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SoSe 19: Perspectives on the Swahili Coast in an interconnected world

Kai Kresse

Comments

In this seminar, core aspects of culture and social life are covered, by a combination of readings (and use of other media), presentations, and group discussions. Next to anthropological readings, we shall also take on selected texts from the region as well as relevant historical and literary sources. Major strands and themes in Swahili culture and society will be discussed, in relation to East Africa and the wider world. Hereby, the historical mediating role of the Swahili coast, and in particular Swahili language, trade, and Islam, as forces facilitating social connectivity on the one hand but also shaping adversity and antagonisms on the other, both far inland and across the Indian Ocean, provide narrative threads. Case studies that illustrate and characterize social dynamics on the Swahili coast are discussed with a view to theoretical and methodological approaches employed. Perspectives on religion (particularly Islam), politics, gender, and popular culture are covered as part of the wider field of everyday social interaction, and with a critical sense of colonial history and postcolonial scenarios.

Thus, students become acquainted with core readings on the region, and by using a diverse range of materials, a sense of internal pluralisms and contested issues in society is nurtured. The discussion of historical accounts and ethnographic case studies feeds into a comparative perspective across regions, looking at East Africa and the Swahili coast in relation to South Asia and the Middle East, and also Europe. In this sense, a trans-regional perspective is developed in relation to the local. Overall, the course provides a well-grounded introduction into the ethnography of the coastal East African region. It discusses topical fields largely through readings, nurturing also a critical perspective about questions of approach, method, representation, and the research process on the whole. Students who have some knowledge in Swahili are encouraged to bring this in productively for their research papers and engagement in the course. close