How did Islam spread to the Hausa states of northern Nigeria?

Islam was introduced to the Hausa states of northern Nigeria during the 14th century, primarily through the influence of Mali. The spread of the religion was closely tied to the activities of Dyula merchants—Mande-speaking traders who traveled extensively across the western Sudan and established commercial networks reaching the Hausa city-states.123

As these merchants moved through the region, they brought Islamic practices and scholarship, which were adopted by the ruling and merchant classes. For the Hausa monarchs, Islam offered significant commercial and diplomatic advantages, though it initially remained largely an urban religion. For several centuries, many rulers maintained a dual approach, practicing Islam while continuing to observe traditional pre-Islamic rites to sustain their monarchical authority and ancestral connections to the land. It was not until the 19th-century jihad led by the Fulani that Islam became more deeply integrated across the broader population and the states were reorganized into emirates.312