Uthman don Fodio (1755-1816) was a Moslem teacher and theologian. One of the principal reformers of Islam in Hausaland in Northern Nigeria, he founded an Islamic empire at the beginning of the 19th century.

Uthman don Fodio whose complete name was Uthman ibn Muhammad ibn Fudi, was commonly known simply as Shehu, the Hausa word for sheikh. He was born in the Hausa state of Gobir, the son of a pious Fulani member of the Qadiriyya Moslem brotherhood. Uthman and his brother Abdullahi received a thorough education in Islamic theology, Arabic, and Moslem law, and by 1774 he began his career as an itinerant preacher and teacher. During these years Uthman wandered throughout Hausaland, gaining adherents and preaching reform in the practice of Islam. His followers, who were later to form the vanguard of his fighting forces, came from all parts of the central Sudan.

During the last quarter...