Trade, State, and Society Among the Yao in the Nineteenth Century

Abstract

Through their deep involvement in the long-distance trade of eastern central Africa, the Yao were increasingly exposed to the impact of Swahili traders and their culture. During the nineteenth century the increased volume of trade, and the ever growing importance of slaves in that trade, combined to produce a marked growth in the scale of Yao political units. This paper begins by outlining the growth of Yao trade before the nineteenth century. It then considers the nature of Yao political organization and the way in which the slave trade, in particular, facilitated the rise of large territorial chiefdoms. The last section deals with related social and cultural changes, including the growth of towns and the introduction of Islam.

The Long-Term Effects of Africa's Slave Trades*

“…The result of this vicious cycle was not only that communities raided other communities for slaves, but also that members of a community raided and kidnapped others within the community. Well-documented examples come from the Balanta of modern day Guinea-Bissau, the Minyanka of modern day Mali (Klein 2001), and the Makua, Chikunda, and Yao of East Central Africa (Alpers 1969(Alpers , pp. 413-414, 1975Isaacman 1989, pp.…”

The Archaeology of Trading Systems, Part 1: Towards a New Trade Synthesis

“…The author of the Sukraniti also placed an upper limit on the territorial growth of states that depended on trade returns as a primary source of revenue. This pattern is also seen in the archaeological and historical record on trade-based polities in Mesoamerica, Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Europe, and even South America (Alpers 1969;Bandy 2004;Bisson 1982;Boone et al 1990;Kusimba 1999a, b;Mudenge 1974;Plotkin 1973;Ray 1986). …”

“…Similar distinctions and relations between political and economic elite are suggested for societies in the Americas-Mexica and Maya traders in Panama and Central America (Hoopes 1993)-and West Africa, such as the Hausa, the Diakhank, and the Nri (Alagoa 1970;Anikpo 1991;Curtin 1984;Lovejoy 1973). Even state-appointed market masters/traders in the Old World, Central America, and Mesoamerica tended to be influential/senior members of trading communities/guilds as opposed to nonspecialized members of the nobility; they had the power to intercede or deal on the behalf of traders and adjudicate commercial disputes without involving political elites (Alpers 1969;Arhin 1990;Curtin 1984;Kathirithamby-Wells and Villiers 1990). For West Africa, Anikpo (1991) argues that definite separation existed between the political Nri (known as the Eze) and the trader Nri.…”

Anthropological Perspectives on Ancient Trade

“…Another recent survey, by Gray and Birmingham (1970:8-13), comes to exactly the same conclusion for central and eastern Africa. Other studies, such as that of Alpers (1969) on the Yao in Tanzania, demonstrate that the indigenous demand for slaves was an expression of the drive to increase the size and strength of political units. In that sense, external long-distance trade that was not tied to European influences again emerges as a critical factor in the development of a handful of great trading towns and in the simultaneous suppression of their erstwhile rivals.…”