Unit 5: Prof. Abdalla Uba Adamu

Professor Abdalla Uba Adamu
Videos
Community Images
Pedagogical Activities

Metadata

TitleConversation with Professor Abdalla Uba Adamu
InterviewerDr. Mustapha Hashim Kurfi
SubjectHis life story, works on Hausa Ajami, and how to best to sustain Ajami
ContentAbdalla Uba Adamu was born in Kano in 1956. He holds a B.Sc. in Education/Biology/Physiology, from Ahmadu Bello University (1979); an M.A. in Science Education from Chelsea College, University of London (1983); and D.Phil. from Sussex University, in Brighton, England (1988). He holds double professorships in Science Education (1997) and Media and Cultural Communication (2012) from Bayero University Kano, Nigeria. Married with children, Professor Abdalla’s main research focus is on transnational media flows and their impact on Muslim Hausa popular culture, especially in literature, film, music, and the performing arts. He is the creator of the Foundation for Hausa Performing Arts (Kano, Nigeria) whose main concern is to archive the traditional performing arts heritage of the Muslim Hausa. Professor Abdalla has also developed courses on digital cultures and promotes ethnography as a research methodology for documenting Hausa media ethnographies. He is the chairman of a research cluster on Visual Anthropology based at Bayero University. From 1991 to 1992, he was a Fulbright African Senior Research Scholar, in residency at the Center for Studies in Higher Education, University of California, Berkeley. This led to his first major book, Reform and Adaptation in Nigerian University Curricula, 1960-1992, (Edwin Mellen Press, 1994). In 1993, he was also awarded a residency in the Rockefeller Foundation’s Bellagio Resident Fellows program in Bellagio, Italy. Professor Abdalla is the immediate past Vice-Chancellor of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN). In this interview, Professor Abdalla traces the history, relevance, and success of Hausa Ajami. He identifies the forces that keep Hausa Ajami, and Ajami in general, from achieving certain desired goals in contemporary society. He offers practical solutions to those challenges. Professor Abdalla currently engages in a number of pragmatic ways to promote the values of Hausa Ajami, including in modern media arts. 
LanguageHausa
ScriptHausa Ajami
LocationProfessor Abdalla Uba Adamu’s Company Office Kano, Nigeria
Pedagogical content/applicationIncludes relevant linguistic, stylistic, and cultural skills as identified in our assessment guidebook/ ACTFL guidelines
Access condition and copyrightThese materials are subject to copyright and are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License, which permits non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. For use, distribution or reproduction beyond these terms, contact Professor Fallou Ngom (fngom@bu.edu).
ContributorsFallou Ngom, Jennifer Yanco, Mustapha Kurfi, Daivi Rodima-Taylor, Alison Parker, and Frank Antonelli.
Required citation informationFallou Ngom (PI), Jennifer Yanco, Mustapha Kurfi, and Daivi Rodima-Taylor. 2023. “Conversation with Professor Abdalla Uba Adamu.” https://sites.bu.edu/ria/hausa/hausa-unit-5/

Videos

Hausa with English Subtitles

Hausa with Latin Script Subtitles

Community Images

(click on the image for a larger view)

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  • Sharu Mustapha Gabari, shugaban Makarantar Koyon Zane-Zane tsaye a gaban ƙofar makarantar. An rubuta sunan unguwar wato Lolloki, shi kuma gini mai namba 71 a Hausar boko. || Sharu Mustapha Gabari, the Director of the Institute for Calligraphic Design, standing in front of the school. Written on the plate over the door is “Building number 71” in Latin script, and “Lolloki,” the name of the district, in both Ajami and the Latin script.

  • Farfesa Abdalla Uba Adamu (daga hagu) tare da Sharu Mustapha Gabari, shugaban Makarantar Koyon Zane-Zane da sana’o’i wacce ke a Gabari, tsakiyar Birnin Kano. Shi dai Farfesa Abdalla Uba Adamu yana bada gudummawar matuƙa ga makarantar. || Professor Abdalla Uba Adamu (on the left) with Sharu Mustapha Gabari, Director of the Institute of Calligraphic Design, Gabari, in Kano city. Professor Abdalla Uba Adamu is a great supporter of the institute.

  • Sharu Mustapha Gabari yana nuna wasu daga aiyukan da ɗaliban makarantarsa suka yi. || Sharu Mustapha Gabari showcasing the work done by some apprentices at his school.

  • Ƙofar Ɗan-Agundi, ɗaya daga cikin ƙofofin Birnin Kano, wacce aka rubuta sunan ta cikin Hausa Ajami. || Ɗan-Agundi gate, one of the gates to the city of Kano, with its name written in Hausa Ajami.

  • Gidan Goldie A, ɗaya daga cikin tsaffin gine-gine na Turawan mulkin mallaka masu tsohon tarihi a tsakiyar cibiyar kasuwanci ta Kano. || Goldie’s House A, one of the oldest historic colonial buildings, located in the central business district of Kano.

  • Cikin fadar mai martaba Sarkin Dutse a jihar Jigawa. || Inside view of the Emir of Dutse’s palace in Jigawa state.

  • Hoton gaban gidan Sarkin Bai, wanda yake a cikin ƙwaryar garin Kano. || View of the front of the home of the Head of the Emir’s servants, in old Kano city.

  • Gidan Goldie B ɗaya daga cikin tsaffin gine-gine na Turawan mulkin mallaka masu tsohon tarihi a tsakiyar cibiyar kasuwanci ta Kano. Gidajen biyu ne daura da juna. || Goldie’s House B, one of the oldest historic colonial buildings, located in the central business district of Kano. The two buildings (photos 5 and 8) are adjacent to each other.

  • Ɗaya daga cikin nambobin gidaje cikin garin Kano. An rubuta sunan unguwar cikin Hausa Ajami, wato Ɗorayi na gari, gida mai namba 135. || One of the house numbers in Kano city. Written in Hausa Ajami and in the Latin script is the name of the district, “Ɗorayi central,” house number 135.

  • Takardar fasta ta takarar gwamna a jihar Kano. An rubuta cikin Hausa Ajami: “Zaɓi jam’iyya mai tafin hannu. Abdulkarim Abdussalam Zaura. Gwamnan Kano 2019.” || A political poster for a gubernatorial candidate in Kano state. Written in Hausa Ajami is: “Vote for the party with a hand symbol. Abdulkarim Abdussalam Zaura. Kano Governor 2019.”

Pedagogical Activities

Glossary
Notes
Exercises
Hausa Keyboard

Glossary

  1. Aƙida: Creed, manifesto
  2. Amfani: Usefulness, benefit, advantage, use
  3. Ci gaba: To develop, carry on, progress, advance, promote
  4. Dakusar: To mitigate, incapacitate, cause to deteriorate
  5. Dangantaka: Relationship
  6. Feleƙe: Exaggeration, affectation, hypercorrection, misplaced priority
  7. Gayyata: Invitation
  8. Goyon-baya: Support, collaboration, cooperation
  9. Haihuwa: Birth, giving birth
  10. Jamhuriya: Republic, from Arabic jamhūr (crowd, public)
  11. Jami’a: University, from Arabic jāmiʿa (university)
  12. Koyarwa: Teaching, educating
  13. Ƙungiyoyi: Organizations, groups, collectivities, associations from Ƙungiya (singular)
  14. Larabci: Arabic language
  15. Matsala: Challenge, problem, obstacle
  16. Nazari: Research, investigation, thought, analysis, contemplation
  17. Sake haihuwa: Rebirth, reinvigorate
  18. Sarkin: Leader, chief, head
  19. Shela: Public announcement, proclamation
  20. Siyasa: Politics, from Arabic siyāsa (politics)
  21. Tasiri: Influence, impact, power, effect
  22. Unguwa: County, district

Notes

  1. Amfanin ilimi aiki da shi: “The value of knowledge is what you do with it.” A Hausa saying indicating that knowledge is only as valuable as the purposes it serves.
  2. Anemi na kai don dakusar da talauci: “Self-reliance and determination mitigate poverty.” A saying encouraging hard work and self-reliance, which are associated with dignity, respect, and honor in Hausa society.
  3. Jami’a maɓuɓɓuga ilimi: “A university is a fountain of knowledge.” A Hausa saying that speaks to the importance of universities as valuable, life-giving resources.
  4. Ƙungiyoyi masu zaman kan su: This phrase is used to refer to the importance of the numerous organizations in Hausa society, including voluntary organizations, community-based organizations, and non-governmental organizations.
  5. Larabci yaren Alƙur’ani: “Arabic is the language of the Quran.” This statement is used to emphasize the importance of learning Arabic, which is required to understand the content of the Quran.
  6. Matsalar shakulatun ɓangaro: “A deliberate or calculated neglect.” This phrase is used in Hausa society to describe a situation in which something crucial has lost value due to neglectful behavior.
  7. Siyasa rigar ƴanci: “Politics is the gown of freedom or liberty.” This phrase is used to describe the Hausa form of democracy reflected in the election of local leaders such as Emirs, Sarkin Samari (Youth Leader), Sarkin Noma (Farmers’ Chief), Sarkin Bori (Bori Cult Leader), Sarkin Baka (Hunters’ Chief), and so on.

Exercises:

Comprehension || Writing || Listening / Speaking and Conversation || Cultural Competence

Comprehension: Video

Comprehension: Image

Writing

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For exercises 1-6 below, open the Hausa Ajami keyboard, type text, and copy-paste it into the box.
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Listening / Speaking and Conversation

  • A rubuto gajerun tambayoyi azo aji da su don a tambayi juna.
  • Rubuta labarin da a ciki za ka/ki karanta bayani game da wani abu na gargajiya ko al’ada wanda za a iya cirowa daga faifan bidiyon.

Cultural Competence

  • Kwatanta fitattun abubuwan al’ada  waɗanda aka ambato su a faifan bidiyon hira da Farfesa Abdalla Uba Adamu.