THE TWIN UNIVERSITIES
The Islamic Religion embraced by the people of Hausaland in the 10th century brought with it a complete way of life. It provided the Muslims with spiritual and social etiquettes as well as basis for interpersonal relations. Islam acts as a guide for proper conduct. Islamic jurisprudence helped to establish courts where cases were heard and disputes resolved according to the Shari'ah (Islamic Law). Indeed, explorers writing about ancient Hausa States had written extensively on the prominence of Katsina as the chief city of education and commerce in Hausaland. One of such explorers, Dr. Henry Barth wrote in 1853 about Katsina town in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries as follows:-"… In fact, Katsena, during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries of our era, seems to have been the chief city of this part of Negroland, as well in commercial and political importance as in other respects; for here that State of civilization which had been called forth by contact with the Arabs seems to have reached its highest degree…… the manners of Katsena were distinguished by superior politeness from those of other towns of Hausa…… Muslim scholars provided advisers, viziers, judges and councillors in courts of Emirs".(Hodkin 1974)
Islam brought with it literacy and the art of writing using Arabic letters and numerals to Hausaland (most of today's Northern Nigeria) around 1100 AD. The Southern parts of present day Nigeria gained the art of writing or literary education in the 1840s with the arrival of the Christian missionaries who established schools in the Badagry and the Lagos areas (Ikime 1977). That development placed Hausaland about seven hundred years ahead of its Southern counterparts in terms of literary education and the writing culture.
Katsina led ancient Hausaland in Islamic educational development with the establishment of the equivalent of today's University in the City in 1493 AD. The relics of that Islamic Centre popularly known as GOBARAU UNIVERSITY is symbolised by the minaret of the Centre's Mosque, the Gobarau Minaret, which is currently preserved as a National Monument. Again, Katsina led modern Nigeria in the establishment of the first Islamic University in the Country, the KATSINA UNIVERSITY.
This book traces the histories of the Twin Universities of GOBARAU and KATSINA. It goes down history lane to prove that the Gobarau University had links with the famous Sankore University in Timbuktu in the 1490s. It also highlights the famous scholars of Katsina among who was the Sheik that introduced Islam to Yorubaland and named the people of old Oyo area as "Yoruba" in one of his famous books, a name they now proudly profess! Also among the Katsina scholars was the one who travelled to Saudi Arabia for the Hajj and on his way back, stayed, and taught the Sciences and Astrology in Cairo in the late 1600s.
The book also gives an account of the conception and development of the Katsina Islamic University, from day one to its registration on January 7th 2005 and the commencement of academic activities in the 2005/2006 academic session.
