Hamman Yaji

Muhammad Hamman Yaji (1863-1929) was Emir of Madagali, Nigeria, part of the Adamawa Emirate. He is known for his personal diary which records daily life and activities from 1912 to 1927 as a Fulbe raider and slave trader near the border of present-day Adamawa State, Nigeria, and Mayo-Tsanaga, Far North Region, Cameroon. Over a nine-year period, Yaji reportedly carried out over one hundred raids, rustling much livestock, enslaving some 2,016 captives, and killing at least two hundred men, one hundred and sixty-eight of whom he notes specifically.

Originally written in Arabic, his diary provides a rare local perspective on early 20th century sub-Saharan daily life under colonial rule.