Kizamani in Nigeria

People Name:	Kizamani
Country:	Nigeria
10/40 Window:	Yes
Population:	2,100
World Population:	2,100
Primary Language:	Kizamani
Primary Religion:	Islam
Christian Adherents:	4.00 %
Evangelicals:	3.00 %
Scripture:	Unspecified
Ministry Resources:	No
Jesus Film:	No
Audio Recordings:	No
People Cluster:	Benue
Affinity Bloc:	Sub-Saharan Peoples
Progress Level:

Introduction / History

The Kuzamani are a small agricultural, Muslim people who live in Nigeria. The Kuzamani are also known as the Rishuwa or Shuwa Zamani. Shuwa-Zamani is also the name of the language spoken by this people group. Only gospel recordings are currently available in this language. Shuwa-Zamani is an endangered language. Young people prefer to speak the Hausa and English languages they learn in school. Unfortunately, many of the Kuzamani are unable to read and write. The gospel will need to be presented to them in oral and visual forms.

Where Are they Located?

They are a relatively small people group in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna in north central Nigeria.

What Are Their Lives Like?

The lifestyle of the people is closely related to the Hausa-Fulani and may be absorbed by this dominant culture in the near future. The settlements of the Kuzamani have been under attack the by neighboring Adara and the Fulani peoples. The Kuzamani reside in their rural villages surrounded by the land they farm. They grow rice, maize, millet, yams, melons, bananas, beans, and vegetables. They grow peanuts, kola nuts, and palm oil as cash crops, which they sell to buy things they cannot make for themselves such as cell phones and appliances. They also raise goats and cattle to provide meat, milk and hides. Chickens provide eggs and meat.

What Are Their Beliefs?

The Kuzamani people are Sunni, the largest branch of Islam. They believe that the One, Supreme God, Allah, revealed through his prophet, Mohammed, and taught mankind how to live a righteous life through the Koran and the Hadith. To live a righteous life, you must utter the Shahada (a statement of faith), pray five times a day facing Mecca, fast from sunup to sundown during the month of Ramadan, give alms to the poor, and make a pilgrimage to Mecca if you have the means. Muslims are prohibited from drinking alcohol, eating pork, gambling, stealing, slandering, and making idols. They gather for corporate prayer on Friday afternoons at a mosque, their place of worship.

The two main holidays for Sunni Muslims are Eid al Fitr, the breaking of the monthly fast and Eid al Adha, the celebration of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son to Allah.

In most of the Muslim world, peoples like the Kuzamani depend on the spirit world for their daily needs since they regard Allah as too distant. Allah may determine their eternal salvation, but the spirits determine how well we live in our daily lives. For that reason, they must appease the spirits. The often use charms and amulets to help them deal with spiritual forces.

What Are Their Needs?

The Kuzamani people need adequate rain for their crops and their livestock so they can live lives free of want and poverty. They need modern medical care and good schools that will help the next generation to thrive in a rapidly changing world. Solar panels can provide electricity to charge cell phones and appliances. Most of all, the Kuzamani need to hear and understand the message of Jesus Christ. He alone can forgive their sins and give them eternal life.

Prayer Points

Pray for families of Kuzamani to grow reproducing churches.
Pray for a chain reaction of Kuzamani families reaching families that results in thousands of new believers who share their faith with others.
Pray for grace and truth expanding into the entire Kuzamani society as all believers learn to love others.
Pray that churches and believers will bless their entire people group in such a way that God's love will change the Kuzamani people like yeast changes dough.
Pray that the believers in the nearby Lere people reach out and share the good news with the Kuzamani.