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{{Infobox Former Country
|native_name =
|conventional_long_name = Kanem Empire
|common_name = Kanem Empire
|continent = Africa
|region =
|country = Chad
|era = Middle Ages
|status =
|status_text =
|empire =
|government_type = Monarchy
|year_start = c. 700
|year_end = 1380
|event_start =
|date_start =
|event_end = Invaded and forced to move, thus establishing new ]
|date_end =
|p1 =
|flag_p1 =
|s1 = Bornu Empire
|flag_s1 = Bornu flag of vallseca 1439.jpg
|image_flag = Kanem flag from dulcerta 1339-pt.svg
|flag = <!-- Link target under flag image. Default: Flag of {{{common_name}}} -->
|flag_type = Flag of Kanem also known as Organa from Dulcerta atlas 1339
|image_coat =
|image_map = Kanem-Bornu.svg
|image_map_caption = Influence of Kanem Empire around 1200 AD
|capital = ]
|common_languages = ]
|religion = ], later ]
|currency =
|leader1 = ]
|leader2 = ]
|year_leader1 = c. 700
|year_leader2 = 1382–1387
|title_leader = ]
|<!--- Area and population of a given year --->
|stat_year1 = 1200<ref>Shillington, page 733</ref>
|stat_area1 = 776996
|stat_pop1 =
}}
{{History of Northern Nigeria}}
The '''Kanem Empire''' (c. 700–1380) was located in the present countries of ], ] and ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/310975/Kanem-Bornu|title=Kanem-Bornu|work=Encyclopædia Britannica|accessdate=24 September 2014}}</ref> At its height it encompassed an area covering not only most of Chad, but also parts of southern ] (]) and eastern ], northeastern ] and northern ]. The history of the Empire is mainly known from the Royal Chronicle or '']'' discovered in 1851 by the German traveller ].

==Origins==
The empire of Kanem began forming around AD 300 under the ]ic ]-speaking ]. According to the ], the Kanembu were forced southwest towards the fertile lands around ] by political pressure and ] in their former range. The area already possessed independent, walled ]s belonging to the ]. Under the leadership of the ], the Kanembu would eventually dominate the Sao, but not before adopting many of their customs. War between the two continued up to the late 16th century.

One theory proposes that the lost state of ] (mentioned by ] in the middle of the 2nd century AD) was the antecedent of the Kanem Empire.<ref> Borno Museum Society Newsletter 66-67 (2006), 15-25. (The article has a map (page 6) of the ancient Central Sahara and proposes to identify Agisymba of 100 CE with the early Kanem state).</ref>

==Duguwa Dynasty (Kanembu)==
{{main|Duguwa Dynasty}}
Kanem was located at the southern end of the ] route between ] and the region of Lake Chad. The Kanembu eventually abandoned their nomadic lifestyle and founded a capital around 700 AD under the first documented Kanembu king ("mai") known as Sef of Saif. The capital of ] (the word for "south" in the ]) grew in power and influence under Sef's son, Dugu. This transition marked the beginning of the ]. The mais of the Duguwa were regarded as divine kings and belonged to the ruling establishment known as the Magumi. Despite changes in dynastic power, the magumi and the title of mai would persevere for over a thousand years.

Kanem is mentioned as one of three great empires in ], by ] in 872.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Levtzion|first1=Nehemia|title=Ancient Ghana and Mali|date=1973|publisher=Methuen & Co Ltd|location=New York|isbn=0841904316|page=3}}</ref>

==Sayfawa Dynasty==
{{main|Sayfawa Dynasty}}
The major factor that later influenced the history of the state of Kanem was the early penetration of ]. North African traders, Berbers and Arabs, brought the new ]. In 1085, a Muslim noble by the name of ] removed the last Duguwa king ] from power and thus established the new dynasty of the Sefuwa.

The introduction of the Sefuwa dynasty meant radical changes for the Kanem Empire. First, it meant the Islamization of the court and state policies. Second, the identification of founders had to be revised.

==Islam and Kanem==
Islam offered the Sayfawa rulers the advantage of new ideas from the ] and the ] world, as well as literacy in administration. Initially, many resisted the new religion, favouring ] and practices. When Hummay had assumed power on the basis of his strong Islamic following, it is believed that the Duguwa/Sefuwa began some kind of internal opposition. This pattern of conflict and compromise with Islam occurs repeatedly in ].

By the 12th century, the Sayfawa ruled all over Kanem. At the same time, the Kanembu people drew closer to the new rulers and increased the growing population in Njimi. Even though the Kanembu became the main power base of the Sayfawa, Kanem's rulers continued to travel frequently throughout the kingdom and especially towards ], west of lake Chad. ] and ]s alike recognized the government's power and acknowledged their allegiance by paying ].

==Mai Dunama Dabbalemi==
Kanem's expansion peaked during the long and energetic ] of Mai ] (ca. 1221–1259), also of the Sayfawa ]. Dabbalemi initiated diplomatic exchanges with ]s in ] and apparently arranged for the establishment of a special hostel in ] to facilitate ] to ]. During his reign, he declared '']'' against the surrounding tribes and initiated an extended period of conquest. After consolidating their territory around Lake Chad, the ] region (in present-day ]) fell under Kanem's authority, and the ]'s influence extended westward to ] (in present-day ]), eastward to ], and southward to the Adamawa grasslands (in present-day ]). However, he also destroyed the national ] cult and thus precipitated widespread revolt culminating in the uprise of the ] and the ]. The former could be quenched but the latter continued to linger on and finally led to the retreat of the Sayfuwa from Kanem to Bornu c. 1380.

Dabbalemi devised a system to reward military commanders with authority over the people they conquered. This system, however, tempted military officers to pass their positions to their sons, thus transforming the office from one based on achievement and loyalty to the mai into one based on ] ]. Dabbalemi was able to suppress this tendency, but after his death, dissension among his sons weakened the Sayfawa Dynasty. Dynastic ]s degenerated into ], and Kanem's outlying peoples soon ceased paying tribute.

==Fall of Kanem==
After the death of Dunama II, Kanem quickly fell into a downward spiral. By the end of the 14th century, internal struggles and external attacks had torn Kanem apart.

===Sao Resurgence===
Between 1342 and 1352, the Sao, who had dominated Kanem prior to the Zaghawa, killed four mais in battle. The proliferation of mai claimants to the throne led to a series of internecine wars. It became a problem for them to rule.{{Citation needed|date=March 2017}}

==Bulala Invasion==
The death knell of Sayfawa power in Kanem was dealt by the ], invaders from the area around ] to the east. By 1376, the Bulala had driven the Sayfawa from their capital. By 1388, they had taken Kanem altogether. The ] were forced back into their nomadic ways and migrated west of Lake Chad, eventually establishing a new empire in Bornu.

==See also==
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{cite book |author=Shillington, Kevin |title=Encyclopedia of African History Volume 1 A-G |publisher=Routledge |location=New York |year=2005 |pages=1912 pages |isbn=1-57958-245-1}}
* , in Thomas Collelo, ed. Chad: A Country Study. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress, 1988.
* Lange, Dierk: , in: M. Elfasi (Hg.), ''General History of Africa'', vol. III, UNESCO, London 1988, p.&nbsp;436-460.
* Lange, Dierk, , in: D. T. Niane (ed.), ''General History of Africa'', vol. IV, UNESCO, London 1984, p.&nbsp;238-265.

==Further reading==
* Barkindo, Bawuro, "The early states of the Central Sudan: Kanem, Borno and some of their neighbours to c. 1500 A.D.", in: J. Ajayi und M. Crowder (Hg.), ''History of West Africa'', Bd. I, 3. Ausg. Harlow 1985, 225-254.
* Lange, Dierk, ''Ancient Kingdoms of West Africa: Africa-Centred and Canaanite-Israelite Perspectives'', Dettelbach 2004. (the book suggests a pre-Christian origin of Kanem in connection with the ])
* Urvoy, Yves, ''L'empire du Bornou'', Paris 1949.
* Lange, Dierk, ''Borno Museum Society Newsletter'', 72-75 (2008), 84-106.

== External links ==
*
{{Sahelian kingdoms}}
{{Empires}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2017}}

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