Alhassan Dantata

Alhassan Dantata
Born	1877 Bebeji
Died	August 17, 1955 Kano
Resting place	Sarari ward of Kano
Residence	Kano
Nationality	Nigerian
Education	Madrasah in Bebeji
Occupation	Merchant
Board member of	Emir of Kano's Council
Religion	Islam
Spouse	Umma Zaria, Maimuna
Children	Ahmadu, Aminu, Mamudi, Sanusi, Mudi, et. al.
Parents	Abdullahi, Fatima

Alhassan Dantata (1877- August 17, 1955) was a northern Nigerian kola nut trader and the wealthiest man in West Africa at the time of his death.^[1][2]

Early life

Dantata's father was Abdullahi, a man from the village of Danshayi, near Kano. Dantata was born in Bebeji in 1877, one of several children of Abdullahi and his wife, both of whom were traders and caravan leaders. His father died in Bebeji, and his mother moved to Gonja, now in northern Ghana.^[2]

Dantata remained in Bebeji in the care of a slave woman named Tata (this is the root of the name "Dantata", which means "son of Tata"), and attended madrasah (Qur'an school). Dantata moved to Gonja, where his mother worked, at age fifteen, and studied and worked in Accra.^[2]

Career

Dantata later returned to Bebeji, and began using steamships to transport kola nuts between Accra and Lagos. He later diversified his trade into items such as beads and necklaces, and bought a house in the Koki ward of Kano. He married Umma Zaria, and she conducted business for him with women (him not doing it for religious reasons). In 1918, the UK-based Royal Niger Company searched for an agent to purchase groundnuts for them, and Dantata responded to their offer.^[2]

He made a pilgrimage (hajj) to Mecca via boat in the early 1920s, and stopped in England.^[2] He also financed the pilgrimages of others.^[3]

By 1922 Dantata had become the richest businessman in Kano, surpassing fellow merchants Umaru Sharubutu Koki and Maikano Agogo. In 1929, when the Bank of British West Africa opened a branch in Kano, Dantata placed 20 camel-loads of silver coins in it. (For religious reasons, his money collected no interest.) He died in Kano on August 17, 1955, having exhorted his children to not let his company, Alhassan Dantata and Sons, be broken up. He was buried in his house in the Sarari ward.^[2]

Children

Among Dantata's sons were Mamuda (1922-1983), founder of the West African Pilgrims Association and a currency trader,^[4] Sanusi (born 1917), a very successful businessman,^[5] Ahmadu (died 1960), a politician,^[6] and Aminu (born 1931), a businessman.^[7]

References

1. ^ Price, J.H (1955-10-19). "Alhaji Alhassan Dantata, An Appreciation". West Africa. Archived from the original on 2010-11-15. http://dantatafamily.com/tribute_to_alhassan.htm. Retrieved 2007-10-09. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Dan-Asabe, Abdulkarim Umar (November 2000). "Biography of Select Kano Merchants, 1853-1955". FAIS Journal of Humanities 1 (2). Archived from the original on September 3, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20070903072846/http://www.kanostate.net/Support+Files/Biography+of+Select+Kano+Merchants.htm. Retrieved 2007-10-09. ^{[dead link]}
3. ^ Iliffe, John (2005). "Urbanisation and Masculinity". Honour in African History. Cambridge University Press. p. 283. ISBN 978-0-521-83785-9. 
4. ^ Hashim, Yahaya; Kate Meagher (1999). Cross-Border Trade and the Parallel Currency Market - Trade and Finance in the Context of Structural Adjustment. Uppsala: Nordic Africa Institute. p. 30. ISBN 978-91-7106-449-3. 
5. ^ Loimeier, Roman (1997). Islamic Reform and Political Change in Northern Nigeria. Northwestern University Press. pp. 65–70. ISBN 978-0-8101-1346-6. 
6. ^ Sklar, Richard L (2004). Nigerian Political Parties: Power in an Emergent African Nation. Africa World Press. ISBN 978-1-59221-209-5. 
7. ^ Forrest, Tom (1994). The Advance of African Capital: The Growth of Nigerian Private Enterprise. Edinburgh University Press. p. 206. ISBN 978-0-7486-0492-0. 

Persondata
Name	Dantata, Alhassan
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1877
Place of birth	Bebeji
Date of death	August 17, 1955
Place of death	Kano