Dunama VIII Gana
| Dunama VIII Gana | |
|---|---|
| Mai of the Kanem–Bornu Empire | |
| Reign | 18th century (2–3 years) c. 1747–1750[a] |
| Predecessor | Muhammad VIII Ergama |
| Successor | Ali IV Kalirgima |
| Died | c. 1750 Ngazargamu, Bornu |
| Dynasty | Sayfawa dynasty |
| Father | Muhammad VIII Ergama[b] |
| Mother | Lefiya |
Dunama VIII[c] (Dunama bin Muḥammad[2]), called Dunama Gana[1][d] and Dunama Sr'ir,[1] was mai (ruler) of the Kanem–Bornu Empire in the mid-18th century, ruling approximately 1747–1750.[a]
Life
Dunama VIII was a son of mai Muhammad VIII Ergama,[1][b] who he succeeded as mai in the mid-18th century.[2] A girgam translated by Richmond Palmer states that Dunama's mother was "Lefiya, the daughter of Dunama".[5][e] According to the German explorer Heinrich Barth, who visited Bornu in the 1850s (about a century after Dunama's reign), Dunama was young at the time of his accession.[4] The nickname Gana, associated with Dunama, means "small one",[1] "the younger",[1] or "the little".[4] There was a very severe famine in Dunama's reign.[4][6]
Dunama's rule was short, lasting only two or three years.[1][a] He died at Ngazargamu[4] and was succeeded as mai by his cousin Ali IV Kalirgima.[1][2]
Notes
- ^ a b c Different king lists (girgams) and chronicles translated in the 19th–20th centuries give Dunama slightly different regnal lengths: 2 years (Urvoy), 2 years and 7 months (Barth), or 3 years (Palmer, Landeroin, Nachtigal).[1] As a result of this, and due to different calculations for other mais, various dates have been given for his reign, including 1752–1755 (Barth), 1747–1750 (Palmer), 1751–1753 (Urvoy), 1742–1745 (Landeroin), and 1746–1749 (Nachtigal).[1] Cohen (1966) considered a reign of two years to be most likely.[1] Bosworth (2012) followed Palmer and dated Dunama's reign to 1747–1750.[2]
- ^ a b Every author other than Richmond Palmer agrees that Dunama was Muhammad VIII Ergama's son. Palmer instead names his father as Aman.[1]
- ^ Some chronologies of Kanem–Bornu rulers omit the 14th-century Dunama III, lowering the regnal numbers of later rulers of this name. This ruler is then considered Dunama VII.[3]
- ^ Also spelled Dunama Ghana.[4]
- ^ It is not clear who this Dunama (Lefiya's father) is meant to be, or if Dunama VIII is intended to be presented as the result of an incestuous relationship (i.e. if mais Dunama VII Martemarambi or Hamdan Dunamami, sometimes called Dunama, are meant). Palmer's girgam does not name Dunama VIII's father so may also present an alternative familial affiliation for the ruler.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Cohen, Ronald (1966). "The Bornu King Lists". Boston University Papers on Africa: Volume II: African History. Boston University Press. pp. 49, 55, 60, 65, 82.
- ^ a b c d Bosworth, Clifford Edmund (2012) [1996]. The New Islamic Dynasties: A Chronological and Genealogical Manual. Edinburgh University Press. p. 127. ISBN 0-7486-2137-7.
- ^ Stewart, John (1989). African States and Rulers: An Encyclopedia of Native, Colonial and Independent States and Rulers Past and Present. McFarland & Company. pp. 35, 146.
- ^ a b c d e Barth, Heinrich (1857). Travels and Discoveries in North and Central Africa: Being a Journal of an Expedition Undertaken under the Auspices of H.B.M.'s Government, in the Years 1849–1855. Longmans. p. 660.
- ^ Palmer, H. R. (1912). "The Bornu Girgam". Journal of the Royal African Society. 12 (45): 81. ISSN 0368-4016.
- ^ Palmer, H. R. (1926). History Of The First Twelve Years Of The Reign Of Mai Idris Alooma Of Bornu (1571–1583) (Fartua, Ahmed Ibn). p. 117.