedLineageHouse
1Muhammed Bello
1781
Unknown
–
1837
Wurno
21 April 181725 October 1837Son of
Usman dan Fodio		House of Bello
2Abubakar I Atiku
1782
Unknown
–
1842
Sokoto
26 October 183723 November 1842Son of
Usman dan Fodio		House of Atiku
3Ali Babba bin Bello
1808
Sala
–
1859
Sokoto
30 November 184221 October 1859
Son of
Muhammed Bello		House of Bello
4Ahmadu Atiku
c. 1807
Unknown
–
1866
Sokoto
24 October 18592 November 1866Son of
Abu Bakr Atiku		House of Atiku
5Aliyu Karami1808
Sala
1867
Wurno
6 November 186618 October 1867Son of
Muhammed Bello		House of Bello
6Ahmadu Rufai1814
1867
Wurno
21 October 186712 March 1873Son of
Usman dan Fodio		House of Rufai
7Abubakar II Atiku na Raba1812
1877
16 March 187328 March 1877Son of
Muhammed Bello		House of Bello
8Mu'azu1816
1881
6 April 187726 September 1881Son of
Muhammed Bello		House of Bello
9Umaru bin Alic. 1824
Sokoto
–
1891
Kaura Namoda
3 October 188125 March 1891Son of
Ali Babba bin Bello		House of Bello
10Abd al-Rahman bin Atikuc. 1828
Unknown
–
1902
Unknown
25 March 189110 October 1902Son of
Abu Bakr I Atiku		House of Atiku
11Muhammadu Attahiru IUnknown
1903
Mbormi		13 October 190215 March 1903Son of
Ahmadu Atiku		House of Atiku
12Muhammadu Attahiru II21 March 19031915Son of
Ali Babba bin Bello		House of Bello
13Muhammadu dan Ahmadu19151924Son of
Ahmadu Atiku		House of Atiku
14Muhammadu dan Muhammadu19241931Son of
Muhammadu dan Ahmadu		House of Atiku
15Hasan dan Mu'azu Ahmadu19311938Son of
Mu'azu		House of Bello
16Siddiq Abubakar III15 March 1903
Dange
–
1 November 1988
Sokoto
19381988Grandson of
Mu'azu		House of Bello
17Ibrahim Dasuki23 December 1923
Dogondaji
-
14 November 2016
Abuja
6 November 198820 April 1996 Great-great-grandson of
Usman dan Fodio		House of Buhari
18Muhammadu Maccido20 April 1926
Dange Shuni
–
29 October 2006

20 April 199629 October 2006Son of
Siddiq Abubakar III		House of Bello
19Sa'adu Abubakar24 August 1956
Sokoto
–		2 November 2006CurrentSon of
Siddiq Abubakar III		House of Bello

Genealogical tree of the sultans of Sokoto