Every year across the Islamic world, there is one month when the rhythms of time seem to change: Ramadan.
Patience and generosity overtake the hustle and bustle. The usually frenetic daytime streets quieten down, and nights come alive with prayer, food and festivity that extend until dawn.
Around the world, rituals of the holy fasting month have embedded themselves in other communities too – not least in Africa, where some 40 percent of the more than 1 billion people identify as Muslim.
Islam first spread from the Middle East to the African continent in the seventh century during the time of the Prophet Muhammad. About 1,400 years later, it is a majority religion across North Africa as well as in Chad, The Gambia, Senegal, Somalia and Sudan.
For Muslims across the continent, Ramadan and the end-of-the-month festival of Eid al-Fitr are a combination of religious practices and cultural rituals around food and community.
In Senegal, Nigeria and South Africa, three photographers documenting their communities share snapshots of the month with Al Jazeera.
Nigeria: Spirituality and horseback parades
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, is also home to the continent’s largest number of Muslims.
The mainly Muslim northern regions are home to a range of ethnic groups, chief among them the Hausas and Fulanis. In the past decade, the north has become synonymous with instability and violence amid conflict with bandits and armed groups like Boko Haram.
But for those who live there, the region is a bastion of colourful cultural practices.
During Ramadan, bustling cities in the north slow down as most people stay indoors to avoid the heat and focus on spiritual activities like attending lectures or reading the Quran.
And every year, typically to mark Eid, there is a Durbar festival.
Durbars are cultural, religious and equestrian events that have been popular among Hausas for centuries. One of the largest taking place today is the Kano City Durbar, which sees hundreds of thousands of people decked out in stylish Eid attire turning up to get a view of the emir – the equivalent of a king – often on horseback.
Kano-based photographer Muhammad Sani Sabo has been documenting Durbars since 2014. He also photographs everyday scenes in his city. The 31-year-old says he hopes to paint a more accurate representation of the north, which is more than a poster child for poverty, illiteracy and conflict.
“There’s more stories to tell about the north,” Sabo tells Al Jazeera. “I know all the stories, and I believe I can tell it better than anyone coming from Lagos or from abroad.”
