Case file · Folklore / legend
Maitatsine and the Kano uprising
In December 1980, followers of the preacher Muhammadu Marwa, called Maitatsine ('the one who curses'), fought police and soldiers in Kano; official figures put the dead at over 4,000, Marwa among them.
1980 CE · 12.00, 8.52 · status: official
The account
Marwa claimed prophetic powers and condemned most Muslims as unbelievers; his followers believed charms protected them. Uprisings by remnants continued in other northern cities until 1985.
The sceptical view
Researchers link the movement to urban poverty and migrant youth as much as to doctrine.