During the 1700s, when South Africa was under Dutch occupation, they imported slaves from South-East Asia. Many of these Malay slaves were Muslims, but the Dutch prohibited them from practicing Islam. Their only tangible connection to their faith was the Ratib al-Haddad, a collection of litanies compiled by the 17th-century Yemeni saint, Imam ‘Abdullah al-Haddad. However, the Dutch had also banned the recitation of the Qur’an.

Therefore, the Malays concealed their recitation of the Ratib by presenting it as a “song” and singing it in unison while working. The Dutch, assuming it was merely a “song,” allowed them to continue, and this style of recitation has persisted to this day, thanks to the efforts of these Muslims and the scholars who later arrived in South Africa. In particular, Shaykh Yusuf al-Makkasari founded the first Islamic community in Cape Town, contributing to the flourishing of Islam in the region.