Arewa Voices

Stories from the community as told by the community. Arewa Voices documents the voices of Arewa women in the Hausa community of Nigeria.

Arewa Voices

Northern Nigeria’s Opinions on Mental Health

Nigerians are typically religious by nature and this is why even in the 21st Century with great advances in modern medicine. Mental illness is still termed simply as madness and demon possession. As is common in The southern part of Nigeria, so it applies in Northern Nigeria the Muslim Majority North, however, doesn't attribute mental…

ByAisha Kabiru MohammedSeptember 16, 20210Comments

Arewa Voices

Arewa Women in Business

It is the 21st century and women are dominating business more than ever before. Women are now taking charge and using the resources around them to create empires. Women have taken to owning a business from the comforts of their homes using social media tools like Instagram to market goods and with the convenience of…

ByAisha Kabiru MohammedSeptember 9, 20210Comments

Arewa Voices

Finding Feminism in Islam

Growing up I spent most of my time reading novels and watching television. In all of the stories I read and all the shows I watched. I never really saw Muslim women. The only time I saw Muslim women were in the news, which I barely paid attention to. In all of the stories I…

ByAisha Kabiru MohammedSeptember 2, 20210Comments

Arewa Voices

Underneath The Hijab

Abubakar Adam Ibrahim's season of crimson blossom's is a book whose theme doesn't conform to northern Nigeria's Muslim conservative reputation. Theme's of sexual immorality, drugs, and corruption is evident in the story. What amazes me and every other person who picks up the book to read is the affair between Hajiya Binta, a retired school…

ByAisha Kabiru MohammedAugust 26, 20210Comments

Arewa Voices

When Sabr Runs Out

The culture of silence surrounding domestic violence is common in many cultures across the world. Women are made to feel shame for being victims of violence and are therefore not willing to report the crimes committed against them. But the violence itself, not the chaos, is what tears families apart. In Northern Nigeria, this culture…

ByAisha Kabiru MohammedAugust 12, 20211Comment

Arewa Voices

Swapping taxes for gifts: An Islamic take on bride price

"My pastor paid ten Naira as bride price for his wife" I overheard this statement while shopping once. The women chatting found the amount ridiculous at the time and so did I. It was just as ridiculous as the pictures of food items, tools and money I had seen on Instagram meant as payment for…

ByAisha Kabiru MohammedAugust 5, 20210Comments

Arewa Voices

Gender Roles in Arewa, are stereotypes holding back the region?

Gender is a human creation and has been used for millennia to define the differences between the socialization of the male sexes and the female sexes. Along with it are certain activities which each sex must strictly adhere to or be labelled “abnormal”. In Northern Nigeria like in many other places in the world,…

ByAisha Kabiru MohammedJuly 29, 20210Comments

Arewa Voices

Reclaiming Women’s Secret

For centuries Northern Nigerian women have used herbs, spices and fruits, aphrodisiacs said to enhance sexual libido and bring sweetness to their marriage beds. Kayan Mata meaning women's things or property has been passed down for generations of women to newly wedded brides. Kayan Mata's origin and use can be traced to the Northern…

ByAisha Kabiru MohammedJuly 22, 20212Comments

Arewa Voices

The Good Wife and Other Stereotypes Perpetuated by Kannywood

In 2020, I wrote an article about the influence of Bollywood (the Indian film industry) on Kannywood (the Hausa-language film industry based in Northern Nigeria). In it, I wrote that the themes portrayed in Kannywood range from chastity, modest dressing, reserved intimacy to obedience to parents, parent-figures, husbands, and in-laws to the importance of marriage,…

ByKhadija Yusra SanusiJune 29, 20210Comments

Arewa Voices

Girl On Top: Why We Must Educate The Girl Child

In 2014, a Nigerian terrorist group, Boko Haram, kidnapped 276 girls from the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, Borno State in Northern Nigeria. This was particularly heart-breaking because across the country, the region is considered the least educated, ridden by related problems such as early child marriage, forced marriage, and unemployment. The lack of…

ByKhadija Yusra SanusiJune 28, 20210Comments

This Pop-up Is Included in the Theme

Best Choice for Creatives

Purchase Now