*Cities were influenced by Arabic to some degree

*DEEP AFRICAN ROOTS

*towns relied on trading networks
*Islam was adopted by the 11th century
Swahili people lived in Southern Arabia (traders, protection from slavery, connected
Swahili merchants and elites to Arabia)

*Imports from Africa (inland):

● ivory
● wood
● iron
● wood
● spices
● slaves

*Exports from Africa:

● cotton
● salt
● pottery
● metal tools

*Kilwa controlled gold trade out of Great Zimbabwe

*Cantang and the Chinese
*4 social positions (merchant elites, freed slaves, slaves, recent immigrants)
*(of the ancient skeletons analyzed so far) 55% male Swahili remains had non-African DNA,
30% of mitochondrial DNA was non-African (most likely Persian, Arabic, Indian)

*Women could hold political office:

● Mwana Mkisi (13th century Mombasa)
● Queen of Zanzibar (16th century)

*Swahili people were experts in building and coral (The Great Mosque)
*Huge causeways were constructed