The world has come to associate the insurgency in north-east Nigeria with the slogan “western education is forbidden”. This is how “Boko Haram” – the name given to the insurgents – is commonly translated from the Hausa language into English.
But “Boko Haram” is not what the insurgents call themselves or would like to be called. Different factions operate under different names. None of them use “Boko Haram”.
One faction calls itself Jama’at Ahl al-Sunna li-Da’wa wa-l-Jihad or “People Committed to the Propagation of the Prophet’s Teachings and Jihad”. Another faction uses the name Wilayat Garb Ifriqiya or Islamic State West Africa Province.
