Aminu Garba Rano
Lovingly known as “Malam Aminu”
23 November 1941 — 6 February 2025 · aged 83
Professor of Arabic, neighbourhood imam and teacher of Kano's gentlest Quran class
Kano, Nigeria Born in Dala Ward, Kano Resting at Dala family cemetery, KanoAbout Aminu
He taught for forty-one years and was never once late. Neighbours in Unguwa Uku said you could set your watch by Malam Aminu Rano's walk to the mosque, a measured stroll with his prayer beads in one hand and a student's exercise book in the other.
Born in the old city of Kano in 1941, Aminu memorised the Quran by the age of twelve under a teacher who had a reputation for patience. He later enrolled at Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria, one of the early cohorts in Arabic and Islamic Studies, then took a master's at Al-Azhar University in Cairo. Returning to Kano in 1972, he taught at Bayero University for more than three decades, rising to professor and supervising scores of postgraduate students in classical Arabic literature.
Beyond the lecture hall he was the imam of his neighbourhood mosque for twenty-six years, known for short, thoughtful khutbahs and for greeting every child by name. On Saturday mornings he ran a free Quran class in his compound, where more than four hundred children learned to recite. He would not accept payment, only that each pupil promise to be kind to their mother.
He loved masa with miyan taushe, the poetry of al-Mutanabbi, and the quiet of a long evening after Isha. His family remembers an enormous library, a battered green Peugeot 504 he refused to replace, and a laugh that surprised people because it arrived so rarely and so fully.
Malam Aminu died peacefully at home in February 2025, after a short illness, surrounded by his family. He leaves his wife of fifty-six years, nine children, thirty-one grandchildren and generations of students who still recite as he taught them. Allah ya jikansa.
“Teach the child to recite, but first teach the child to be kind.”
- Faith
- Muslim
- Place of birth
- Dala Ward, Kano
- Resting place
- Dala family cemetery, Kano
- Passed away
- 6 February 2025, Kano
Janazah Prayer
Friday, 7 February 2025 at 11:00 UTC
Add to calendarLife journey
Memorised the Quran
Makarantar Allo, Dala1948 – 1953 · Kano
Completed hifz at twelve under Malam Sani.
BA Arabic and Islamic Studies
Ahmadu Bello University1964 – 1968 · Zaria
Among the early graduates of the department.
MA Arabic Literature
Al-Azhar University1969 – 1972 · Cairo
Wrote his thesis on classical Arabic poetry.
Lecturer to Professor of Arabic
Bayero University Kano1972 – 2006 · Kano
Supervised more than sixty postgraduate dissertations.
Married Hajiya Zainab Sulaiman
1969 · Kano
A marriage of fifty-six years.
Imam
Unguwa Uku Neighbourhood Mosque1985 – 2011 · Kano
Also ran a free Saturday Quran class for children.
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Family & connections
Aminu is survived by
- Hajiya Zainab Rano· Spouse
- Hafsat Aminu Rano· Daughter
- Dr. Garba Aminu Rano· Son
- Ibrahim Aminu Rano· Son
- 31 grandchildren· Grandchildren
Tributes & memories
5 people have shared a memory of Aminu.
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Sign in to write a tribute- FA
Student of Arabic, Lagos
I never met him, but I learned from his published translations of classical poems when I was an undergraduate. Reading the obituary notices today, I understand why those translations felt so patient. He taught across more than a single classroom.
- DB
Former PhD student, now at Zayed University, Abu Dhabi
He supervised my doctorate when few supervisors took women seriously in the department. He arrived at every defence in a freshly pressed babban riga and took his seat in the front row. I owe him my career and my confidence.
- AD
Neighbour and mosque committee member
When the mosque roof leaked in 2003 he quietly sold his own library shelves to pay for the repair, then said it was a debt he owed to Allah. We found out only a year later. He asked us not to mention it again.
- PY
Colleague at Bayero University Kano
Aminu corrected my Arabic grammar for twenty years, always kindly and always correctly. At conferences he was the one who could settle any dispute over a verse with a single line of poetry. We will not see his like in the department again.
- HM
Former pupil of his Saturday Quran class
He gave every child a date when they finished a surah, and he would write it in the margin of their book himself. Mine says 14 June 1994 in his careful hand. I still have the book. I still hear his voice when I recite.
