Beyond Commoner and Elite in Swahili Society: Re-Examination of Archaeological Materials from Gede, Kenya

Pawlowicz, Matthew

doi:10.1007/s10437-019-09326-0

Cited by 12 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…This study develops four constructs based on the extant literature (Chirikure et al, 2018; Manstead, 2018; Pawlowicz, 2019). The first are the “elites” and “commoners,” two categories based on respondents’ income levels and political participation.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Determinants of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and Its Impact on Local Communities

et al. 2021

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The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a major development project in China’s fast-evolving Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), is arguably the most comprehensive of the six BRI economic and infrastructure corridors on land. For Pakistan, it is perceived “as the harbinger of a new era of connectivity and integration” that will not only transform the region’s economic development but also the well-being of Pakistanis. It investigates the impact of CPEC as perceived by the local communities in its ZoI. It also evaluates CPEC’s potential challenges: public support and local communities’ concerns such as their awareness, acceptance, and ownership of CPEC. To accomplish our research objectives, we analyze original microdata from 1,585 respondents living proximate to propose CPEC route(s) of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, in Pakistan. After aggregating the data on the basis of age, education, income, and social status, we conduct descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate analyses in an attempt to answer three research questions. We find significantly high level of awareness of CPEC across the board in the older age group of respondents (i.e., 40 years or older), hereinafter referred to as mature, highly educated, that is, respondents with university education. Older respondents expect more environmental and economic benefits than younger respondents, even as the latter expect lower social change and effect on migration than do the former. However, those in the upper social class expect higher economic and political benefits from CPEC, compared with those in the lower social class—an early indication of possible elite capture.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Determinants of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and Its Impact on Local Communities

et al. 2021

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“…From around the eleventh century, many coastal settlements grew into larger urban centers with mixed architectural features of timber and daub and stone and lime mortar. The stone houses, mosques, and tombs have received particular attention from many scholars, who have often seen them as symbols of elite merchants' power and increasingly hierarchical settlements (e.g., Kusimba & Oka, 2009;Pawlowicz, 2019).…”

Section: A Bead Workhop In Zanzibar? Innovation and Adaptation Of Bea...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Crafting Swahili Beads: Exploring a New Glass Bead Assemblage from Northern Zanzibar, Tanzania

Rødland

2022

Afr Archaeol Rev

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This article presents the discovery and analysis of a new glass bead assemblage from the Swahili site of Mkokotoni, an early second millennium AD settlement in northwestern Zanzibar. It explores the possibilities for local production of glass beads using imported glass cullet or glass tubes at this site. Glass beads are ubiquitous at archaeological sites from the second millennium on the East African coast. They are presumed to have been traded via long-distance networks from South and Southeast Asia, and used locally in personal adornment, barter, and ritual practices. However, the data from Mkokotoni offers a new and unique perspective on glass bead-making traditions, which places the East African coast as an area of production and distribution.

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“…Thus, we can de ne them as the 'middle class of Gede' based on material nds and the geographical area of the site. This house of Katana was located outside the outer wall and fell under the category of the lives of commoners (Pawlowicz, 2019). This was just outside the city's east gate near an area with a public well, indicating there were efforts to invest in those areas (outskirts of the city) as well.…”

Section: Build Environment and Gendermentioning

confidence: 99%

Built Environments and Implication on Gender Identities in Gede Archaeological Site

Muthegethi

2022

Preprint

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For decades, the archaeological work of the Swahili Civilization has mainly concentrated on exploring city-state economic and political dynamics. This paper explores how gender roles were formed, maintained, negotiated, and re-negotiated through time and space in Gede City. Unlike other Swahili city-states, Gede was located around two miles away from the shores of the Indian Ocean. Nonetheless, the city was characterized by security walls, stone houses, mosques, and tombs typical of Swahili City states such as Kilwa. The study employed several data collection methods: archival research, a survey, a re-examination of collected materials, and excavation of the Gede archaeological site. Since the study aimed to examine gender roles across different social classes, three areas were excavated based on their spatial distribution. Thus, the areas were roughly categorized as belonging to elite, middle-class, and lower-class structures. These structures were located in the inner, second, and outer walls of Gede City, respectively. Key findings show that gender identities differed considerably along classes in Gede archaeological site. For instance, the women of the elites and middle class were active participants in Gede's international trade through the production and consumption of imported goods. This participation corresponded with the commercialization of Gede households, especially in elite' areas where they hosted international traders. On the other hand, in middle-class houses, women concentrated on running light industries to supply goods to the urban community. Thus, they were able to afford exotic goods like their elite counterparts. Lastly, the gender roles of the lower class entailed subsistence-gendered roles with little participation in Gede formal commerce. Interestingly, gender roles in Gede were dynamic in nature and response to cultural diffusion, the spread of Islam, the intensification of trade, the diversification of subsistence patterns, and urbanization. Therefore, these findings demonstrate the centrality of gender in the reconstruction of the social lives of the Swahili Civilization.

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Beyond Commoner and Elite in Swahili Society: Re-Examination of Archaeological Materials from Gede, Kenya

Cited by 12 publications

References 32 publications

Exploring the Determinants of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and Its Impact on Local Communities

Exploring the Determinants of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and Its Impact on Local Communities

Crafting Swahili Beads: Exploring a New Glass Bead Assemblage from Northern Zanzibar, Tanzania

Built Environments and Implication on Gender Identities in Gede Archaeological Site

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