JAMB Syllabus for History

The JAMB History syllabus is a useful guide for candidates preparing to write the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME). It contains the topics candidates are expected to study, covering the history of Nigeria, Africa and the wider world.

Going through the JAMB Syllabus for History before you start studying can help you understand the areas you need to cover and organise your preparation properly. Candidates should also make use of recommended History textbooks and other study materials when preparing for the examination.

Below is the JAMB History syllabus, arranged into clear sections to make it easier to follow.

JAMB History Syllabus

PART I: NIGERIA AND THE WIDER WORLD

SECTION A: THE NIGERIA AREA UP TO 1800

S/N	Topic	Content
1	Land and Peoples of the Nigeria Area	Geographical zones and the people; relationship between the people and the environment; relations and integration among the peoples of different zones.
2	Early Centres of Civilization	Nok, Daima, Ife, Benin, Igbo Ukwu and Iwo Eleru; monuments and shelter systems, including Kuyambana, Durbi-ta-Kusheyi, city walls and palaces.
3	Origin and Formation of States in the Nigeria Area	Central Sudan: Kanuri and Hausa states; Niger-Benue Valley: Nupe, Jukun, Igala, Idoma, Tiv and Ebira; Eastern Forest Belt: Igbo and Ibibio; Western Forest Belt: Yoruba and Edo; Coastal and Niger-Delta: Efik, Ijo, Itsekiri and Urhobo; factors influencing origin and migration; social and political organisations; inter-state relations, religion, war and peace.
4	Economic Activities and Growth of States	Agriculture: hunting, farming, fishing, animal husbandry and horticulture; industries: pottery, salt-making, iron-smelting, blacksmithing, leather-working, wood-carving, cloth-making, dyeing and food processing; local, regional and long-distance trade, including Trans-Saharan trade; expansion of states.
5	External Influences	North Africans/Arabs: introduction, spread and impact of Islam; Trans-Saharan trade. Europeans: early European trade with the coastal states; Trans-Atlantic slave trade, including its origin, organisation and impact.

SECTION B: THE NIGERIA AREA 1800–1900

S/N	Topic	Content
1	The Sokoto Caliphate and the Sokoto Jihad	Causes and process of the Jihad; establishment and administration of the Caliphate and relations with neighbours; achievements and impact of the Caliphate; collapse of the Caliphate.
2	Kanem-Borno	Collapse of the Saifawa dynasty; Borno under the Shehus; Borno under Rabeh.
3	Yorubaland	Fall of the Old Oyo Empire; Yoruba wars and their impact; peace treaty of 1886 and its aftermath.
4	Benin	Internal political development; relations with neighbours; relations with Europeans.
5	Nupe	Internal political development; relations with neighbours.
6	Igbo	Internal political development; relations with neighbours.
7	Efik	Internal political development; relations with neighbours.
8	European Penetration and Impact	European exploration of the interior; suppression of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade; development of commodity trade and rise of consular authority; Christian missionary activities; activities of trading companies; impact of European activities on the coast and hinterland.
9	British Conquest of the Nigeria Area	Motives for the conquest; methods of conquest and its results; resistance to and aftermath of the conquest.

SECTION C: NIGERIA 1900–1960

S/N	Topic	Content
1	Establishment of Colonial Rule up to 1914	Administration of the protectorates.
2	The Amalgamation of 1914	Reasons for the amalgamation; effects of the amalgamation.
3	Colonial Administration After the Amalgamation	Central administration: Legislative and Executive Councils; indirect rule: reasons, workings and effects; local administrative institutions: Native Authorities, Native Courts and Native Treasuries; resistance to colonial rule, including the Ekumeku Movement in Asaba hinterland (1898–1911), Satiru uprising (1906), Egba Anti-tax Agitation (1918) and Aba Women Movement (1929).
4	The Colonial Economy	Currency, taxation and forced labour; infrastructure: transportation, post and telecommunication; agriculture; mining; industry; commerce; banking.
5	Social Development under Colonial Rule	Western education; urbanisation and social integration; improvement unions; health institutions.
6	Nationalism, Constitutional Developments and Independence	Rise of nationalist movements; 1922 Clifford Constitution and the rise of Nigeria's first political party; World War II and agitation for independence; Richards Constitution of 1946; Macpherson Constitution of 1951; party politics, regionalism, federalism and minority agitations; Lyttleton Constitution of 1954; constitutional conferences in Lagos in 1957 and London in 1958; general elections of 1959 and independence in 1960.

SECTION D: NIGERIA SINCE INDEPENDENCE

S/N	Topic	Content
1	Politics of the First Republic and Military Intervention	Struggle for the control of the centre; revenue allocation; minority question; 1962/63 census controversies; Action Group crisis and General Elections of 1964/65; January 1966 coup d'état and the Ironsi Regime.
2	The Civil War	Causes; course; effects.
3	The Gowon Regime	Challenges and achievements of the Gowon Regime.
4	Murtala/Obasanjo Regime	Challenges and achievements of the Murtala/Obasanjo Regime.
5	The Second Republic	Challenges and achievements of the Second Republic.
6	The Buhari Regime	Challenges and achievements of the Buhari Regime.
7	The Babangida Regime	Challenges and achievements of the Babangida Regime.
8	The Interim National Government (ING)	Role and challenges of the Interim National Government.
9	The Abacha Regime	Challenges and achievements of the Abacha Regime.
10	Nigeria in International Organisations	Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS); African Union (AU); Commonwealth of Nations; Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC); United Nations Organisation (UN); role of Nigeria in conflict resolution in the Congo, Chad, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Sudan.

PART II: AFRICA AND THE WIDER WORLD SINCE 1800

SECTION A: WEST AND NORTH AFRICA

S/N	Topic	Content
1	Islamic Reform Movements and State Building in West Africa	Relationship between the Sokoto Jihad and other Jihads; Jihads of Seku Ahmadu and Al-Hajj Umar; activities of Samori Toure.
2	Sierra Leone, Liberia and Christian Missionary Activities in West Africa	Foundation of Sierra Leone and Liberia and the spread of Christianity; activities and impact of Christian missionaries.
3	Egypt under Mohammed Ali and Khedive Ismail	Rise of Mohammed Ali and his reforms; Mohammed Ali's relations with Europeans; Ismail's fiscal policies; British occupation of Egypt.
4	The Mahdi and Mahdiyya Movement in the Sudan	Causes; course; consequences.

SECTION B: EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA

S/N	Topic	Content
1	The Omani Empire	Rise of the Omani Empire; commercial and political relations with the coast and hinterland; relations with Europeans.
2	Ethiopia in the 19th Century	Rise of Theodore II and his attempt at the unification of Ethiopia; Menelik II and Ethiopian independence.
3	The Mfecane	Rise of the Zulu Nation; causes, course and consequences of the Mfecane.
4	The Great Trek	Frontier wars; British intervention in Boer-African relations; the Great Trek and its consequences.

SECTION C: IMPERIALISM, COLONIALISM AND PROBLEMS OF NATION-BUILDING IN AFRICA

S/N	Topic	Content
1	The New Imperialism and European Occupation of Africa	New Imperialism in Africa; European scramble for Africa; Berlin Conference; occupation and African resistance.
2	Patterns of Colonial Rule in Africa	British colonial rule; French colonial rule; Portuguese colonial rule; Belgian colonial rule.
3	The Politics of Decolonisation	Colonial policies and African discontent; impact of the two World Wars; nationalist activities and emergence of political parties and associations; strategies for attaining independence.
4	Apartheid in South Africa	Origin of apartheid; rise of Afrikaner nationalism; enactment of apartheid laws; internal reaction and suppression of African nationalist movements; external reaction to apartheid, including the Frontline States, Commonwealth of Nations, OAU and UN; dismantling of apartheid; post-apartheid development.
5	Problems of Nation-Building in Africa	Political and economic challenges and constraints; physical and environmental challenges; ethnic and religious pluralism; military intervention and political instability; neo-colonialism and underdevelopment; boundary disputes and threats to African unity; civil wars and refugee problems.

Recommended Texts for JAMB History

Candidates preparing for JAMB History can use the following recommended textbooks and reference materials:-

Abba, A. (2006): The Politics of Mallam Aminu Kano, Kaduna: Vanguard and Publishers.
Ayandele, A. E. et al. (1986): The Making of Modern Africa, The Twentieth Century, Vol. 2, Longman.
Ajayi and Crowther (1971): History of West Africa, Vol. I, London: Longman.
Ajayi and Crowther (1974): History of West Africa, Vol. II, London: Longman.
Akinloye, S. A. (1976): Emergent African States: Topics in Twentieth Century African History, Longman.
Akinyemi, A. B., Agbi, S. O. and Otunbanjo, A. O. (eds.) (1989): Nigeria Since Independence: The First 25 Years, International Relations, Vol. X, Heinemann, Ibadan.
Anene, J. C. and Brown, G. (1966): Africa in the 19th and 20th Centuries, Ibadan: University Press.
Anene, J. C. (1966): Southern Nigeria in Transition, 1885–1906, Cambridge: University Press.
Anene, J. C. and Brown, G. (eds.) (1972): Africa in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries: A Handbook for Teachers and Students, Ibadan: University Press and Nelson.
Ashiwaju, A. I., Crowder, M. and Denzer, I. R. (eds.): Tarikh 25, Grassroots Leadership in Colonial West Africa, Vol. 7, London: Longman.
Atanda, J. A., Ashiwaju, G. and Abubakar, Y. (eds.) (1989): Nigeria Since Independence: The First 25 Years: Religion, Vol. I, Ibadan: Heinemann.
Barkindo, B. et al. (1989): Africa and the Wider World, Vol. 1, Lagos: Longman.
Barkindo, B. et al. (1996): Africa and the Wider World, Vols. 2 and 3, Lagos: Longman.
Boahen, A. (1969): The Revolutionary Years: Africa Since 1800, Longman Publishers.
Boahen, A. (1969): The Revolutionary Years: West Africa Since 1800, Longman Publishers.
Sokoto Caliphate: History and Legacies, 1804–2004, Vols. I and II, Kaduna: Arewa House.
Coleman, J. S. (1986): Nigeria: Background to Nationalism, Benin: Broburg and Wistrom.
Clerk, T. A. (1991): Right Honourable Gentleman: The Life and Times of Alhaji Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Zaria: Hudahuda Publishing Company.
Cohen, D. I. and Daniel, J. (eds.) (1981): Political Economy of Africa: Selected Readings, London: Longman.
Crowther, M. (1977): West Africa: An Introduction to Its History, Longman.
Crowther, M. (1979): Nigeria: An Introduction to Its History, London: Longman.
Dike, K. O. (1956): Trade and Politics in the Niger Delta, London: Oxford University Press.
Ekeh, P. P. and Ashiwaju, G. (eds.) (1989): Nigeria Since Independence: The First 25 Years: Culture, Vol. VII, Ibadan: Heinemann.
Falola, T. et al. (1989): History of Nigeria, Vol. I, Lagos: Longman.
Falola, T. et al. (1989): History of Nigeria, Vols. 2 and 3, Lagos: Longman.
Gboyega, A., Abubakar, Y. and Aliyu, Y. (eds.) (1989): Nigeria Since Independence: The First 25 Years: Public Administration, Vol. III, Ibadan: Heinemann.
Hallet, R. (1975): Africa Since 1875, Ibadan: Heinemann.
Hopkins, A. G. (1973): An Economic History of West Africa, Longman.
Ikime, O. and Osoba, S. O. (eds.): Tarikh: Independence Movement in Africa, Part I, Vol. 3, No. 4, London: Longman.
Ikime, O. and Osoba, S. O. (eds.): Tarikh: Government in Pre-Colonial Africa, Vol. 4, No. 2, London: Longman.
Ikime, O. and Osoba, S. O. (eds.): Peoples and Kingdoms of West Africa in the Pre-colonial Period, Vol. 5, No. 1, London: Longman.
Ikime, O. and Osoba, S. O. (eds.): Tarikh: Europeans Conquest and African Resistance, Part 2, Vol. 4, London: Longman.
Ikime, O. (1977): The Fall of Nigeria: The British Conquest, London: Heinemann.
Ikime, O. (ed.) (1974): Leadership in 19th Century Africa: Essays from Tarikh, London: Longman.
Ikime, O. (1968): Merchant Price of the Niger Delta, London: Heinemann.
Ikime, O. (ed.) (1980): Groundwork of Nigerian History, Ibadan: Heinemann.
Iseihei, E. (1983): A History of Nigeria, London: Longman.
Jorre, J. D. (1972): The Nigeria Civil War, London: Hodder and Stoughton.
Kani, A. M. and Gandi, K. (1990): A State and Society in the Sokoto Caliphate, Series I, Usman Danfodio University, Sokoto.
Mahdi, A., Kwanashei, G. A. and Yakubu, M. (eds.) (1994): Nigeria: The State of the Nation and the Way Forward, Kaduna: Arewa House.
Martin, P. M. and Omera, P. (eds.) (1995): Africa, 3rd Edition, Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Mohammed, B. (1982): Africa and Non-alignment: A Study in the Foreign Relations of New Nations, Kano: Triumph Publishers.
Mohammed, A. S. and Adamu, S. (eds.) (2005): Nigeria and the Reform of the United Nations, Zaria: Hanwa.
Nzula, A. T., Potekhin and Zusmanovich (1979): Forced Labour in Colonial Africa, London: Zed Press.
Offiong, D. A. (1980): Imperialism and Dependency: Obstacles to Development, Enugu: Fourth Dimension Publishers.
Ojigbo, O. (1982): Shehu Shagari: The Biography of Nigeria's First Executive President, Yugoslavia: Mladinska Knjiga.
Okafor, I. (1989): History for Senior Secondary Schools, Onitsha: Jet Publishers.
Oliver, T. and Afmore, A. (1996): Africa Since 1880, 4th Edition, New York: Cambridge University Press.
Olusanya, G. O. (1973): The Second World War and Politics in Nigeria, 1939–1953, Ibadan: Evans.
Omar, O. (1966): The Zulu Aftermath: A Nineteenth-Century Revolution in Bantu Africa, London: Longman.
Omolewa, M. (1986): Certificate History of Nigeria, Lagos: Longman.
Onoja, I. (1998): Peace-keeping and International Security in a Changing World, Jos: Mono Expressions.
Onwubiko, K. (1983): School Certificate History of West Africa, Onitsha: African-First Publishers.
Tamuno, T. N. and Atanda, A. (eds.) (1989): Nigeria Since Independence: The First 25 Years, Vol. III, Ibadan: Heinemann.
Tamuno, T. N. and Atanda, J. A. M. (eds.) (1989): Nigeria Since Independence: The First 25 Years: Government and Public Policy, Vol. IV, Ibadan: Heinemann.
Tamuno, T. N. and Ukpabi, S. C. (eds.) (1989): Nigeria Since Independence: The First 25 Years: The Civil War Years, Vol. IV, Ibadan: Heinemann.
Thompson, L. A. (2000): History of South Africa, Yale: Yale University Press.
Usman, Y. B. (ed.) (1979): Studies in the History of Sokoto Caliphate, New York: Third Press International.
Usman, Y. B. (ed.) (1981): The Transformation of Katsina, 1400–1883, Zaria: Ahmadu Bello University Press.
Usman, Y. B. (ed.) and Alkali, M. N. (1983): Studies in the History of Pre-Colonial Borno, Zaria: NNPC.
Usman, Y. B. and Kwanashei, G. A. (eds.): Inside Nigeria History 1950–1970: Events, Issues and Sources, University of Ibadan.
Usman, Y. B. (ed.) (1989): Nigeria Since Independence: The First 25 Years: The Society, Vol. I, Ibadan: Heinemann.
Usman, Y. B. (2002): Election Violence in Nigeria: The Terrible Experience, 1952–2002, Zaria: Abdullahi Smith Centre for Historical Research.
Webster, J. B. and Ikime, O. (eds.): Tarikh: Early African Christianity, Vol. 2, No. 1, London: Longman.
Wilmot, P. F. (1980): Apartheid and African Liberation: The Grief and the Hope, Ife: University of Ife Press.
Yakubu, A. M., Jumare, I. and Saeed, A. G. (eds.) (2005): Northern Nigeria: A Century of Transformation, 1903–2003, Kaduna: Arewa House.
Yakubu, A. M. (2006): Emirs and Politicians: Reform, Reactions and Recrimination in Northern Nigeria, 1950–1966, Kaduna: Baraka Publishers.

Study each topic carefully, revise regularly and make sure you cover the areas listed in the syllabus before the examination. You can also check this page for other JAMB subject syllabuses and admission-related information.