‘Eulogies’ for late Kaura Amah, the great warrior who fought and won many rival and intra-communal wars in the Maradi and Katsina kingdomships. He was born in the year 1846 in Jubale village of the Shahuta area of Agadez district in the present-day Niger Republic. His parents, Malam Muhammadu popularly known as Alaramma and Fatoni or more commonly Fatima were of the Tuareg (Buzaye) clan. Perhaps he was the first born after prolonged period of dormancy or non-conceiveness. The long period of dormancy or non-pregnancy worried the couple that they had to go into prayers and supplements. His birth name was Muhammadu s promised by his father but was later out-weighed by Ahmad by his immediate relatives, and thence, a name that was later shortened to Amah, meaning Ahmad for short.
At six (1852) he lost his father, and was quickly handed over to Malam Sa’idu, his father’s junior brother.
He started as a bravery child that he could pick loads heavier than he was expected to uplift. In the areas of local wrestling, long-distant trecking (cross country), land tilling plays (noman gayya), arrow shooting competition and a host of others, Amah was taking the lead. He was in fact invited for local wrestling shows and forest community activities and from where he picked another nickname, Goje. The word ‘Goje’ was synonymous to ‘Kaura’.
When properly settled, his main occupations were farming, hunting and gathering, wrestling and land tilling competition.
He was said to have lived in Agadez, Tahora and Tawa before he settled at Maradi.
Moving to Maradi, perharps during the reign of Sarki Goulbi Dankaka Rauda (1887-1889) While at Maradi, the young Amah was in villages like Ashalu, Tagama and Kornaka. And, in east of Kornaka, say about 5km in between, he founded a settlement, Sara-Kaura. Still, at Kornaka, the traditional ruler of the area, Tambari Hamman who was Tuareg too was a close associate to Amah. As a stranger at Maradi, he was engaged in many huntings and wars. Then, he was first turbaned as Marusa (Wakilin Kaura) charged with care of areas East of Maradi, notably, Ageh, Gazawa, Tessaou purposely to protect warriors and other external militants coming from Damagaran region. He later settled at Ageh were he spent 2 years, them to Gazawa. At Ageh, he had his title of Barayan Sarki (elsewhere it is termed Turaki)
At Maradi, his contemporary lieutenants were Sarkin Maradi AbdulRahman Danbaskore, Kaura Hasau, other commanders like Bunukarki, Danfalke, Doshiro, etc. and, due to his generosity and open-mindedness many of his friends in Maradi followed him to Ageh.
In the year 1891, he migrated to Gazawa during the times of Rafa Umaru, and during the reign of Sarkin Maradi Mijinyawa Barmo, There too, he spent another 2 years.
He migrated to Makoshi from Gazawain 1893. At Makoshi and Gangara, he was Kauran Sarkin Tessaou when French colonial Masters invaded Niger and made Damagaran as its headquarter. By the time, Kaura Amah dared Danwaire, Muhammadu Dikko, Iya Zakari, Idi mai damisa, Abu Gwagware who challenged him in fighting at Katsina sector. Kaura Amah was very keen and proud of his horse, ‘Gunya’ who resisted long-standing battle in field and races.
The warrior, Gurso Sani Danwaire attacked Maradi region, mostly in areas like Ageh, Gazawa, Tessaou, Bukuzawa, Gangara, etc.where he would pick poor unarmed people to Rumah or Dutsen Safe, close to Katsina.
Amah founded Gangara in the year 1897, a new area with flat, fadama soils and fertile agricultural land. Gangara was formed after the femine of Makoshi that forced inhabitants there to relocate. He was at Gangara up to 1902, for a period of 5 years. He then moved to Tarkama. He finally moved southwards and founded, settled at Dankama. He lived peacefully with his family.
To list some wars Amah participated, he was at the forefront in fights like at: Yakin Uswan in Tessaou, Malgori in Teeasou, Galadunchi in Maradi, Bukuzawa in Maradi, that of Zirtawa, Unguwar Mata and Cikaji both in Maradi region too, that of Tureta in Sokoto. He participated in invasion of Sirika and that of Tafkin Sauri both in Katsina, and the war of Dagoni in Kaita area.
Amah’s achievements so far were foundations of Sara-Sabuwa, Gangara, amalgamating and integrating the scattered settlements to form Dankama, establishing Dankama royal house, construction of great wall for protection at Dankama, performance of fetish and charms to protect Dankama from external militants and transfer of market from Sawarya to Dankama and doinf traditional charms to make it sustained and permanent. Another remarkable achievement was he pushed for a letter of permission from Sir Fredrick Lord Lugard to be Katsina citizens from Maradi region. The letter came on 3/5/1903.
Kaura Amah did well to push for community engagement in the construction of an untarred road that linked Dankama-Kaita through Dantudu village in 1906. He was the person who bought land and built it as Sarkin Danama’s lodge in Katsina city in that same year, 1906.
Kaura Amah died in 1924. His descendants are now the traditional heads of wards and districts like Dankama, Ashalu, Birnin Mamman, Dankada, Kunto, Mjigiri, Sabuwar Rijiya and Lugga (all in Nigeria) and Gangara, Gidan Kane and Shajamanja (both in Niger Republic today)
Aliyu I. Kankara
Sunday, 06/10/2025
