Muslims from the region that is now Nigeria have been undertaking the Hajj for hundreds of years. But the process of completing the pilgrimage changed dramatically in the twentieth century as state governments became heavily involved in its organization and management. Under British colonial rule, a minimalist approach to pilgrimage control facilitated the journeys of many thousands of mostly overland pilgrims. Decolonization produced new political contexts, with nationalist politicians taking a more proactive approach to pilgrimage management for both domestic and international reasons. The Hajj, which had previously been a life-altering journey undertaken slowly and incrementally over years, became a shorter, safer, trip characterized by round trip plane rides. In examining the transformation of the Nigerian Hajj, this book demonstrates how the Hajj became ever more intertwined with Nigerian politics and governance as the country moved from empire to independence. -- .

The Oxford Handbook of Nigerian History provides a comprehensive history of Africa's most populous and most rapidly developing country. Rather than centering the rise of the nation-state, the Handbook reads the narrative of national politics alongside deeper histories of political and social organization, as well as in relation to competing influences on modern identity formation and inter-group relationships, such as ethnic and religious communities, economic partnerships, and immigrant and diasporic cultures. Consisting of 36 chapters, the Handbook is separated into five major sections, starting with the historiography of Nigeria-namely, the systems of knowledge handed down by the indigenous, Christian, Islamic, colonial, and post-colonial traditions. From that foundation, the chapters cover the development of nomadic and agricultural societies, the colonial era, the emergence of a modern Nigeria, and the impact of Nigerians outside of the country's borders. This transnational approach incorporates the most important ideas from the new scholarship emerging in the 21st century, creating a forward-looking volume appropriate for a dynamic, diverse, and swiftly changing Nigeria.