Welcome
Ahlan wa sahlan wa marhaban bikum
I heartily
welcome you to the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of
Ibadan where cutting edge scholarship, un-paralleled zeal to open up new
horizons in Arabic and Islamic scholarship constantly drive staff and students
on a daily basis.
Our Department
pioneered the study of Arabic and Islamic Studies at Tertiary level in Nigeria.
I am happy to
note that presently, as has been the case in the past, members of the academic
staff of this Department and the students are involved in expanding the
frontiers of Arabic/Islamic scholarship through a balance of the old and the
new. The academic staff here ranks among
the best in the nation.
I invite you
to take a moment to learn more about what makes this Department a fountain for
others in Nigeria.
Professor I. O. Uthman
Head of Department
08036201617
In 1961, an Arabic unit was established in the University of Ibadan
to assuage the desire of scholars who were desirous of accessing information on
the history of North African societies most of which were written or documented
in Arabic. Led by the famous American historian, John Hunwick, the unit later
became a full-fledged Department in 1962. It began to cater for the needs of
Nigerians and indeed West African scholars through its programmes in Arabic and
Islamic studies broadly defined even as it has facilitated the establishment of
similar Departments in the Universities all around the country.
It opened with Dr. B.G. Martins (now Professor Martins, in the
U.S.A.), Mr. J.O. Hunwick (Late Professor Hunwick who passed on recently in the
U.S.A.) and Mr. F.H. El-Masri (now Professor El-Masri in the University of
Nairobi, Kenya). They were joined in 1963 by Mr A.R. Dehaini (a Lecturer
seconded and paid by the Lebanese government). In 1964, Mr M.O.A. Abdul (late
Professor and Head of Department) joined as the first Nigerian member of the
academic staff. Postgraduate Studies Programme in Arabic was introduced first
and this was followed later by Islamic Studies.
In addition to the B.A. Honours Degree and Postgraduate Studies
offered by the Department, a Certificate course in Arabic Studies was
introduced in the 1963/64 session. This was a one-year intensive course for
Arabic teachers some of whom had many years of experience in the teaching of
the language. Two years later, the course was expanded to include Islamic
Studies.
In 1975/76 session, a Diploma course in Arabic and Islamic Studies
was also introduced. It was specially designed to cater for holders of Grade
Two Certificate in Islamic studies. Holders of the WASC/G.C.E. (five credits)
were also admitted into the programme. This course was introduced as an interim
measure for the provision of qualified teachers of Arabic and Islamic Religious
Knowledge in Secondary School where there had been a dire need for qualified
teachers of the subjects. The two sub-Degree programmes, among others, have
been scraped by the University.
Feel free to contact us any time
Our Programmes include:
The Department is in affiliation with the following institutions:
Kindly check the Departmental prospectus for admission requirements.