title: When Did the Swahili Become Maritime?
abstract: In this article, we examine an assumption about the historic Swahili of the eastern African coast: that they were a maritime society from their beginnings in the first millennium C.E. Based on historical and archaeological data, we suggest that, despite their proximity to and use of the sea, the level of maritimity of Swahili society increased greatly over time and was only fully realized in the early second millennium C.E. Drawing on recent theorizing from other areas of the world about maritimity as well as research on the Swahili, we discuss three arenas that distinguish first- and second-millennium coastal society in terms of their maritime orientation. These are variability and discontinuity in settlement location and permanence; evidence of increased engagement with the sea through fishing and sailing technology; and specialized architectural developments involving port facilities, mosques, and houses. The implications of this study are that we must move beyond coastal location in determining maritimity; consider how the sea and its products were part of social life; and assess whether the marine environment actively influences and is influenced by broader patterns of sociocultural organization, practice, and belief within Swahili and other societies. [maritime, fishing and sailing, long-distance trade, Swahili, eastern Africa].
  
  
  RESULTS
  En este artículo, evaluamos la hipótesis de que los pueblos Swahili de la costa oriental africana fueron una sociedad marítima a partir del primer milenio E.C. Basados en información histórica y arqueológica, proponemos que la asociación de la sociedad Swahili con el mar incrementó considerablemente con el tiempo y se manifestó de una forma significativa particularmente desde principios del segundo milenio E.C. Utilizando teorías recientes sobre maritimidad en otras áreas del mundo, así como investigaciones sobre los Swahili, discutimos tres temas que marcan las diferencias del nivel de orientación marítima de esta sociedad costera entre el primer y segundo milenio. Éstas son la variabilidad y discontinuidad en la localización y permanencia de los asentamientos; evidencia de una conexión mayor con el mar a través de la tecnología de pesca y navegación; y desarrollos arquitectónicos especializados que incluyen instalaciones portuarias, mezquitas, y casas. Las implicaciones de este estudio indican que debemos considerar otros aspectos de una sociedad aparte de su localización costera para determinar su maritimidad. Hay que considerar cómo el mar y sus productos son parte de la vida social y evaluar si existe una influencia recíproca entre el ambiente marítimo y los patrones de organización sociocultural, las prácticas, y las creencias de los Swahili y otras sociedades. [marítimo, pesca y navegación, comercio a larga distancia, Swahili, África Oriental].
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, Rice University Houston, TX 77005.
authors.forename: Jeffrey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fleisher
authors.affiliation: Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University, 751 05 Uppsala, Sweden, and Honorary Research Fellow, School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Sciences, Witwatersrand University Johannesburg, South Africa.
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lane
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA 22904-4120.
authors.forename: Adria
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: LaViolette
authors.affiliation: Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Bristol Bristol, BS8 1UU, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Horton
authors.affiliation: British Institute in Eastern Africa Kileleshwa, Nairobi, Kenya.
authors.forename: Edward
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pollard
authors.affiliation: Département Ecologie et Gestion de la Biodiversité, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle Paris, France.
authors.forename: Eréndira
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Quintana Morales
authors.affiliation: IMAF Institut des Mondes Africains, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne 75004, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Vernet
authors.affiliation: Archaeology Institute, University of the Highlands and Islands Inverness, IV3 5SQ, Scotland.
authors.forename: Annalisa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Christie
authors.affiliation: Department of Archaeology, University of York York, YO1 7EP, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wynne-Jones
references.citation: Conserv Biol. 2011 Oct;25(5):945-55
references.pmid: 21676028