HIS ANCESTRY
According to the most reliable source which was narrated by Sheikh Zakzaky
himself, he was a descendant of Shingidi, which was situated in the ancient
Songhai Empire, but the ancient city is now part of the territory of Mauritania.
His grandparents migrated from the city to Mabruk in Mali from where which
they dwelt in Timbuktu. It was from the city of Timbuktu that they migrated to
Nigeria in twelfth century.
HIS LINEAGE
His lineage was traced to Sheikh Ibrahim bn Ya’aqub bn Aliyu bn Muhammad
Tajuddeen Bn Liman Hussain Batoranke. Liman Hussain belonged to Fulani
community, an offshoot of the Toronke ethnic group. He migrated to Hausa
land from Mali during the caliphate of Sheikh Usman Bn Fodio. He was
appointed to be leading prayers in a town he lived which was also an enclave
of Sokoto. The son of Liman Hussain, Tajuddeen who was presumed to be a
protégé of Usman Bn Fodio followed the entourage of Usman Bn Fodio's
representative in Zaria enclave that is the emir of Zazzau Malam Musa, and it
was the bn Fodio who assigned Tajuddeen to be in charge of teaching Islamic
studies in Zaria.
Most of the lineage of Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky was confined to Liman
Hussain, but to this moment, there is a report that his genealogy was traced to
as far as the scion of the Prophet, the leader guidance of the Ahlul Bayt, that is
the grandson of the Prophet (PBUH), the infallible Imam Hassan, the son of
commander of the faithful Imam Ali bin Abiy-Talib (AS).
HIS FATHER
His father was Malam Yaqoub Aliyu, he was nicknamed Magaji (a Hausa term
for a jurist who inherited Islamic knowledge from his parent). His exact
birthday was not recorded, but he was presumed to have been born in 1902.
He grew up in a learned household which enabled him to accumulate Islamic
knowledge in no small measure. He was famously known for his devotion,
patience and sense of humour. He was hailed for his audacity to express good attitudes when it came to dealing with people. He was a farmer per excellence
and that he never stopped teaching up to the end of his journey in life when he
died at the presumed age of 70 (1902-1972).
HIS MOTHER
Salaha Muhammad Gidado who was famously known as Hajiya Hari Jamo was
the mother of Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky. She, just like Zakzaky's father, belonged
to Toronke ethnic group, and her grandfather was a Bedouin merchant from Mali who later on his life migrated to Zaria and settled there. The nickname Hari is an alias in Fulfude (a language spoken by Fulani ethnic group) for a person born during a raining season. She was born in 1924 in the ancient city of Zaria, and she and her husband, Yaqoub gave birth to twelve children five of whom died at infancy and Zakzaky is her fifth son.
Hajiya Hari Jamo was very adept at religious matters. She used to teach
neighbouring women and children Islamic jurisprudence, she was praised for
religious devotion especially reading the Holy Quran and incessant prayers. She
died on 17th November, 2014, after a protracted illness that kept her
bedridden for a long while. She was 90 years old when she breathed her last,
and she left behind six children and many grandchildren. Her shrine is located
in Jushi residential area, Zaria.
HIS RELATIVES
The father of Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky, Malam Yaqoub had left sixteen children,
eight female and eight male. Zakzaky's mother, Hari Jamo had 7 children out of
which four are male while the remaining three are female. Here they are in
sequence: Abdulqadir Yaqoub, Maryam Yaqoub, Fatima Yaqoub (AKA Goggon
Kaura), Ibrahim Yaqoub (Sheikh Zakzaky), Badamasi Yaqoub, Yahaya Yaqoub
and their last born is Maimunatu Yaqoub. As for his other relatives whom he
did not share the same mother, they are nine in numbers, four male and five
female, and their mother was Hajiya Amina who was popularly known as Iya
Maimanja. Here they are: Muhammad Sani Yaqoub, Ramatu Yaqoub, Karimatu
Yaqoub, Usman Yaqoub (who holds a traditional title of Sarkin Malaman Fadar
Zazzau). Maryam Yaqoub, Abubakar Yaqoub, Salihu Yaqoub, Zaliha Yaqoub and their last born is Hajara Yaqoub.
These are the blood relatives of Sheikh Ibrahim Yaqoub Zakzaky. He is
the sixth son of his father but fifth son from his mother, if we took into
cognizance his brother Zubairu Yaqoub who died at infancy.
HIS BIRTHDAY
Sheikh Ibrahim Yaqoub Zakzaky was born at the dawn of Tuesday, 5th May,
1953 which is equivalent to 15 of Sha'aban 1372 AH. His birthplace is Kwarbai
Residential Area, Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria, just a stone's throw from the
emir's palace.
HIS NICKNAMES
His real name is Ibrahim but his most famous nickname is El-Zakzaky which is
equivalent to 'a native of Zaria.' In a nutshell, he got this sobriquet in the
heydays of his schooling. He and one his classmates shared the same name,
Ibrahim Yaqoub, and in order to avoid confusion, it was suggested that one of
them add a title to his name which prompted him to add Zakzaky to his name.
That was how he got his nickname.
Another nickname that is being attributed to him by Sheikh Usman bin Fodio in his will is Sharafuddeen, (the revivalist), and he inherited this nickname as a result of his advocacy to revive the glory of Islam which was eroded by the advent of colonialism in Nigeria. He is, furthermore fondly called Ibrahimul Maghriby, which is translated as 'a preacher from West Africa'. His wife used to address him with Khaleel but apart from his wife nobody
addressed him with such name. In a nutshell, Ibrahim Zakzaky has three
nicknames, El-Zakzaky, Sharafuddeen, and Al-Magriby which he is widely known with, and Khaleel which is used only by his wife.
HIS DESCRIPTION
Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky is a dark-skinned, heavily-built and fairly tall man. He has bulging eyes and ethnic cicatrices are visible in the sides of his face which
aligned him to Fulani ethnic group, an offshoot of Toronke ethnic community.
His thinly grey-beard coupled with his grandstanding, walking has made him
stand out among his relatives. He has a great sense of humour and he mostly
and tersely talks less and acts more. Besides, he is highly devoted, learned,
eloquent and addicted to reading books.
- From The Book: A Biography of
His Eminence
Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky (H) (The Leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria)
By:Institute for Compilation and Publications of Shaikh Zakzaky's Works.
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Shaikh Zakzaky