Kanuri (redirected from Kanouri)

Kanuri

People of northeastern Nigeria and southeastern Niger, with smaller numbers in Chad, Cameroon, and Sudan. They number about four million. Their language, Kanuri, is one of the Nilo-Saharan languages. The Kanuri developed the powerful empire of Kanem-Bornu, which reached its peak in the 16th century. They have been Muslims since the 11th century. The Kanuri economy is based on millet agriculture and trade with the Fulani and Arab herders.

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Kanuri 

(also known as the Beriberi), a people in northeastern Nigeria, the southeastern part of the Republic of the Niger, and along the eastern shore of Lake Chad (Republic of Chad). Their population, together with the closely related Tubu, Kanembu, and Zaghawa peoples, totals approximately 3 million (1970, estimate). The Kanuri language belongs to the Kanuri-Tubu group. Most Kanuri are Muslims (Islam spread among them in the 11th century); vestiges of the old tribal cults are also preserved. In about the ninth century, the Kanuri created a state union, Kanem-Bornu. The Kanuri engage in farming and cattle raising. A characteristic of the Kanuri is their interweaving of feudal relations and growing capitalist relations.

REFERENCE

Meek, C. K. The Northern Tribes of Nigeria, vols. 1–2. London, 1925.

R. N. ISMAGILOVA