Gidan Nabame: Where Argungu emirs must be buried

What is today known as Gidan Nabame (Kanta museum) in Argungu was built by Yakubu Nabame the 23rd king of Argungu in 1831 as a palace years after the Kabawa left Surame kingdom after the death of King Kanta. According to historical accounts, all the kings that reigned over the ancient town after the death […]

What is today known as Gidan Nabame (Kanta museum) in Argungu was built by Yakubu Nabame the 23rd king of Argungu in 1831 as a palace years after the Kabawa left Surame kingdom after the death of King Kanta. According to historical accounts, all the kings that reigned over the ancient town after the death of Nabame lived in the palace except the present emir and his late father, Emir Muhammadu Mera.
Gidan Nabame is an important traditional and historical structure attached to the Kabawa of Argungu. Apart from being the final resting place for their emirs when they die, the ancient palace, which today serves as a national museum, can be described as a sanctuary for Kabbi kingdom’s cultural, occupational and traditional artifacts that date back to when the Kabawa were in Surame city, over 600 years ago. To show its symbolic importance, the current Emir of Argungu, Alhaji Samaila Mera, till today, still holds court sessions and receives homages at Gidan Nabame every Friday after the Juma’at prayer.
Because of its historical relevance and traditional attachment, the palace was taken over by the federal government and declared a national monument by the National Commission for Museum and Monument (NCMM) in 2013. The museum is divided into 11 units, and each of them was designed to showcase the history, culture, tradition and occupation of Kabbi ethnic communities, which constitute the present day Kebbi State.
Speaking to Daily Trust on Sunday, the curator of the Kanta National Museum in Argungu, Garba Hassan Muhammed, said the Kabawa were rich in culture and tradition.
“Their history dates back to when they were in Surame city, their ancesstral home. King Yakubu Nabame was the one who built this museum as his palace in 1831. The sitting arrangement in this museum today was how it was when he was living in this palace. In those days, the emir would sit here on his karaga (the emir’s throne). The other smaller chairs you see beside his chair belonged to his counsels and his Kondoda (second in command), who was always by his right hand side. Others who used to sit with him included the Magajin-Gari.
In those days, whoever was the emir was the king, the judge and everything. He decided every case in this palace, and whatever he decided was final, there was no appeal. The palace was decorated according to the taste of the emir.”
All the kings who had at one time or another presided over Argungu from the days of Nabame were buried in the palace.

Bala Abdullahi, a museum assistant at the Kanta National Museum said, “Wherever the emir died he must be brought back home and buried at Gidan Nabame.
“Even if he died in America or any other country he must be brought back home and buried at Gidan Nabame. That is the culture and tradition here.”
To confirm this traditional practice, he pointed to a spot at the tomb of the emirs inside the museum and said, “That place over there will be the final resting place of the present Emir of Argungu. The space there is reserved for our emir whenever Allah calls him. Whenever he dies, that is the place he would be buried alongside other kings that had reigned over the people of Argungu.
“This place is big, it can still accommodate other future emirs that would reign over Argungu. We still have an extension of the emirs’ tombs somewhere in the ancient palace if there is no space here in the future”.
The tombs of the emirs were clearly demarcated. Their names and  periods of their reign were inscribed on the concretes used to immortalise them at the spot where they were buried in the palace.
According to the historical records available at the museum, when Nabame died, his brother, Yusuf Mai-Nasara took over the affairs of Argungu, but he was killed by Sarkin-Gwandu. It was after him that Nabame’s first son, Muhammadu Bahare became the king of Argungu.
When he died, the younger brother to Yakubu Nabame, Abdullahi Toga, who was the 25th emir of Argungu, reigned from 1860 to 1883 and Sama Dan Yakubu took over and reigned from 1883 to 1915. Sule Dobi -Sarkin Daji took over as 27th emir and reigned from 1915 to 1920. After his death, Muhammadu Dan Sama reigned from 1920 to 1934, and Muhammadu Sani, the grandfather of the present Emir of Argungu became emir and reigned from 1934 to 1942. Samaila Fari came after him, but he was removed and he went to stay at Kushi near Mayama. Muhammadu Shehe came after him and reigned over Argungu from 1953 to 1959 as the 3rd emir.
When he died, Muhammadu Mera, the father of the present Emir of Argungu, became emir and ruled from 1959 to 1996.  Only Muhammadu Mera and Sumaila Mera did not live in the palace that is today known as Kanta Museum. All other kings who had ruled over Argungu lived in the palace at different periods of their reign before it was taken over by the NCMM on September 26, 2013 and declared a national monument.
The curator added that the first unit of the museum is the king’s court. “In the olden days, the emir was everything. He was the king, judge, imam, and he had the final say on everything. That is why his court is our first unit at the museum. The second unit is associated with Kebbi ethnic communities. The third unit is the tombs of the past kings.
“The fourth one is the traditional occupations of the kabawa community. The fifth is the continuation of the tombs of the past kings. The sixth unit is the musical instruments of the Kabawa, while the seventh unit is tagged Kabbi war weapons. The eight unit of the museum at Gidan Nabame is where the hunting and fishing tools of the Kabbi people are kept. Its ninth unit parades different horses of the Kabawa. The tenth unit is about local villages in Kabbi kingdom, while the eleventh unit is where pictures of the ancient Surame city were kept. Surame City was where King Kanta lived, and the Kabawa believed it was the first capital in Kebbi State.”
To showcase the ethnic communities that make up what is today known as Kebbi State, there is a section of the museum where different tribal marks and communities that are associated with each of them in Kabbi kingdom are displayed.
Ethnic communities such as the Balekaye (the ruling class), Baare and Bakabe or Kabawa people of the swampy area were known for rice farming and fishing activities.  There were also the tribal marks of the Bazabarma and Kyanganchi from Shangai and those of the Bagube from Kangiwa area of Arewa Local Government.
Others are Bafanfare, Gagobiri, Dandanchi people from Dandi or Kamba Local Government Area, Falawa and Bakarfaye from a part of Benin Republic, Kanbarin-Barebare from Argungu, Shanganchi from Shanghai Local Government Area and the Fulani Dakawa, now in the council of the emir’s palace.
All these ethnic communities, according Kabawa historical records, speak the Hausa language, except Bazabarma and Kyanganchi that have different languages.
Malam Abdullahi said, “Gidan Nabame is of great historical importance to the Kabawa of Kebbi State. All the emirs who had ruled Argungu after the death of Kanta were buried in the ancient palace. That is to show how important this structure is to the Kabawa.
“Till this present day, the Emir of Argungu still comes here after every Juma’at prayer. He would sit on the emir’s Karaga (king’s throne) built since the days of King Nabame and hold court sessions, receive homages and visitors before returning to his modern day palace.”
At a section of the museum, the early traditional religion of the Kabbi people were on display. According to the museum assistant, in those days, people of the kingdom   combined Islam with the Bori traditional religion.
“Some of the spirits they worshipped include Doguwa (tall spirit) Bafillatar Ruwa (spirit of the river) Yar Bu’aye and Kirai (spirits of the rain), Fitar Baza (Barma spirit), Maryama (queen’s spirit), Babale (spirit of fire) and Badakkare (spirit of Bori culture, associated with the Zuru ethnic community). 
These spirits feature prominently during the celebration of Bori culture in Kabbi kingdom. But with time, Islamic scholars preached against the practice of the Bori culture and harped on the need to practise Islam as the only religion”.