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Early States and State Formation in Africa (African Studies)

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Mar 21st, 2018
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  1. ntroduction
  2. Archaeologists, anthropologists, sociologists, historians, geographers, and other scholars have long been interested in the attainment of social complexity within human groups. More conservative and more popular authors have clung to the 19th-century Eurocentric idea of civilizations, in the process giving attention to only those past societies whose material remains are obvious evidence of such complexity. This has given rise to the ancient civilizations view of human history, which has led to a proliferation of publications often restricted to six case studies at the most. Typically, these consist of ancient Mesopotamia, ancient (Pharaonic) Egypt, the Indus valley, Shang China, the Aztecs, and the Incas. Until the middle of the 20th century, even the last two were often excluded from consideration. Such an approach has overlooked the large number of societies in Africa (other than Egypt) for which there is evidence of the existence of past social complexity in a variety of forms. Given the preliterate condition of many of these groups, much of the evidence consists of archaeological data, from both excavations and field surveys. It is these archaeological data that are the main emphasis of this article. Nevertheless, historical documentation does exist for some areas and periods, yet because of its uneven distribution in space and time, the usual separation of prehistory and history is inappropriate in the context of much of Africa. Ethnohistorical sources, consisting of accounts by visitors from outside the continent, and oral sources, consisting of the traditions of indigenous African societies, also contribute to an increasing understanding of this aspect of the African past.
  3.  
  4. Theories of Social Complexity
  5. A large number of published studies have examined the subject of social complexity and the means by which it has been attained in the past. Many of these studies have considered the subject as a worldwide phenomenon, and in some cases their relevance to the African past is more implicit than explicit. To understand much of the literature on this subject, however, it is necessary to have some familiarity with the more outstanding and more recent theoretical writing. Most of this is anthropological or sociological in approach, and its subject matter is variously identified. In the early 21st century, “social complexity” is most often the focus of attention, but discussion often centers on the origins of “early states and state formation,” as in the title of this article. Such states are often contrasted with “chiefdoms,” which are considered to be at a lower level of complexity and perhaps on a path to becoming states. Yet, this dichotomy is no longer as acceptable as it was formerly, when the study of complexity was strongly influenced by 19th-century evolutionist ideas, which emphasized a linear progression from simple to complex. Furthermore, any inquiry into social complexity inevitably leads to a consideration of “urbanization,” with which it was so often associated in the past. Early African urbanization existed in a wide variety of forms, and some understanding of the character of “preindustrial cities” is essential if one is to avoid an approach influenced by more recent European or American models. In the African case, towns and cities were often characterized by hierarchical organization, but it has been argued that instances of heterarchy also existed. Newcomers to the subject will find that Sjoberg 1960, although based mostly on anthropological data and generalized, is useful for understanding the characteristics of early cities. McIntosh 1999 is a collection of papers that investigate the diversity of African states and urbanization, and Trigger 2003 is a conventional comparative work that provides a global basis for understanding early civilizations. In contrast, Yoffee 2005 argues for a new approach to the subject, and Pauketat 2007 stresses the importance of archaeological evidence rather than social-evolutionary theory. Fletcher 2007 is an analytical study seeking to explain the factors influencing urban growth, in the process offering a thoughtful investigation. Maisels 2010 emphasizes the role of power in the formation of states, and Smith 2012 is yet another collection of comparative studies of complex societies.
  6.  
  7. Fletcher, Roland. The Limits of Settlement Growth: A Theoretical Outline. New Studies in Archaeology. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
  8.  
  9. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  10.  
  11. Originally published in 1995. Argues that the built environment becomes a constraint on the long-term development of a settlement and can restrict social and political change. Using this approach, the book reviews worldwide settlement growth over the last fifteen thousand years, concluding with agrarian urban and industrial cities. Contains some material relevant to Africa.
  12.  
  13. Find this resource:
  14.  
  15.  
  16. Maisels, Charles. The Archaeology of Politics and Power: Where, When, and Why the First States Formed. Oxford and Oakville, Canada: Oxbow, 2010.
  17.  
  18. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  19.  
  20. Looks at the examples of the Indus, the Levant and Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, and the Andes. Advances an explanation of the state formation process, including internal differentiation within communities, the manipulation of religion, the acquisition of economic privilege, social stratification, the application of force, and the eventual formation of an elite.
  21.  
  22. Find this resource:
  23.  
  24.  
  25. McIntosh, Susan Keech, ed. Beyond Chiefdoms: Pathways to Complexity in Africa. New Directions in Archaeology. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1999.
  26.  
  27. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  28.  
  29. Although concerned with theory, this book is set firmly in an African context. It includes subject matter from the Inland Niger Delta, Cameroon, the Kalahari, Uganda, and Central Africa as well as discussions of the segmentary state, the evolutionary mapping of African societies, “invisible” African towns, and other topics.
  30.  
  31. Find this resource:
  32.  
  33.  
  34. Pauketat, Timothy R. Chiefdoms and Other Archaeological Delusions. Issues in Eastern Woodlands Archaeology. Lanham, MD: AltaMira, 2007.
  35.  
  36. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  37.  
  38. Debunks much of the recent social-evolutionary theorizing about human development, but in the context of American Mississippian culture. Nevertheless, relevant to Africa because the author challenges all students of prehistory and history to examine the actual archaeological evidence with an open mind.
  39.  
  40. Find this resource:
  41.  
  42.  
  43. Sjoberg, Gideon. The Preindustrial City: Past and Present. Glencoe, IL: Free Press, 1960.
  44.  
  45. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  46.  
  47. An old but classic study that examines a wide range of social, economic, political, religious, and communication aspects of preindustrial cities worldwide. Not specifically concerned with Africa, but contains much that is implicitly relevant to past African urban societies.
  48.  
  49. Find this resource:
  50.  
  51.  
  52. Smith, Michael E., ed. The Comparative Archaeology of Complex Societies. Papers presented at a conference held at the Amerind Foundation, Dragoon, Arizona, 3–7 March 2008. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012.
  53.  
  54. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  55.  
  56. A number of authors draw on examples from an array of geographical settings, considering urbanization, settlement patterns, the political strategies of kings and chiefs, and the economic choices of individuals and households. A chapter by Roland Fletcher discusses low-density, agrarian-based urbanism, a subject of relevance to Africa.
  57.  
  58. Find this resource:
  59.  
  60.  
  61. Trigger, Bruce G. Understanding Early Civilizations: A Comparative Study. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
  62.  
  63. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  64.  
  65. A good introduction to comparative studies of social complexity, not only focusing on well-known examples from China to the Americas, but also including one from Southwestern Nigeria: the Yoruba. Covers sociopolitical organization, economy, and cognitive and symbolic aspects. Presents problems of definition and usefully contrasts city-states with territorial states.
  66.  
  67. Find this resource:
  68.  
  69.  
  70. Yoffee, Norman. Myths of the Archaic State: Evolution of the Earliest Cities, States and Civilizations. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
  71.  
  72. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511489662Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  73.  
  74. Challenges prevailing ideas about the evolution of the earliest cities, states, and civilizations. Questions earliest states as large and despotic and suggests an evolutionary process centered on the concerns of everyday life. Draws on worldwide evidence, including from Egypt.
  75.  
  76. Find this resource:
  77.  
  78.  
  79. General Overviews
  80. Comprehensive overviews of the growth of social complexity in Africa are not numerous, nor can the subject be investigated without some understanding of its historical context. Although old, Hull 1976 provides useful insight into past African urbanization, and Garlake 1978 is a broad discussion of some former African states. To these can be added some of the more detailed studies contained in Shaw, et al. 1993 and Anderson and Rathbone 2000, but much of the latter is concerned with more recent urbanism in Africa. In contrast, Connah 2001 is a wide-ranging study of early states and cities, although confined to a selection of examples that have been most studied and with a strong emphasis on their archaeological evidence. This work has been frequently used as a textbook. Different again is Insoll 2003, which specifically examines the varied influence of the Islamic faith on African cultures and social complexity. McIntosh 2005 is actually concerned with the archaeology of the cities of West Africa’s Middle Niger, but the book has a much wider relevance because the archaeological evidence is used to challenge the idea that early cities and states were essentially hierarchical in their social basis. McIntosh argues that some were heterarchical instead, characterized by social structures that were horizontally rather than vertically differentiated. LaViolette and Fleisher 2005 has a broader approach, stressing the character of African urbanism and discussing three very different examples. Students will find this paper useful.
  81.  
  82. Anderson, David M., and Richard Rathbone, eds. Africa’s Urban Past. Papers presented at a conference held at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, June 1996. Oxford: Currey, 2000.
  83.  
  84. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  85.  
  86. Some of the earlier chapters are relevant.
  87.  
  88. Find this resource:
  89.  
  90.  
  91. Connah, Graham. African Civilizations: An Archaeological Perspective. 2d ed. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2001.
  92.  
  93. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  94.  
  95. A series of detailed studies of selected early states and cities in Africa, not only emphasizing the archaeological evidence, but also covering relevant documentary and oral sources.
  96.  
  97. Find this resource:
  98.  
  99.  
  100. Garlake, Peter. The Kingdoms of Africa. Making of the Past. Oxford: Elsevier-Phaidon, 1978.
  101.  
  102. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  103.  
  104. A series of studies of a selection of early African states. Old, but still useful. Well illustrated, mainly in color.
  105.  
  106. Find this resource:
  107.  
  108.  
  109. Hull, Richard W. African Cities and Towns before the European Conquest. New York: Norton, 1976.
  110.  
  111. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  112.  
  113. Old, but one of the few studies of its kind. Contains some useful material at an introductory level.
  114.  
  115. Find this resource:
  116.  
  117.  
  118. Insoll, Timothy. The Archaeology of Islam in Sub-Saharan Africa. Cambridge World Archaeology. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
  119.  
  120. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  121.  
  122. Examines the archaeological evidence for the spread of Islam across the Sudan, Ethiopia, eastern Africa, southern Africa, and Nigeria. Details the history of Islam in Africa and shows how an understanding of Islamic cultures is essential for the interpretation of relevant material remains.
  123.  
  124. Find this resource:
  125.  
  126.  
  127. LaViolette, Adria, and Jeffrey Fleisher. “The Archaeology of Sub-Saharan Urbanism: Cities and Their Countrysides.” In African Archaeology: A Critical Introduction. Edited by Ann Brower Stahl, 327–352. Blackwell Studies in Global Archaeology. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2005.
  128.  
  129. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  130.  
  131. Looks at ancient African urbanism in its contexts. Defines urbanism, discusses Africa’s place in urbanism theory, and considers the origins of African urbanism. Focuses on three case studies: the Inland Niger Delta, the Zimbabwe plateau, and the Swahili coast, each with different types of urbanism.
  132.  
  133. Find this resource:
  134.  
  135.  
  136. McIntosh, Roderick J. Ancient Middle Niger: Urbanism and the Self-Organizing Landscape. Case Studies in Early Societies 7. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
  137.  
  138. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  139.  
  140. The cities of West Africa’s Middle Niger lacked centralized, state-focused power, instead resulting from a series of transformations in human–land relations. The idea of heterarchy as distinct from hierarchy is presented and also applied to the emergence of urban landscapes elsewhere in the world.
  141.  
  142. Find this resource:
  143.  
  144.  
  145. Shaw, Thurstan, Paul Sinclair, Bassey Andah, and Alex Okpoko, eds. The Archaeology of Africa: Food, Metals and Towns. One World Archaeology 20. London and New York: Routledge, 1993.
  146.  
  147. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  148.  
  149. Detailed studies of many aspects of the archaeology of the African Holocene. Includes chapters on state formation and early urbanization.
  150.  
  151. Find this resource:
  152.  
  153.  
  154. Reference Works
  155. The most comprehensive reference book is the Vogel 1997 edited collection. Although it has wide subject coverage, it enables students and others unfamiliar with the topics to see early states and urbanism in context. Another edited work, Murray 1998, also contains a wealth of contextual information, some of which is particularly relevant. To these should be added the historical atlas Fage 1978 to gain some spatial understanding of emerging social complexity in Africa. This work is dated and its maps tend to draw hard lines around geographical areas that are actually poorly defined, but it is a valuable source nevertheless. In addition, Robertshaw 1990, a series of edited studies of the history of archaeology in Africa, provides some insights into the conduct of significant archaeological research over time in different parts of the continent. In contrast, Huffman 2007 is a highly detailed encyclopedia of later societies in southern Africa as presented by ceramic evidence, some of which aids in an understanding of developing social complexity in that region.
  156.  
  157. Fage, J. D. An Atlas of African History. 2d ed. New York: Africana, 1978.
  158.  
  159. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  160.  
  161. Originally published in 1958. Contains a useful series of maps relevant to Africa’s past, including a number showing the presumed territorial extent of early states and the location of early cities.
  162.  
  163. Find this resource:
  164.  
  165.  
  166. Huffman, Thomas N. Handbook of the Iron Age: The Archaeology of Pre-Colonial Farming Societies in Southern Africa. Scottsville, South Africa: University of KwaZulu-Natal Press, 2007.
  167.  
  168. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  169.  
  170. Detailed studies of sites and artifacts, particularly pottery, from cultural groups, some of which were responsible for state development and early urbanization.
  171.  
  172. Find this resource:
  173.  
  174.  
  175. Murray, Jocelyn, ed. Cultural Atlas of Africa. Rev. ed. New York: Checkmark, 1998.
  176.  
  177. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  178.  
  179. A useful source of general contextual information about Africa; contains some coverage of kingdoms and empires.
  180.  
  181. Find this resource:
  182.  
  183.  
  184. Robertshaw, Peter, ed. A History of African Archaeology. London: Currey, 1990.
  185.  
  186. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  187.  
  188. A series of studies that discuss selected aspects of the history of archaeological practice in Africa, providing a context for the investigation of early states and urbanization.
  189.  
  190. Find this resource:
  191.  
  192.  
  193. Vogel, Joseph O., ed. Encyclopedia of Precolonial Africa: Archaeology, History, Languages, Cultures, and Environments. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira, 1997.
  194.  
  195. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  196.  
  197. A substantial reference work that ranges over many subjects concerning the African past, including the development of states and early urbanism.
  198.  
  199. Find this resource:
  200.  
  201.  
  202. Journals
  203. The study of early states and state formation in Africa is particularistic rather than well represented in syntheses. This means that the most important sources, especially of primary archaeological evidence, are often contained in journals. Those most relevant and with the broadest geographical coverage are included in this section, but there are others that are of more restricted regional significance, have ceased to appear or that do so irregularly, or have a poor distribution. In addition, because of the wide interest in past social complexity, relevant papers can be found in numerous other journals of general coverage. There are also relevant journals in French as well in other languages. Therefore, looking closely at the bibliographies of papers published in the journals mentioned here and in available syntheses is critical in order to access these more scattered sources. The Journal of African Archaeology is a leading refereed publication, with wide subject coverage. It is a major source for the results of recent research and publishes substantive papers. In contrast, Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa was restricted to East African subjects for four decades. It is still establishing itself in its new continent-wide character. The African Archaeological Review, however, has a longer history and tends to emphasize analysis and discussion rather than descriptive, substantive papers. Unlike the three previous publications, Nyame Akuma: Bulletin of the Society of Africanist Archaeologists is not a refereed journal, but a newsletter that has long provided rapid publication of short interim reports on recent research. It often contains contributions from African archaeologists working in their own countries. Sahara is a regionally specific refereed journal, although it has a liberal interpretation of its area. It covers all periods but is particularly useful regarding occupation of the desert prior to the development of its present condition. Narrower in subject matter is the Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, also refereed, which is principally concerned with the lower and middle Nile valley, that is, with Egyptology. Nevertheless, this journal has relevance for studies of early African states and urbanism. Sudan and Nubia is perhaps more useful in this respect, concentrating as it does on the middle and upper Nile and including refereed recent work that has caused a reconsideration of the role of this region. Finally, the refereed Journal of African History has long been an outlet in which archaeologists present their findings in a historically acceptable form.
  204.  
  205. African Archaeological Review. 1983–.
  206.  
  207. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  208.  
  209. Not only highlights the contributions of Africa as they relate to key global issues in archaeology, but also carries primary data from fieldwork and excavations. The journal’s small format is a disadvantage, and its production is sometimes indifferent.
  210.  
  211. Find this resource:
  212.  
  213.  
  214. Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa.
  215.  
  216. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  217.  
  218. Formerly Azania. The journal extended its coverage in 2009 beyond just East Africa, to the whole of the continent, with an emphasis on Sub-Saharan Africa. The small format is restrictive for some archaeological publications.
  219.  
  220. Find this resource:
  221.  
  222.  
  223. Journal of African Archaeology. 2003–.
  224.  
  225. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  226.  
  227. Published by the Goethe Universität, in Frankfurt, Germany, this is an A4-format publication covering all periods, including research into past social complexity. The large format is an advantage for archaeological publication of fieldwork and excavation, for which illustrations, particularly maps, plans, section drawings, and diagrams, are so important. The production is of high quality.
  228.  
  229. Find this resource:
  230.  
  231.  
  232. Journal of African History. 1960–.
  233.  
  234. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  235.  
  236. For more than half a century, one of the leading journals on all aspects of African history. In the past, contained papers on the origins of African social complexity, but archaeological publication has become less common in this journal than formerly because of the increased number of more specialist outlets since the late 20th century.
  237.  
  238. Find this resource:
  239.  
  240.  
  241. Journal of Egyptian Archaeology. 1914–.
  242.  
  243. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  244.  
  245. A publication of the Egypt Exploration Society, London, this leading international journal of Egyptological research carries scholarly articles, fieldwork reports, and reviews of Egyptological books.
  246.  
  247. Find this resource:
  248.  
  249.  
  250. Nyame Akuma: Bulletin of the Society of Africanist Archaeologists 1972–.
  251.  
  252. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  253.  
  254. Since 1972 this journal has been an important outlet for brief news items about recent archaeological research in Africa. The journal is useful for information on current activity that might otherwise not be published for some time and in some cases not fully published at all.
  255.  
  256. Find this resource:
  257.  
  258.  
  259. Sahara. 1988–.
  260.  
  261. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  262.  
  263. Features papers on research in archaeology, history, and related disciplines in the Sahara Desert and its margins. Large format and good production quality.
  264.  
  265. Find this resource:
  266.  
  267.  
  268. Sudan and Nubia. 1997–.
  269.  
  270. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  271.  
  272. Published by the Sudan Archaeological Research Society, London, this is a large-format, glossy, high-quality journal covering all aspects of the archaeology and history of Sudan and Nubia.
  273.  
  274. Find this resource:
  275.  
  276.  
  277. Historical and Ethnohistorical Sources
  278. Although most of the sources for social complexity in Africa’s remote past are archaeological, historical documentation also exists for some areas and periods, particularly since the early 16th century. There is material in Greek, Latin, English, French, Arabic, and a number of indigenous languages. This includes numerous accounts by visitors of the time from outside Africa, sometimes affected by prejudice or ignorance but nevertheless often useful. These are generally referred to as ethnohistorical sources. Less common but more valuable are accounts by indigenous African writers of the time. Included here is a selection of examples of these historical and ethnohistorical sources. Speke 1863 provides a 19th-century window on the region around East Africa’s Great Lakes, revealing the character of states and large settlements before colonial intervention. Pigafetta 1881 offers details of another African state, but at an earlier date. Contrasting with these European accounts is Africanus 1896, written by a Moroccan educated in the Islamic tradition who converted to Christianity, resulting in a broad cultural understanding of what he recorded during the 16th century. Howard 1951 sheds considerable light on West African societies during more recent centuries, as European travelers became increasingly familiar with these societies and wrote extensively about them. Álvares 1961, written by a European in the early 16th century, is a major source of information on Ethiopia at a time when it was little known to the outside world. Theal 1964 is an important source of historical documentation for southern Africa over a substantial period. Ibn Furtu 1970 is another indigenous account and is particularly valuable because of the detailed information it contains on a region and period for which there are few documentary sources. Although on a smaller scale than Theal 1964, Freeman-Grenville 1975 makes available documentary sources on the East African coast. Students who wish to gain a basic understanding of precolonial Africa should read extensively in these publications.
  279.  
  280. Africanus, Leo. The History and Description of Africa, and of the Notable Things Therein Contained. 3 vols. Translated by John Pory. Edited by Robert Brown. London: Bedford for the Hakluyt Society, 1896.
  281.  
  282. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  283.  
  284. This is a 16th-century account by a North African, including information on Africa as far south as the southern edge of the Sahara. The work was based on both firsthand experience and accounts from other travelers. It is considered a reliable source and has been translated from Arabic and Italian.
  285.  
  286. Find this resource:
  287.  
  288.  
  289. Álvares, Francisco. The Prester John of the Indies: A True Relation of the Lands of the Prester John, Being the Narrative of the Portuguese Embassy to Ethiopia in 1520. 2 vols. Translated by Lord Stanley of Alderley. Edited by G. F. Beckingham and G. W. B. Huntingford. Cambridge, UK: University Press, 1961.
  290.  
  291. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  292.  
  293. A firsthand account of Ethiopia in the early 16th century. A source of much useful information, written by a visitor who spent six years in the country. Translated from the 1540 Portuguese edition.
  294.  
  295. Find this resource:
  296.  
  297.  
  298. Freeman-Grenville, G. S. P., ed. The East African Coast: Select Documents from the First to the Earlier Nineteenth Century. 2d ed. London: Collings, 1975.
  299.  
  300. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  301.  
  302. A useful collection of historical and ethnohistorical accounts from a variety of sources, translated from originals in Greek, Arabic, Portuguese, and other languages.
  303.  
  304. Find this resource:
  305.  
  306.  
  307. Howard, C., ed. West African Explorers. World’s Classics 523. London and New York: Oxford University Press, 1951.
  308.  
  309. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  310.  
  311. This is an old but still useful book that contains fifteen extracts from accounts of the time, of various parts of West Africa from the 17th to the 19th century.
  312.  
  313. Find this resource:
  314.  
  315.  
  316. Ibn Furtu, Ahmad. History of the First Twelve Years of the Reign of Mai Idris Alooma of Bornu, 1571–1583. Translated and edited by H. R. Palmer. Cass Library of African Studies: General Studies 92. London: Cass, 1970.
  317.  
  318. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  319.  
  320. Originally published in English in 1926, translated from the Arabic original. An account by an African writer of the time, of events during the late 16th century in the Lake Chad region of what is, in the early 21st century, Northeast Nigeria.
  321.  
  322. Find this resource:
  323.  
  324.  
  325. Pigafetta, Filippo. A Report of the Kingdom of Congo and of the Surrounding Countries: Drawn out of the Writings and Discourses of the Portuguese, Duarte Lopez, by Filippo Pigafetta, in Rome, 1591. Translated and edited by Margarite Hutchinson. London: Murray, 1881.
  326.  
  327. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  328.  
  329. An account of an important Central African state in the 16th century, for which there exists little archaeological investigation.
  330.  
  331. Find this resource:
  332.  
  333.  
  334. Speke, John Hanning. Journal of the Discovery of the Source of the Nile. Edinburgh and London: Blackwood, 1863.
  335.  
  336. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  337.  
  338. The earliest account in English of the Interlacustrine states of Buganda and Bunyoro, in East Central Africa. A good example of a 19th-century European explorer’s observations that have become a major source of information about parts of the area within Uganda in the early 21st century.
  339.  
  340. Find this resource:
  341.  
  342.  
  343. Theal, George McCall., ed. Records of South-Eastern Africa. 9 vols. Cape Town: Struik, 1964.
  344.  
  345. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  346.  
  347. Originally published in 1898–1903. A collection of documentary sources that provides a starting point for the investigation of the history and ethnography of southern African societies.
  348.  
  349. Find this resource:
  350.  
  351.  
  352. Oral Traditions
  353. The memories of African peoples about their past also shed light on early states and cities, yet such traditions are often difficult to interpret, particularly concerning chronology. Nevertheless, combined with documentary sources and archaeological evidence, works based on oral histories have been used extensively in the study of social complexity during Africa’s past, to which historical linguistics also have a contribution to make. The examples cited here demonstrate the value of these sources and some of the ways in which they have been employed. Egharevba 1968 is an indigenous history, written by a man whose duty it was to memorize the traditions of his people. Fortunately, he wrote these down early in the 20th century, before they began to be weakened by modern influences, although his presentation was somewhat influenced by European historiography. In contrast, Vansina 2006 is a classic scholarly study of the use of oral traditions, written by a European and discussing their collection, analysis, and strengths and weaknesses. Schmidt 1978 provides an example, by an American scholar, of historical reconstruction combining oral traditions and archaeological evidence. It offers valuable insight into early iron production in East Africa. Similarly, Reefe 1981 reconstructs the history of a Central African state, based on oral traditions. Huffman 1996 is a particularly ambitious attempt at historical reconstruction based on oral traditions, attempting as it does to recover the symbolism of the stone structures at Great Zimbabwe and similar sites. Ehret 1998 is an example of the use of language studies, based at least partly on oral evidence, to reconstruct African history. Finally, Helm 2004 tests the traditional histories of the Kenyan coast against the available archaeological evidence, in the process suggesting a continuous, long-term settlement history from the 1st millennium AD onward, discounting input from migration.
  354.  
  355. Egharevba, Jacob U. A Short History of Benin. 4th ed. Ibadan, Nigeria: Ibadan University Press, 1968.
  356.  
  357. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  358.  
  359. Originally published in 1934. A justifiably famous account by an African writer, based on the oral traditions of his own people, the Edo, of Benin City, in Nigeria. By combining these traditions with accounts by visiting Europeans, the author was able to construct a comprehensive history from early in the 2nd millennium AD to the 20th century.
  360.  
  361. Find this resource:
  362.  
  363.  
  364. Ehret, Christopher. An African Classical Age: Eastern and Southern Africa in World History, 1000 BC to AD 400. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1998.
  365.  
  366. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  367.  
  368. This is a study of African historical linguistics, not oral traditions, but it is based on oral sources as well as on linguistic analysis. Although it covers only the earlier part of the period of early states and cities, this book provides an alternative approach to the African past.
  369.  
  370. Find this resource:
  371.  
  372.  
  373. Helm, Richard. “Re-Evaluating Traditional Histories on the Coast of Kenya: An Archaeological Perspective.” In African Historical Archaeologies. Edited by Andrew M. Reid and Paul J. Lane, 59–89. Contributions to Global Historical Archaeology. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum, 2004.
  374.  
  375. DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4419-8863-8Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  376.  
  377. An example of the use of oral traditions in writing a balanced history by comparing those sources with relevant archaeological evidence.
  378.  
  379. Find this resource:
  380.  
  381.  
  382. Huffman, Thomas N. Snakes and Crocodiles: Power and Symbolism in Ancient Zimbabwe. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press, 1996.
  383.  
  384. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  385.  
  386. An attempt to use oral traditions and ethnographic accounts to explain the symbolism of the ruins of Great Zimbabwe. Attracted some criticism by those who thought that the traditions of the Venda, which were used, were not relevant to the Shona, whose ancestors constructed the buildings. The author claimed a historical reconstruction for seven hundred years into the past.
  387.  
  388. Find this resource:
  389.  
  390.  
  391. Reefe, Thomas Q. The Rainbow and the Kings: A History of the Luba Empire to 1891. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1981.
  392.  
  393. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  394.  
  395. The history of a Central African state, based mainly on a study of the oral traditions of the Luba people. Other sources for their history are very limited, particularly chronologically.
  396.  
  397. Find this resource:
  398.  
  399.  
  400. Schmidt, Peter R. Historical Archaeology: A Structural Approach in an African Culture. Contributions in Intercultural and Comparative Studies 3. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1978.
  401.  
  402. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  403.  
  404. An influential example of the use of oral traditions to reconstruct social and technological history in Buhaya (Tanzania, in the early 21st century).
  405.  
  406. Find this resource:
  407.  
  408.  
  409. Vansina, Jan. Oral Tradition: A Study in Historical Methodology. Translated by H. M. Wright. New Brunswick, NJ: Aldine Transaction, 2006.
  410.  
  411. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  412.  
  413. A useful introduction to the subject of oral traditions, considering methodology, interpretation, and historical value. Written by one of the most respected scholars in this field, who had extensive practical experience, particularly in the Central African rainforest.
  414.  
  415. Find this resource:
  416.  
  417.  
  418. Regional Studies of Archaeological Evidence
  419. Despite the importance of the sources outlined in Historical and Ethnohistorical Sources and Oral Traditions, it is archaeological evidence that has the greatest potential for increasing our understanding of early states and state formation in Africa. Adopting a broad definition of sociopolitical complexity and of increasing settlement size, both of which display a variety of forms on the continent, archaeological research is increasingly able to contribute new information or to test that already available. Evidence for increasing social complexity is of several types, such as the sites of large settlements, sometimes enclosed by walls or earthworks; elite burials containing large numbers of artifacts; regalia symbolic of power; sophisticated artworks; organized long-distance commerce; and the maintenance of substantial herds of cattle or other domestic animals. However, the relevant literature is huge, particularly for geographical areas that have attracted most attention, and what follows is only a selection of references for published works from twelve regions into which the continent is here divided. Users of this material wanting more detail should examine the reference lists and bibliographies in each of these publications, by which means a much greater range of information can be accessed.
  420.  
  421. Pharaonic Egypt
  422. Compared with the published material available for most other parts of Africa, the literature on Pharaonic Egypt, often referred to as ancient Egypt, is very large. This is partly because archaeological research in the region extends over two centuries. However, for a long time much of the relevant publication was heavily descriptive and preoccupied with elites and state ritual, but there has been a shift toward understanding daily life and commoner contexts alongside the more traditional approach. The selection here emphasizes major texts because they contain the greatest range of information and will provide references to more detailed sources. Kemp 1989 is an analytical study that offers a refreshingly different introduction compared with that of many general syntheses. In contrast, Lehner 1997 is a specific study of the pyramids, considering their structures, their building and its economic and social implications, and many associated details. This is a book of all you ever wanted to know about Egyptian pyramids. Hassan 1997 considers the River Nile, its role in the ancient Egyptian economy, and its influence on social and political conditions. Davies and Friedman 1998 is an attractive book useful for students wishing to get an initial understanding of the subject. For those needing more details, Shaw 2000 is a comprehensive series of edited chapters, a major source on the overall history of Pharaonic Egypt. This is complemented by Baines and Malek 2000, in which the main concern is the physical evidence of archaeological sites and their contents. Meskell 2002 is an example of a newer approach, using the full range of sources about New Kingdom Egypt to investigate what it was actually like for the people who lived during that period. Finally, Wengrow 2006 is a detailed analysis of the evidence for the origins of the Egyptian state, ending at the time when many general texts begin.
  423.  
  424. Baines, John, and Jaromir Malek. Cultural Atlas of Ancient Egypt. Rev. ed. New York: Checkmark, 2000.
  425.  
  426. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  427.  
  428. Provides a wealth of detail on the most important archaeological evidence. Excellent illustrations, including a useful series of maps.
  429.  
  430. Find this resource:
  431.  
  432.  
  433. Davies, Vivian, and Renée Friedman. Egypt Uncovered. London: British Museum, 1998.
  434.  
  435. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  436.  
  437. This is a general and well-illustrated introduction.
  438.  
  439. Find this resource:
  440.  
  441.  
  442. Hassan, Fekri A. “The Dynamics of a Riverine Civilization: A Geoarchaeological Perspective on the Nile Valley, Egypt.” World Archaeology 29.1 (1997): 51–74.
  443.  
  444. DOI: 10.1080/00438243.1997.9980363Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  445.  
  446. A discussion of the fundamental role in state emergence played by the floodplain of the Nile and its unpredictable floods and agricultural yields. The author is a respected Egyptian scholar with wide international experience. Available online by subscription.
  447.  
  448. Find this resource:
  449.  
  450.  
  451. Kemp, Barry J. Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization. London and New York: Routledge, 1989.
  452.  
  453. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  454.  
  455. Different in its approach to the subject from the majority of studies; a thoughtful anthropological investigation.
  456.  
  457. Find this resource:
  458.  
  459.  
  460. Lehner, Mark. The Complete Pyramids. London: Thames and Hudson, 1997.
  461.  
  462. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  463.  
  464. A remarkable, well-illustrated book that does ample justice to this most important indicator of social complexity. Considers many aspects of the subject.
  465.  
  466. Find this resource:
  467.  
  468.  
  469. Meskell, Lynn. Private Life in New Kingdom Egypt. Princeton, NJ, and Chichester, UK: Princeton University Press, 2002.
  470.  
  471. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  472.  
  473. Examines private life during the best-known period of Pharaonic Egyptian history, drawing on documentary, iconographic, archaeological, and anthropological sources. Includes discussion of locales and communities, living conditions, regional centers, village life, families, personhood, the household, love and eroticism, sensual life, and ideas of life and death.
  474.  
  475. Find this resource:
  476.  
  477.  
  478. Shaw, Ian, ed. The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
  479.  
  480. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  481.  
  482. An authoritative text containing chapters by a range of specialists, covering the entire long period of ancient Egypt and its preceding cultures.
  483.  
  484. Find this resource:
  485.  
  486.  
  487. Wengrow, David. The Archaeology of Early Egypt: Social Transformations in North-East Africa, 10,000 to 2650 BC. Cambridge World Archaeology. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006.
  488.  
  489. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  490.  
  491. Investigates the crucial early formative period of the Egyptian state in greater detail than most other texts.
  492.  
  493. Find this resource:
  494.  
  495.  
  496. Nubia
  497. This region consists of the middle Nile valley, south of Aswân, in Egypt, and as far south as Sennar, in Sudan. The emergence of social complexity in Nubia was long treated by scholars as a secondary development resulting from contact with Pharaonic Egypt, but more recent research has increasingly stressed the distinctive elements in Nubian cultures. However, like Pharaonic Egypt, a preoccupation with elites and state ritual has shifted toward a greater interest in understanding daily life. Furthermore, archaeological research in Nubia benefited from excavations and fieldwork made necessary by the construction of the Aswân High Dam, which was completed in 1970. One result was a growth of interest in later polities and cities in the region, both Christian and Islamic. Shinnie 1967 provides a straightforward, popular introduction to the state and city of Meroë and its associated sites. Although out-of-date, this work gives a good idea of the foundations on which subsequent research has been built. In contrast, Davies 1991 is an edited collection of specialist papers that will be useful to students after a basic knowledge of the subject has been acquired. O’Connor 1993 will assist this task, offering familiarity with some of the material evidence. However, a more detailed study is Welsby 1996, which presents a useful overall treatment of two early states, one of which, Meroë, is examined more analytically in Edwards 1996. Kendall 1997 introduces the reader to the city and state of Kerma, the earliest such development in Africa outside of Egypt. Particularly valuable, however, is Welsby 2002, dealing with post-Meroitic states in the region, a period that was formerly relatively neglected. Finally, Edwards 2004 has broad coverage of Nubia’s archaeology that students will find valuable as an overall introduction to this region.
  498.  
  499. Davies, W. V., ed. Egypt and Africa: Nubia from Prehistory to Islam. London: British Museum, 1991.
  500.  
  501. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  502.  
  503. A collection of thirty papers by leading specialists, ranging widely in subject and time.
  504.  
  505. Find this resource:
  506.  
  507.  
  508. Edwards, David N. The Archaeology of the Meroitic State: New Perspectives on Its Social and Political Organisation. Cambridge Monographs in African Archaeology 38. Oxford: Tempus Reparatum, 1996.
  509.  
  510. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  511.  
  512. An analysis of the Meroitic state in its Sudanic African context, looking beyond the traditional focus on monuments and art and contributing substantially to understanding the formation of this early, urban-centered state.
  513.  
  514. Find this resource:
  515.  
  516.  
  517. Edwards, David N. The Nubian Past: An Archaeology of the Sudan. London and New York: Routledge, 2004.
  518.  
  519. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  520.  
  521. A comprehensive study of Sudan’s past that includes chapters on the time of Kerma, Meroë, and later periods.
  522.  
  523. Find this resource:
  524.  
  525.  
  526. Kendall, Timothy. Kerma and the Kingdom of Kush, 2500–1500 BC: The Archaeological Discovery of an Ancient Nubian Empire. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1997.
  527.  
  528. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  529.  
  530. An introductory study of Kerma, Africa’s oldest-known city and earliest state outside of Egypt.
  531.  
  532. Find this resource:
  533.  
  534.  
  535. O’Connor, David. Ancient Nubia: Egypt’s Rival in Africa. Philadelphia: University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania, 1993.
  536.  
  537. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  538.  
  539. A general introduction, with good illustrations.
  540.  
  541. Find this resource:
  542.  
  543.  
  544. Shinnie, P. L. Meroe: A Civilization of the Sudan. Ancient Peoples and Places 55. London: Thames and Hudson, 1967.
  545.  
  546. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  547.  
  548. An old but classic study of Meroitic culture, concentrating on the archaeological evidence. Of historical value as an indication of the scholarship at the time of publication and also a good starting point for undergraduate students before they read more recent material. Well illustrated.
  549.  
  550. Find this resource:
  551.  
  552.  
  553. Welsby, Derek A. The Kingdom of Kush: The Napatan and Meroitic Empires. London: British Museum, 1996.
  554.  
  555. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  556.  
  557. A detailed study of the Meroitic state and its Napatan antecedent, both important examples of early social complexity in Nubia.
  558.  
  559. Find this resource:
  560.  
  561.  
  562. Welsby, Derek A. The Medieval Kingdoms of Nubia: Pagans, Christians and Muslims along the Middle Nile. London: British Museum, 2002.
  563.  
  564. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  565.  
  566. An introduction to the Christian states in Nubia during the second half of the 1st millennium and the first half of the 2nd millennium AD.
  567.  
  568. Find this resource:
  569.  
  570.  
  571. Ethiopia
  572. Archaeological investigations of social complexity in Ethiopia have tended to concentrate on Aksumite urban and state development in the 1st millennium AD, but Christian societies of the 2nd millennium are, in the early 21st century, also receiving attention, particularly centered on the ecclesiastical buildings and other sites on which the mobile capitals of much of the period were focused. There was extensive archaeological research in Ethiopia during the 1960s and early 1970s, but political instability from 1974 to 1991 effectively halted further work, which resumed only in the 1990s. Buxton 1970 is a general synthesis that is still a good introduction to Ethiopia’s history and archaeology as well as to its geography. Munro-Hay 1991 is a more detailed introduction, but specifically to Aksum and giving less attention to the material evidence. Phillipson 1998 counterbalances this with a wide-ranging archaeological study that students will find useful. Different, too, is Pankhurst 2001, a historical study especially of later periods. Michels 2005 focuses on the Aksumite period, but on associated sites in the surrounding area rather than on the city. Finneran 2007 has much wider coverage, consisting of all periods of Ethiopian archaeology. This work provides a good general introduction to the subject. In contrast, Phillipson 2009 is a detailed scholarly study of Ethiopia’s built and rock-cut churches, offering an archaeological analysis of a subject that has previously been investigated mainly by architects and art historians. The rock-cut churches have specific chronological problems, to which Fauvelle-Aymar, et al. 2010 gives a fresh and hopeful approach.
  573.  
  574. Buxton, David. The Abyssinians. Ancient Peoples and Places 71. London: Thames and Hudson, 1970.
  575.  
  576. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  577.  
  578. A dated but classic study by a man who lived for many years in Ethiopia, understood its varied environments, and pioneered research into its churches.
  579.  
  580. Find this resource:
  581.  
  582.  
  583. Fauvelle-Aymar, François-Xavier, Laurent Bruxelles, Romain Mensan, Claire Bosc-Tiessé, Marie-Laure Derat, and Emmanuel Fritsch. “Rock-Cut Stratigraphy: Sequencing the Lalibela Churches.” Antiquity 84.326 (2010): 1135–1150.
  584.  
  585. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  586.  
  587. A new approach to the problem of dating the rock-cut churches of Lalibela, the most important group of these sites. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  588.  
  589. Find this resource:
  590.  
  591.  
  592. Finneran, Niall. The Archaeology of Ethiopia. London and New York: Routledge, 2007.
  593.  
  594. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  595.  
  596. Includes all periods and is consequently a little superficial, but has a very large bibliography.
  597.  
  598. Find this resource:
  599.  
  600.  
  601. Michels, Joseph W. Changing Settlement Patterns in the Aksum-Yeha Region of Ethiopia, 700 BC–AD 850. Cambridge Monographs in African Archaeology 64. Oxford: Archaeopress, 2005.
  602.  
  603. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  604.  
  605. A report on an extensive, pioneering archaeological fieldwork survey that attempted to set the Aksum area into its regional settlement context.
  606.  
  607. Find this resource:
  608.  
  609.  
  610. Munro-Hay, Stuart. Aksum: An African Civilisation of Late Antiquity. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1991.
  611.  
  612. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  613.  
  614. A detailed introduction, more historical than archaeological in orientation, with a substantial bibliography.
  615.  
  616. Find this resource:
  617.  
  618.  
  619. Pankhurst, Richard. The Ethiopians: A History. Peoples of Africa. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2001.
  620.  
  621. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  622.  
  623. A useful history providing a general context, but with an emphasis on the 2nd millennium AD.
  624.  
  625. Find this resource:
  626.  
  627.  
  628. Phillipson, David W. Ancient Ethiopia: Aksum: Its Antecedents and Successors. London: British Museum, 1998.
  629.  
  630. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  631.  
  632. A general archaeological introduction by a leading scholar in the field. Useful illustrations, including color, and a large bibliography.
  633.  
  634. Find this resource:
  635.  
  636.  
  637. Phillipson, David W. Ancient Churches of Ethiopia: Fourth–Fourteenth Centuries. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2009.
  638.  
  639. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  640.  
  641. A specialist study of both built and rock-cut churches in Ethiopia. Well illustrated, including color, and a substantial bibliography.
  642.  
  643. Find this resource:
  644.  
  645.  
  646. Eritrea and Somalia
  647. This region has had many years of political instability, such that accessible published material on the more recent developments of social complexity is limited. Consequently, some of the references provided here are quite old. Nevertheless, they give some idea of the importance of this region, situated as it is in proximity to Arabia, the Red Sea, and the Indian Ocean. Curle 1937 is a reminder of the undeveloped potential for future archaeological research into state and urban developments in this part of Africa. Chittick 1969 and Chittick 1976 similarly indicate possibilities for future research. More specifically, Chittick 1982 is one of the few archaeological investigations of Mogadishu. Together with Jama 1996, it offers limited information about the past of what is probably a major urban site. In contrast, Schmidt and Curtis 2001 presents the findings of more recent archaeological research in Eritrea, where it has become possible, in the early 21st century, to conduct such work. The book Peacock and Blue 2007 is also significant, not only because it is early-21st-century research, but also because it is concerned with Adulis, a major port and city during the Aksumite period. The most important outcome of early-21st-century investigations, however, is the edited collection Schmidt, et al. 2008, which gives evidence of social complexity in Eritrea that was previously unpublished.
  648.  
  649. Chittick, Neville. “An Archaeological Reconnaissance of the Southern Somali Coast.” Azania 4.1 (1969): 115–130.
  650.  
  651. DOI: 10.1080/00672706909511511Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  652.  
  653. This old preliminary survey still has value because there has been little field research in the area since. Contains useful photographs. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  654.  
  655. Find this resource:
  656.  
  657.  
  658. Chittick, Neville. “An Archaeological Reconnaissance in the Horn: The British-Somali Expedition, 1975.” Azania 11.1 (1976): 117–133.
  659.  
  660. DOI: 10.1080/00672707609511233Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  661.  
  662. This survey complements Chittick 1969, covering the northern Somali coast. It also contains useful photographs. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  663.  
  664. Find this resource:
  665.  
  666.  
  667. Chittick, Neville. “Mediaeval Mogadishu.” Paideuma 28 (1982): 45–62.
  668.  
  669. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  670.  
  671. A report on investigations, including excavations, that indicates an origin for the city in the 12th century AD. Useful illustrations. Available online by subscription.
  672.  
  673. Find this resource:
  674.  
  675.  
  676. Curle, A. T. “The Ruined Towns of Somaliland.” Antiquity 11.43 (1937): 315–327.
  677.  
  678. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  679.  
  680. Discusses a group of mainly inland sites visited in 1934 that were thought to date to the 15th and 16th centuries AD, although one site on the coast was found to date to the 12th century. No subsequent investigations of these sites are known.
  681.  
  682. Find this resource:
  683.  
  684.  
  685. Jama, Ahmed Dualeh. The Origins and Development of Mogadishu, AD 1000 to 1850: A Study of Urban Growth along the Benadir Coast of Southern Somalia. Studies in African Archaeology 12. Uppsala, Sweden: Uppsala University, 1996.
  686.  
  687. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  688.  
  689. A report on field surveys and excavations at a place that has otherwise had little attention from archaeologists.
  690.  
  691. Find this resource:
  692.  
  693.  
  694. Peacock, David, and Lucy Blue, eds. The Ancient Red Sea Port of Adulis, Eritrea: Results of the Eritro-British Expedition, 2004–5. Oxford: Oxbow, 2007.
  695.  
  696. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  697.  
  698. A report on a detailed survey at Adulis, the ancient port for Aksum. An investigation long overdue and the first research at this site for some years.
  699.  
  700. Find this resource:
  701.  
  702.  
  703. Schmidt, Peter R., and Matthew C. Curtis. “Urban Precursors in the Horn: Early 1st-Millennium BC Communities in Eritrea.” Antiquity 75.290 (2001): 849–859.
  704.  
  705. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  706.  
  707. Describes fieldwork and excavations in the Asmara area and explains their contribution to the understanding of urban and state development in Eritrea. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  708.  
  709. Find this resource:
  710.  
  711.  
  712. Schmidt, Peter R., Matthew C. Curtis, and Zelalem Teka, eds. The Archaeology of Ancient Eritrea. Trenton, NJ: Red Sea Press, 2008.
  713.  
  714. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  715.  
  716. A comprehensive study of Eritrea’s past, including the results of late-20th-century and early-21st-century archaeological investigations of urban and state developments in the region. A valuable starting point for readers.
  717.  
  718. Find this resource:
  719.  
  720.  
  721. North Africa
  722. Facing the Mediterranean, and with its back to the Sahara Desert, North Africa was the location of a series of literate urbanized states influenced by societies to its north and east. A succession of settlements—Carthaginian, Cyrenaican, Roman, Berber, Vandal, Byzantine, Islamic—all left archaeological evidence of social complexity, some of it very extensive. Of these, the greatest impact on Africa to the south was from Islamic North Africa. Its urban, mercantile, and religious traditions influenced people in the Sahara and beyond in fundamental ways, particularly during the 2nd millennium AD. Kraeling 1962 is an example of a major archaeological publication about a North African city with a long occupation, spanning several important periods during the 1st millennium BC and the 1st millennium AD. Similarly, Hurst 1979 presents the results of some of the excavations at the site of Carthage, historically one of the best-known examples of early social complexity in North Africa. Much later in date are the archaeological studies of Qsar es-Seghir and associated sites in Morocco, in Redman 1983 and Redman 1986. These provide a remarkable insight into Islamic urbanism in North Africa. In contrast, Lancel 1995 is a general study of Carthage that places it in its historical and geographical context. Brett and Fentress 1996 examines an important but often neglected part of that context in its study of the Berbers, the indigenous people of parts of North Africa who responded in their own way to the various influences from outside the continent. However, readers interested in North African social complexity must also give attention to the sophisticated cities and colonies of the Roman period. Sears 2007 and Sears 2011 offer a valuable introduction to this subject.
  723.  
  724. Brett, Michael, and Elizabeth Fentress. The Berbers. Peoples of Africa. Oxford and Cambridge, MA: Blackwell, 1996.
  725.  
  726. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  727.  
  728. A comprehensive study of the Berbers, including their contributions to state formation and urbanization in pre-Islamic North Africa. Draws attention to a people who developed their own alphabet but who have been largely overlooked by archaeologists.
  729.  
  730. Find this resource:
  731.  
  732.  
  733. Hurst, Henry. “Excavations at Carthage 1977–8: Fourth Interim Report.” Antiquaries Journal 59.1 (1979): 19–49.
  734.  
  735. DOI: 10.1017/S0003581500065252Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  736.  
  737. Provides details of the remarkable circular harbor in this city, constructed in the late 3rd or early 2nd century BC. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  738.  
  739. Find this resource:
  740.  
  741.  
  742. Kraeling, Carl H. Ptolemais: City of the Libyan Pentapolis. University of Chicago Oriental Institute Publications 90. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1962.
  743.  
  744. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  745.  
  746. A detailed study of excavations and other research at a city in Cyrenaica occupied in the Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine periods, from 322 BC to AD 643. There was also later Islamic occupation, but that is not investigated in this text.
  747.  
  748. Find this resource:
  749.  
  750.  
  751. Lancel, Serge. Carthage: A History. Translated by Antonia Nevill. Oxford and Cambridge, MA: Blackwell, 1995.
  752.  
  753. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  754.  
  755. An introductory text that considers archaeological as well as historical evidence.
  756.  
  757. Find this resource:
  758.  
  759.  
  760. Redman, Charles L. “Comparative Urbanism in the Islamic Far West.” In Special Issue: Islamic Archaeology. Edited by Joan Oates. World Archaeology 14.3 (1983): 355–377.
  761.  
  762. DOI: 10.1080/00438243.1983.9979875Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  763.  
  764. Qsar es-Seghir studied in the context of the investigation of five other Islamic urban sites in Morocco. Available online by subscription.
  765.  
  766. Find this resource:
  767.  
  768.  
  769. Redman, Charles L. Qsar es-Seghir: An Archaeological View of Medieval Life. Orlando, FL: Academic Press, 1986.
  770.  
  771. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  772.  
  773. An account of excavations at the site of a Moroccan Islamic city that was later captured and occupied by the Portuguese and eventually abandoned. A classic study of contrasting forms of urban life.
  774.  
  775. Find this resource:
  776.  
  777.  
  778. Sears, Gareth. Late Roman African Urbanism: Continuity and Transformation in the City. British Archaeological Reports International 1693. Oxford: Archaeopress, 2007.
  779.  
  780. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  781.  
  782. Examines the changes that occurred in the cities of Roman North Africa from the late 3rd to the early 5th century AD; also looks at the impact of Christianization during this period.
  783.  
  784. Find this resource:
  785.  
  786.  
  787. Sears, Gareth. The Cities of Roman Africa. Stroud, UK: History Press, 2011.
  788.  
  789. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  790.  
  791. Covers the development of cities during the whole period of Roman North Africa, from the 2nd century BC to the 5th century AD.
  792.  
  793. Find this resource:
  794.  
  795.  
  796. The Sahara
  797. Given the extremely dry conditions of the Sahara Desert during the last four millennia or so, evidence of state formation and urbanization is understandably limited. Nevertheless, these processes did occur, most famously in the case of the Garamantes, in the oases of the Fazzan, but also along the southern margins of the desert. However, the logistical difficulties of excavation in extreme environments have limited the investigation of some of the more remote settlements. One of the most extensively excavated Islamic urban sites in the Sahara is Tegdaoust, in Mauritania, concerning which Robert-Chaleix 1989 provides one of the relevant publications, one that should lead the reader to other material about this site. Berthier 1997 is concerned with another major urban site of similar date in this region, in this case thought to have been the capital of an early state. This publication replaces older ones on the same site. MacDonald 1998 is about a much earlier period and the possibility that social complexity in the desert and its margins could have origins among pastoral rather than agricultural societies, as typically assumed. Nixon 2009 describes more recent excavations at another Islamic trans-Saharan trading city, Essouk-Tadmakka, indicating an earlier date for the development of such commerce than has usually been accepted. Similarly, Post Park 2010, about the famous trading city of Timbuktu, argues for an earlier origin than previously thought. Nixon, et al. 2011 sheds further light on this chronological issue, with evidence that the West African gold trade already existed by the end of the 1st millennium AD. Finally, Mattingly 2011 offers insight into the remarkable urbanized state of the Garamantes, in the central Sahara, situated in a series of irrigated oases, with evidence of even earlier, extensive, pre-Islamic trade. Overall, it is gradually becoming apparent that trade across the Sahara Desert has existed for much longer than was formerly thought. The idea that the desert was an impassable barrier before the 2nd millennium AD is increasingly under question.
  798.  
  799. Berthier, Sophie. Recherches archéologiques sur la capitale de l’empire de Ghana: Étude d’un secteur d’habitat à Koumbi Saleh, Mauritanie. Campagnes II-III-IV-V, (1975–1976)–(1980–1981). Cambridge Monographs in African Archaeology 41. Oxford: Archaeopress, 1997.
  800.  
  801. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  802.  
  803. A detailed excavation report on investigations at Koumbi Saleh, the capital of the ancient state of Ghana.
  804.  
  805. Find this resource:
  806.  
  807.  
  808. MacDonald, Kevin C. “Before the Empire of Ghana: Pastoralism and the Origins of Cultural Complexity in the Sahel.” Paper presented at a conference held in the Humanities Research Centre, Australian National University, Canberra, June 1995. In Transformations in Africa: Essays on Africa’s Later Past. Edited by Graham Connah, 71–103. London and Washington, DC: Leicester University Press, 1998.
  809.  
  810. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  811.  
  812. An original approach, asserting that premetallurgical pastoral “mobile elites” were the first complex societies of semiarid West Africa. Includes information on Dakhlet el ʿAtrous, the largest of the Dhar Tichitt settlements, which covers eighty hectares.
  813.  
  814. Find this resource:
  815.  
  816.  
  817. Mattingly, David. “The Garamantes of Fazzan: An Early Libyan State with Trans-Saharan Connections.” Paper presented at a conference held in the Department of Coins and Medals, the British Museum, 2008. In Money, Trade and Trade Routes in Pre-Islamic North Africa. Edited by Amelia Dowler and Elizabeth R. Galvin, 49–60. British Museum Research Publication 176. London: British Museum, 2011.
  818.  
  819. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  820.  
  821. An introduction to the earliest indigenous urbanized state in the central Sahara, supported by sophisticated irrigation methods and providing a focal point in pre-Islamic times for trade networks linking the Nile, North Africa, and the west African savanna.
  822.  
  823. Find this resource:
  824.  
  825.  
  826. Nixon, Sam. “Excavating Essouk-Tadmakka (Mali): New Archaeological Investigations of Early Islamic Trans-Saharan Trade.” Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa 44.2 (2009): 217–255.
  827.  
  828. DOI: 10.1080/00671990903047595Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  829.  
  830. Reports on an excavated sequence dating from the mid-1st millennium AD to c. 1400. In particular, gives evidence of early trans-Saharan trade handled by this major trading town during the 8th and 9th centuries AD. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  831.  
  832. Find this resource:
  833.  
  834.  
  835. Nixon, Sam, Thilo Rehren, and Maria Filomena Guerra. “New Light on the Early Islamic West African Gold Trade: Coin Moulds from Tadmekka, Mali.” Antiquity 85.330 (2011): 1353–1368.
  836.  
  837. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  838.  
  839. Discusses coin molds excavated from a 9th–10th century context at this site. The molds had traces of very pure (98 percent) gold and are thought to have been used for producing blanks that were later struck into coins on the Mediterranean coast or melted down for other use. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  840.  
  841. Find this resource:
  842.  
  843.  
  844. Post Park, Douglas. “Prehistoric Timbuktu and Its Hinterland.” Antiquity 84.326 (2010): 1076–1088.
  845.  
  846. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  847.  
  848. Previous archaeological investigations at Timbuktu have been limited, and a late date has been suggested for its development. In contrast, this paper argues for an urban origin before AD 1000. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  849.  
  850. Find this resource:
  851.  
  852.  
  853. Robert-Chaleix, Denise. Tegdaoust. Vol. 5, Une concession médiévale à Tegdaoust: Implantation, évolution d’une unité d’habitation. Mémoire: Éditions Recherche sur les Civilisations 82. Paris: Arts et Métiers Graphiques, 1989.
  854.  
  855. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  856.  
  857. One of several publications describing excavations at the important Saharan trading center of Tegdaoust, in Mauritania, in this case concerning the investigation of a single large household occupied from the 8th to the 13th century AD.
  858.  
  859. Find this resource:
  860.  
  861.  
  862. The West African Savanna
  863. Distinguishing savanna sites from those in the southern Sahara is somewhat arbitrary, but it is in the savanna that more evidence for early state formation and urbanization exists. It is also in this region that most excavations and other fieldwork projects have been conducted. The West African savanna was the location of increasing social complexity because of its advantageous location between the Saharan desert trade and the resources of the rainforest to its south. In addition, the region was part of a zone of interaction extending from the Atlantic Ocean to Lake Chad and on to the Nile valley. Islam played an important part in later developments in the West African savanna. Insoll 1996 and Insoll 2000 provide a good example of a city that almost certainly originated because of its participation in the trans-Saharan trade. These publications reveal the interrelationship of commerce, religion, and politics that characterized cities of the savanna during the 2nd millennium AD. In contrast, Magnavita, et al. 2002 shows how burial evidence can indicate the existence of a social hierarchy in the savanna. McIntosh 2005, however, argues on the basis of evidence from the Inland Niger Delta that urbanism need not be hierarchical and discusses the idea of hererarchy. Magnavita, et al. 2006 is concerned with an earlier period, presenting archaeological evidence for a fortified settlement at Zilum, in the Lake Chad region, which suggests that security was also a factor in the emergence of social complexity in some instances. Possibly, this was the case as well with the stone structures of the Diy-Gid-Biy (DGB) sites of the northern Mandara Mountains, described in David 2008, which suggest the growth of social complexity even in this seemingly peripheral location, although not until the 2nd millennium AD. In the clay plains to the north, however, near Lake Chad, the process can be seen as the culmination of many centuries of cultural adaptation, as shown in Connah 2009. MacDonald 2011 puts much of the archaeological research in the savanna into a broader context, by arguing that pre-Islamic trans-Saharan commerce did possibly play a role in the development of social complexity in the region.
  864.  
  865. Connah, Graham. Three Thousand Years in Africa: Man and His Environment in the Lake Chad Region of Nigeria. New Studies in Archaeology. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2009.
  866.  
  867. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  868.  
  869. Originally published 1981. A description of excavations and other fieldwork investigating the background to the development of social complexity in northeast Nigeria and with chapter 10 examining the evidence for early urbanization and state development in the area.
  870.  
  871. Find this resource:
  872.  
  873.  
  874. David, Nicholas. Performance and Agency: The DGB Sites of Northern Cameroon. British Archaeological Reports International 1830. Oxford: Archaeopress, 2008.
  875.  
  876. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  877.  
  878. An archaeological analysis of stone ruins in the Mandara Mountains of northern Cameroon, which suggest emerging social complexity during the 15th–16th centuries AD. Discusses the results of both survey and excavation in the context of archaeological evidence from the surrounding region.
  879.  
  880. Find this resource:
  881.  
  882.  
  883. Insoll, Timothy. Islam, Archaeology and History: Gao Region (Mali) ca. AD 900–1250. Cambridge Monographs in African Archaeology 39. Oxford: Tempus Reparatum, 1996.
  884.  
  885. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  886.  
  887. Presents the results of archaeological research at Gao, a city on the Middle Niger that probably originated before Islamic contact but that became an important center for Saharan trade and the capital of the Songhai “empire.”
  888.  
  889. Find this resource:
  890.  
  891.  
  892. Insoll, Timothy. Urbanism, Archaeology and Trade: Further Observations on the Gao Region (Mali), the 1996 Fieldseason Results. British Archaeological Reports International 829. Oxford: Archaeopress, 2000.
  893.  
  894. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  895.  
  896. Further discussion of the archaeology of this important city and its trade, based on more recent fieldwork than that reported in Insoll 1996, with which it should be consulted.
  897.  
  898. Find this resource:
  899.  
  900.  
  901. MacDonald, Kevin C. “A View from the South: Sub-Saharan Evidence for Contacts between North Africa, Mauritania and the Niger, 1000 BC–AD 700.” Paper presented at a conference held in the Department of Coins and Medals, the British Museum, 2008. In Money, Trade and Trade Routes in Pre-Islamic North Africa. Edited by Amelia Dowler and Elizabeth R. Galvin, 72–82. British Museum Research Publication 176. London: British Museum, 2011.
  902.  
  903. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  904.  
  905. Argues for the existence of trans-Saharan contact prior to the development of Islamic commerce, possibly a contributory factor in the growth of social complexity in the West African savanna. An original paper with a new emphasis.
  906.  
  907. Find this resource:
  908.  
  909.  
  910. Magnavita, Carlos, Peter Breunig, James Ameje, and Martin Posselt. “Zilum: A Mid-First Millennium BC Fortified Settlement near Lake Chad.” Journal of African Archaeology 4.1 (2006): 153–169.
  911.  
  912. DOI: 10.3213/1612-1651-10068Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  913.  
  914. Looks at a twelve-to-thirteen hectare settlement site surrounded by a ditch and bank that suggests the early development of social complexity in the Lake Chad area.
  915.  
  916. Find this resource:
  917.  
  918.  
  919. Magnavita, Sonja, Maya Hallier, Christoph Pelzer, Stefanie Kahlheber, and Veerle Linseele. “Nobles, guerriers, paysans: Un nécropole de l’Âge du fer et son emplacement dans l’Oudalan pré- et protohistorique.” Beiträge zur Allgemeinen und Vergleichenden Archäologie 22 (2002): 21–64.
  920.  
  921. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  922.  
  923. Reports on burials at Kissi, in Burkina Faso, mainly of the 1st millennium AD. Two of these were accompanied by high-status metal weapons and ornaments, suggesting the existence of an elite and the emergence of social complexity.
  924.  
  925. Find this resource:
  926.  
  927.  
  928. McIntosh, Roderick J. Ancient Middle Niger: Urbanism and the Self-Organizing Landscape. Case Studies in Early Societies 7. Cambridge, UK, and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
  929.  
  930. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  931.  
  932. Provides a useful introduction to many years of investigation in the Inland Niger Delta, in Mali, including those at Jenné-jeno. Asserts that cities developed in this area that had no centralized, state-focused power. The reference list includes many previous publications by both Roderick and Susan McIntosh.
  933.  
  934. Find this resource:
  935.  
  936.  
  937. The West African Forest
  938. The rainforest in West Africa was rich in resources, including agricultural products, gold, and people. By the late 1st millennium AD the rainforest’s population had probably grown in both size and density, leading to the emergence of both early states and urbanization. During the 2nd millennium the region became the location of some of the most remarkable developments of this sort in Africa. Before Europeans began to visit the coast in the 15th century, the region was a peripheral but important part of the trans-Saharan trading network. After that time, the area increasingly turned to the coast and became a major contributor to the Atlantic trade, part of which involved the sale of slaves. In much of the earlier archaeological research in this region, the main emphasis was on art-historical and ethnographic matters, hence the importance of Willett 1967, about the art of Ife in Nigeria. Old though this publication is, no student should ignore it. Much the same applies to Shaw 1970, also concerned with Nigeria, but this is much more detailed and is best read selectively. Dark 1973 has a somewhat different approach, considering the remarkably varied technology of Benin City and its surrounding state, in Nigeria, as an aspect of its famous art. In contrast, Connah 1975 provides an essentially archaeological study that attempts to reconstruct Benin’s past from the early 2nd millennium AD to the 19th century, by means of excavation and other fieldwork in and around the modern city that exists. Soper and Darling 1980 offers another archaeological study of a state capital based on fieldwork, in this case the deserted site of Old Oyo, formerly an important Yoruba polity. Anquandah 1993 presents a counterbalance to this Nigerian emphasis, with an examination of archaeological evidence for the development of social complexity in Ghana. A wider range of subjects is addressed in four papers in a special issue of International Journal of African Historical Studies, each of which examines a different aspect of the impact of the Atlantic trade on West African societies. Finally, Monroe and Ogundiran 2012 is an edited collection of papers that expand on this theme, particularly examining social and political consequences within West Africa.
  939.  
  940. Anquandah, J. “Urbanization and State Formation in Ghana during the Iron Age.” In The Archaeology of Africa: Food, Metals and Towns. Edited by Thurstan Shaw, Paul Sinclair, Bassey Andah, and Alex Okpoko, 642–651. One World Archaeology 20. London and New York: Routledge, 1993.
  941.  
  942. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  943.  
  944. Summarizes evidence for developing social complexity, particularly at the sites of Begho and Bono Manso, both on the northern edge of the rainforest. The first dates from the 11th to the 18th century AD, and the second, from the 13th to the 18th century AD.
  945.  
  946. Find this resource:
  947.  
  948.  
  949. Connah, Graham. The Archaeology of Benin: Excavations and Other Researches in and around Benin City, Nigeria. Oxford: Clarendon, 1975.
  950.  
  951. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  952.  
  953. A detailed report on excavations and fieldwork in and around the major urban site of Benin City, formerly the capital of a powerful state in what is, in the early 21st century, southern Nigeria. Although this research was completed in the early 1960s, there has been no further work on this scale since.
  954.  
  955. Find this resource:
  956.  
  957.  
  958. Dark, Philip J. C. An Introduction to Benin Art and Technology. Oxford: Clarendon, 1973.
  959.  
  960. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  961.  
  962. A major study of the sophisticated copper alloy castings, ivory and wood carvings, ironwork, and other artifacts for which Benin has justifiably become world famous. Collectively, these items are evidence of elite patronage in a socially complex context.
  963.  
  964. Find this resource:
  965.  
  966.  
  967. Monroe, J. Cameron, and Akinwumi Ogundiran, eds. Power and Landscape in Atlantic West Africa: Archaeological Perspectives. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012.
  968.  
  969. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511921032Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  970.  
  971. Essays about the archaeology of West African societies in the era of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. By examining regional economic networks, population shifts, and cultural values and ideologies, shows how involvement in the commercial relations of the early modern period reshaped political organization in West Africa.
  972.  
  973. Find this resource:
  974.  
  975.  
  976. Shaw, Charles T. Igbo-Ukwu: An Account of Archaeological Discoveries in Eastern Nigeria. 2 vols. London: Faber and Faber, 1970.
  977.  
  978. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  979.  
  980. Details of metal and other artifacts in a unique art style, known only from excavations at Igbo-Ukwu. Provides evidence of an unknown polity at the end of the 1st millennium AD.
  981.  
  982. Find this resource:
  983.  
  984.  
  985. Soper, Robert C., and Patrick Darling. “The Walls of Oyo Ile.” West African Journal of Archaeology 10 (1980): 61–81.
  986.  
  987. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  988.  
  989. Old Oyo, as it is known in English, is the site of the capital of the largest of the Yoruba states, which seems to have been at the height of its power in the 17th and 18th centuries AD. The multiple walls are evidence of a large urban unit, with one of the walls having a circumference of 18 kilometers.
  990.  
  991. Find this resource:
  992.  
  993.  
  994. Special Issue: Current Trends in the Archaeology of African History. International Journal of African Historical Studies 42.3 (2009).
  995.  
  996. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  997.  
  998. Papers by Neil L. Norman, Akinwumi Ogundiran, Natalie Swanepoel, and Ann B. Stahl and Adria LaViolette discuss the archaeology of 2nd-millennium AD sites in Hueda in the kingdom of Dahomey (Norman); on the frontier of the Oyo empire (Ogundiran); and in northwestern Ghana (Swanepoel), in the context of early-21st-century trends in the archaeology of African history (Stahl and LaViolette).
  999.  
  1000. Find this resource:
  1001.  
  1002.  
  1003. Willett, Frank. Ife in the History of West African Sculpture. New Aspects of Antiquity. London: Thames and Hudson, 1967.
  1004.  
  1005. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1006.  
  1007. Still the most useful introduction to the art and ethnography of the ancient city of Ife, in southwestern Nigeria, but with less attention paid to its important archaeological evidence. As in Benin, the art is an indicator of elite patronage within a complex society.
  1008.  
  1009. Find this resource:
  1010.  
  1011.  
  1012. Equatorial Central Africa
  1013. Equatorial Central Africa is a huge area stretching from the Atlantic to Lake Victoria and consisting of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the Republic of the Congo, together with surrounding countries, including Angola, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Zambia, and Uganda. Both historical documentation and oral traditions indicate precolonial states and urbanization in this part of Africa, but relatively little relevant archaeological evidence is available in a published form. In some areas, this is because political instability has made field investigation difficult; in others, because of environmental constraints on fieldwork and excavation, particularly in equatorial rainforest; and in still others, because of a focus by researchers on earlier periods. However, there are exceptions, the principal ones of which are represented by the selection of references here. Maret 1992 describes one of the most important pieces of relevant archaeological research in this region, using burial evidence from several sites to trace the emergence of social complexity over a long period. This publication should be read in the context of previous excavations at the site of Sanga, by Jacques Nenquin in 1957 and Jean Hiernaux in 1958, which are referenced in Maret’s bibliography. Sutton 1993 provides a useful introduction to four Ugandan archaeological sites that have the potential to shed light on the development of urbanism and states in the Interlacustrine area. Reid 1996 takes this subject further, by focusing on the large settlement site of Ntusi and its relationship to surrounding sites. In contrast, Schoenbrun 1998 is an ambitious attempt at a history of the same general area, largely on the basis of linguistic evidence. Students might find it a difficult book, but it has been generally admired, and its conclusions are worth consideration. De Barros 2000 is a much wider study, but one that also has relevance for equatorial Central Africa, examining as it does the impact of the adoption of iron technology on emerging social complexity. However, Robertshaw and Taylor 2000 argues that climatic change had an important role in this process in western Uganda, and Robertshaw 2010 studies the role of power and resistance to power in state formation in that area. Finally, González-Ruibal, et al. 2011 is a reminder that hierarchical societies probably also existed in other parts of this huge region, where there has as yet been little archaeological investigation.
  1014.  
  1015. de Barros, Philip. “Iron Metallurgy: Socio-Cultural Context.” In Ancient African Metallurgy: The Socio-Cultural Context. By Michael S. Bisson, S. Terry Childs, Philip de Barros, and Augustin F. C. Holl. Edited by Joseph O. Vogel, 147–198. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira, 2000.
  1016.  
  1017. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1018.  
  1019. Dealing with sub-Saharan Africa as a whole, this chapter looks at the economic and powerful symbolic role of iron in the emergence of more complex forms of political organization. This was the case in equatorial Central Africa, as in other regions, and González-Ruibal, et al. 2011 should be considered in this context.
  1020.  
  1021. Find this resource:
  1022.  
  1023.  
  1024. González-Ruibal, Alfredo, Llorenç Picornell Gelabert, and Alba Valenciano Mañé. “Early Iron Age Burials from Equatorial Guinea: The Sites of Corisco Island.” Journal of African Archaeology 9.1 (2011): 41–66.
  1025.  
  1026. DOI: 10.3213/1612-1651-10182Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1027.  
  1028. Reports on tombs dating from the 5th to the 7th century AD that contained numerous artifacts, including iron axes, spearheads, and objects of adornment as well as fine pottery. In the absence of known settlement sites in this area, regalia such as this suggest emerging social complexity. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1029.  
  1030. Find this resource:
  1031.  
  1032.  
  1033. Maret, Pierre de. Fouilles archéologiques dans la vallée du Haut-Lualaba. Vol. 3, Kamilamba, Kikulu, et Malemba-Nkulu, 1975. Tervuren, Belgium: Musée Royal de l’Afrique Centrale, 1992.
  1034.  
  1035. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1036.  
  1037. A report on burials excavated in the Upemban Depression of the southeastern DRC, establishing a chronological sequence from the 5th to the 19th century AD. This gave evidence for the emergence of the Luba kingdom, for which there is documentation during the 18th and 19th centuries.
  1038.  
  1039. Find this resource:
  1040.  
  1041.  
  1042. Reid, Andrew. “Ntusi and the Development of Social Complexity in Southern Uganda.” In Aspects of African Archaeology: Papers from the 10th Congress of the PanAfrican Association for Prehistory and Related Studies. Edited by Gilbert Pwiti and Robert Soper, 621–627. Harare: University of Zimbabwe, 1996.
  1043.  
  1044. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1045.  
  1046. Discusses Ntusi (see Sutton 1993), its social organization, and its regional context. Concludes that, by at least the 14th and 15th centuries AD, it was a chiefdom based on the control and exploitation of cattle.
  1047.  
  1048. Find this resource:
  1049.  
  1050.  
  1051. Robertshaw, Peter. “Beyond the Segmentary State: Creative and Instrumental Power in Western Uganda.” In Special Issue: Power and Authority in the African Past. Journal of World Prehistory 23.4 (2010): 255–269.
  1052.  
  1053. DOI: 10.1007/s10963-010-9039-xSave Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1054.  
  1055. Archaeological research shows that the putative ancient kingdom of Bunyoro-Kitara, in western Uganda, was not a segmentary state. The 19th-century Nyoro state demonstrated an interplay of political sovereignty and ritual suzerainty and of accommodation of and resistance to central authority. Concepts of instrumental and creative power are examined. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1056.  
  1057. Find this resource:
  1058.  
  1059.  
  1060. Robertshaw, Peter, and David Taylor. “Climate Change and the Rise of Political Complexity in Western Uganda.” Journal of African History 41.1 (2000): 1–28.
  1061.  
  1062. DOI: 10.1017/S0021853799007653Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1063.  
  1064. Archaeological and palaeoenvironmental evidence links the rise and fall of complex polities in precolonial western Uganda to changes in climate. Cwezi shrine sites may be correlated with a period of aridity; earthwork settlements, with higher rainfall; and their abandonment, with the return of arid conditions. Available online by subscription.
  1065.  
  1066. Find this resource:
  1067.  
  1068.  
  1069. Schoenbrun, David Lee. A Green Place, A Good Place: Agrarian Change, Gender, and Social Identity in the Great Lakes Region to the 15th Century. Social History of Africa. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1998.
  1070.  
  1071. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1072.  
  1073. A history of the Great Lakes region in East Africa reconstructed from comparative linguistics and comparative ethnography. Concerned with concepts of power and the social relations of power. Described as a history of agriculture, politics, and healing. Includes some discussion of the relevant archaeological evidence.
  1074.  
  1075. Find this resource:
  1076.  
  1077.  
  1078. Sutton, J. E. G. “The Antecedents of the Interlacustrine Kingdoms.” Journal of African History 34.1 (1993): 33–64.
  1079.  
  1080. DOI: 10.1017/S0021853700032990Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1081.  
  1082. Studies the large Ugandan settlement site of Ntusi, some two kilometers across, occupied from c. the 11th to c. the 15th century AD. Also considers the important earthwork enclosures at Bigo, Munsa, and Kibengo, in Uganda, dating c. the 13th to the 16th century. Available online by subscription.
  1083.  
  1084. Find this resource:
  1085.  
  1086.  
  1087. The East African Coast
  1088. From late in the 1st millennium AD, there is evidence of increasing social complexity along the East African coast, from Somalia in the north to Mozambique in the south, but especially in Kenya and Tanzania. This is usually referred to as the Swahili coast, although the Comoros islands and northern Madagascar were part of the region, as was the interior of East Africa, because of its provision of resources important for the trade of the coastal settlements. The latter benefited from their participation in the extensive maritime commerce of the Indian Ocean, bringing them into contact with many places in southern Asia and even China. Imports from such locations included manufactured goods, particularly ceramics and probably cloth, which were exchanged for a range of African products, of which ivory, gold, and slaves were among the more significant. A consequence of this contact was the adoption of the Islamic faith along the coast. Early researchers even argued that characteristic stone-built houses and mosques in the coastal towns resulted from actual colonial settlement from the Persian Gulf, but more recent investigators have concluded that an indigenous African input was the major factor in these developments. In time, some coastal communities grew into city-states, several with their own coinage and with some occupants literate in Arabic. As a result, the East African coast, particularly during the first half of the 2nd millennium AD, has become one of the most important parts of tropical Africa for the investigation of sociopolitical change. Chittick 1974 describes research that has provided a foundation for much subsequent work, although its interpretation of some of the evidence has since come under question. Wright 1993 sets this into a general analytical context and is still worth reading. However, it is Horton 1996, on Shanga, that has been a major influence on the way that the archaeological evidence for social complexity on the East African coast is interpreted. This can be seen in a broader context by reading Kusimba 1999 and Horton and Middleton 2000. In contrast, site-specific studies are provided by Pradines 2004 and LaViolette and Fleisher 2009, the latter being particularly significant for its emphasis on seeing Swahili urban developments within their rural context. Finally, Fleisher 2010 is a valuable reminder of how changes in ritual may have contributed to the emergence of social complexity.
  1089.  
  1090. Chittick, Neville. Kilwa: An Islamic Trading City on the East African Coast. 2 vols. Memoirs of the British Institute in Eastern Africa. Nairobi, Kenya: British Institute in Eastern Africa, 1974.
  1091.  
  1092. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1093.  
  1094. A classic publication describing major excavations at the Tanzanian site of Kilwa; although somewhat dated in its conclusions, this is a work that still deserves attention.
  1095.  
  1096. Find this resource:
  1097.  
  1098.  
  1099. Fleisher, Jeffrey. “Rituals of Consumption and the Politics of Feasting on the East African Coast, AD 700–1500.” Journal of World Prehistory 23.4 (2010): 195–217.
  1100.  
  1101. DOI: 10.1007/s10963-010-9041-3Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1102.  
  1103. Examines the archaeology of Swahili feasting from AD 700 to 1500. Imported and local ceramics, settlement, and food preferences suggest developments in feasting patterns and how feasts provided a social context in which local and distant power could be translated into authority. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1104.  
  1105. Find this resource:
  1106.  
  1107.  
  1108. Horton, Mark. Shanga: The Archaeology of a Muslim Trading Community on the Coast of East Africa. Memoirs of the British Institute in Eastern Africa 14. London: British Institute in Eastern Africa, 1996.
  1109.  
  1110. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1111.  
  1112. A study of an extensively excavated settlement on the Kenyan coast that was influential in changing previous interpretations of Swahili sites.
  1113.  
  1114. Find this resource:
  1115.  
  1116.  
  1117. Horton, Mark, and John Middleton. The Swahili: The Social Landscape of a Mercantile Society. Peoples of Africa. Oxford and Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2000.
  1118.  
  1119. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1120.  
  1121. An overview of emerging social complexity on the East African coast over two thousand years, combining archaeological, historical, and anthropological evidence.
  1122.  
  1123. Find this resource:
  1124.  
  1125.  
  1126. Kusimba, Chapurukha M. The Rise and Fall of Swahili States. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira, 1999.
  1127.  
  1128. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1129.  
  1130. A general study of the evidence that is especially useful because it was written by a Kenyan archaeologist and offers a different approach to the subject.
  1131.  
  1132. Find this resource:
  1133.  
  1134.  
  1135. LaViolette, Adria, and Jeffrey Fleisher. “The Urban History of a Rural Place: Swahili Archaeology on Pemba Island, Tanzania, 700–1500 AD.” In Special Issue: Current Trends in the Archaeology of African History. Edited by Ann B. Stahl and Adria LaViolette. International Journal of African Historical Studies 42.3 (2009): 433–455.
  1136.  
  1137. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1138.  
  1139. Questions why Pemba changed from an area with numerous towns, from the 11th century AD onward, to a peripheral one with an essentially rural landscape after 1500. Suggests that archaeology has more to tell us about the interplay of global transformations and regional Swahili society.
  1140.  
  1141. Find this resource:
  1142.  
  1143.  
  1144. Pradines, Stéphane. Fortifications et urbanisation en Afrique orientale. Cambridge Monographs in African Archaeology 58. Oxford: Archaeopress, 2004.
  1145.  
  1146. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1147.  
  1148. A comprehensive study of 1st- and 2nd-millennium fortified and urban sites on the East African coast. A useful sourcebook, well illustrated with plans, maps, and photographs. Particularly valuable for updated information on the Kenyan site of Gedi.
  1149.  
  1150. Find this resource:
  1151.  
  1152.  
  1153. Wright, H. T. “Trade and Politics on the Eastern Littoral of Africa, AD 800–1300.” In The Archaeology of Africa: Food, Metals and Towns. Edited by Thurstan Shaw, Paul Sinclair, Bassey Andah, and Alex Okpoko, 658–672. One World Archaeology 20. London and New York: Routledge, 1993.
  1154.  
  1155. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1156.  
  1157. Examines the archaeological evidence in order to identify the causes of emerging social complexity on the East African coast. Suggests that its initiation was due to the growth of indigenous settlements bound together by regional exchange networks, which were subsequently stimulated by Indian Ocean commerce.
  1158.  
  1159. Find this resource:
  1160.  
  1161.  
  1162. Southern Africa
  1163. In this region archaeological investigation of state formation has been concentrated mainly on the high plateau in Zimbabwe, on an adjacent part of South Africa in the Limpopo valley, and on eastern Botswana. Attention has particularly focused on Mapungubwe, on Great Zimbabwe and its associated sites, and on successor societies of the latter. Much of the evidence consists of stone ruins, some of sophisticated structures, built by the ancestors of the Shona mainly during the first half of the 2nd millennium AD. There have been conflicting interpretations of these sites, raising many questions, especially about their sociopolitical role, their economic basis, and their symbolic significance, but former claims of exotic origin have been totally discredited. In the early 21st century there is general agreement that some of the sites are examples of early urbanization, which in the case of Mapungubwe, Great Zimbabwe, and some later places probably formed the centers of southern Africa’s first states. It is also accepted that trade, mostly in gold mined on the Zimbabwe plateau and in ivory, exchanged for exotic imported manufactures from the East African coastal settlements, was a contributory factor in the growth of social complexity in the region. Nevertheless, it is also apparent that cattle pastoralism and agriculture formed the main economic basis for these societies, along with interregional trade in commodities such as copper, iron, and salt. Garlake 1973 remains a significant archaeological publication. Students will find it an attractive introduction to the subject, although some of its interpretations have since come under question. Sinclair, et al. 1993 provides a counterbalance, offering a useful chronological analysis of Great Zimbabwe’s growth as the urban center of an early state. Rather different is Huffman 1996, which addresses one of the most difficult aspects of Great Zimbabwe, attempting to understand its symbolic meaning to the people who constructed it. This is a thoughtful study that merits attention. Van Waarden 1998 has a broader approach, considering evidence for the emergence of states in related parts of the region. This can be seen in an even wider context by reading Pikirayi 2001, which reconstructs the overall history of state emergence and decline in this part of Africa. Finally, Kim and Kusimba 2008 and Huffman 2010 present contrasting interpretations of the evidence for state formation in the region, and Huffman 2009 discusses the role of climate change in the transfer of state power from Mapungubwe to Great Zimbabwe.
  1164.  
  1165. Garlake, Peter S. Great Zimbabwe. London: Thames and Hudson, 1973.
  1166.  
  1167. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1168.  
  1169. Although dated, this remains a major study, beautifully presented, that should not be ignored. It is still useful as an introduction to this site, and secondhand copies of this out-of-print book are worth purchasing.
  1170.  
  1171. Find this resource:
  1172.  
  1173.  
  1174. Huffman, Thomas N. Snakes and Crocodiles: Power and Symbolism in Ancient Zimbabwe. Johannesburg: Witwatersrand University Press, 1996.
  1175.  
  1176. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1177.  
  1178. A courageous and imaginative attempt to reconstruct the symbolism of the Great Zimbabwe ruins as well as that of similar sites. Relies heavily on ethnographic comparisons, the relevance of some of which has been questioned by others. Raises serious epistemological issues.
  1179.  
  1180. Find this resource:
  1181.  
  1182.  
  1183. Huffman, Thomas N. “Mapungubwe and Great Zimbabwe: The Origin and Spread of Social Complexity in Southern Africa.” Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 28.1 (2009): 37–54.
  1184.  
  1185. DOI: 10.1016/j.jaa.2008.10.004Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1186.  
  1187. Considers the development of stratified society in the Shashe-Limpopo basin, at Mapungubwe, and how this was transferred to Great Zimbabwe. Poor climatic conditions at the end of the 13th century AD undermined Mapungubwe’s sacred leaders, and the elite at Great Zimbabwe took over the gold and ivory trade. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1188.  
  1189. Find this resource:
  1190.  
  1191.  
  1192. Huffman, Thomas N. “State Formation in Southern Africa: A Reply to Kim and Kusimba.” African Archaeological Review 27.1 (2010): 1–11.
  1193.  
  1194. DOI: 10.1007/s10437-009-9059-zSave Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1195.  
  1196. Claims that Kim and Kusimba 2008 misinterpreted the archaeological data because of its reliance on secondary sources. Argues that the sociopolitical status of the sites discussed should be interpreted in their own terms, before they are compared with early states in other parts of the world. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1197.  
  1198. Find this resource:
  1199.  
  1200.  
  1201. Kim, Nam C., and Chapurukha M. Kusimba. “Pathways to Social Complexity and State Formation in the Southern Zambezian Region.” African Archaeological Review 25.3–4 (2008): 131–152.
  1202.  
  1203. DOI: 10.1007/s10437-008-9031-3Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1204.  
  1205. A thoughtful paper tracing the development of social complexity and the process of state emergence, using evidence from Bambandyanalo and Mapungubwe, in the Limpopo valley, and from Great Zimbabwe, on the adjacent high plateau. This paper is more important for what it attempts than for what it achieves. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1206.  
  1207. Find this resource:
  1208.  
  1209.  
  1210. Pikirayi, Innocent. The Zimbabwe Culture: Origins and Decline in Southern Zambezian States. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira, 2001.
  1211.  
  1212. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1213.  
  1214. A general overview that traces the origins, development, and decline of states in South Central Africa, particularly in and around the Zimbabwe plateau. Written by a respected Zimbabwean archaeologist who has a detailed, firsthand knowledge of the sites.
  1215.  
  1216. Find this resource:
  1217.  
  1218.  
  1219. Sinclair, Paul J. J., I. Pikirayi, G. Pwiti, and R. Soper. “Urban Trajectories on the Zimbabwean Plateau.” In The Archaeology of Africa: Food, Metals and Towns. Edited by Thurstan Shaw, Paul Sinclair, Bassey Andah, and Alex Okpoko, 705–731. One World Archaeology 20. London and New York: Routledge, 1993.
  1220.  
  1221. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1222.  
  1223. Examines the growth of Great Zimbabwe through time, its environmental setting, and those of its associated sites. Presents the evidence for a Zimbabwe state and its relationship to the historically documented Mutapa state that succeeded it.
  1224.  
  1225. Find this resource:
  1226.  
  1227.  
  1228. van Waarden, Catrien. “The Later Iron Age.” In Ditswa Mmung: The Archaeology of Botswana. Edited by Paul Lane, Andrew Reid, and Alinah Segobye, 115–160. Gaborone, Botswana: Pula, 1998.
  1229.  
  1230. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1231.  
  1232. Details sociopolitical evolution, from largely egalitarian farming societies, to regional chiefdoms, to a series of states. Valuable because it ignores modern international borders and includes sites from Zimbabwe, eastern Botswana, and northern South Africa.
  1233.  
  1234. Find this resource:
  1235.  
  1236.  
  1237. South Africa
  1238. Evidence for state formation also exists in South Africa. However, a continuing concentration of archaeological research on earlier hunter-gatherer societies has resulted in comparatively little attention being given to the 2nd millennium AD, during which there were indications of increasing sociopolitical complexity. From approximately five hundred years ago many stonewalled settlements were built on the southern Highveld, each of them consisting of a cluster of units. These settlements were probably built by speakers of Sotho-Tswana languages, and each contained up to 1,500 people. However, a little more than three hundred years ago some Tswana settlements began to grow to a quite remarkable size, culminating in populations of ten thousand people or more. By the 19th century there were substantial urban centers, in some cases forming the capitals of powerful states, such as that of the Zulus, which was overpowered by colonial forces late in the century. Because these developments occurred in relatively recent times, both historical sources and archaeological investigations offer insight into how this process of social and political change took place, suggesting the way that it could sometimes have occurred in other parts of Africa at earlier dates. Maggs 1976 was one of the first publications to draw attention to these numerous settlements and still provides a starting point for readers. Parkington and Cronin 1979 is also still of significance because it is a detailed archaeological study of a large 19th-century South African urban settlement with known historical associations as a state capital. Watson and Watson 1990 similarly presents a study of a South African urban capital with a known history, although this work is concerned principally with the faunal evidence excavated from the site. Some indication of the number, size, and importance of other large settlements in South Africa is given by the case of Molokwane, described in Pistorius 1992, with its highly visible surface evidence. Nevertheless, identifying large 19th-century settlements, even when historical descriptions of them exist, can be difficult because of their frequently brief occupation, as is shown in Boeyens 2000. In contrast, Denbow, et al. 2008 discusses the much earlier site of Bosutswe, in Botswana, where excavation revealed evidence of a long occupation during which both economic and social changes took place. Finally, Swanepoel, et al. 2008 presents a collection of essays about the archaeology of South Africa since the early 16th century, including consideration of state formation.
  1239.  
  1240. Boeyens, Jan C. A. “In Search of Kaditshwene.” South African Archaeological Bulletin 55.171 (2000): 3–17.
  1241.  
  1242. DOI: 10.2307/3888888Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1243.  
  1244. Identifies the location of this urban center, which in 1820 had an estimated population of either sixteen thousand or twenty thousand. The population was possibly larger than that of Cape Town at that time. Kaditshwene was the capital of a major Tswana group. Available online by subscription.
  1245.  
  1246. Find this resource:
  1247.  
  1248.  
  1249. Denbow, James, Jeannette Smith, Nonofho Mathibidi Ndobochani, Kirsten Atwood, and Duncan Miller. “Archaeological Excavations at Bosutswe, Botswana: Cultural Chronology, Palaeo-Ecology and Economy.” Journal of Archaeological Science 35.2 (2008): 459–480.
  1250.  
  1251. DOI: 10.1016/j.jas.2007.04.011Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1252.  
  1253. Bosutswe, on the eastern edge of the Kalahari Desert, dated from AD 700 to 1700, during the period when Toutswe, Mapungubwe, Great Zimbabwe, and Khami rose to power. Material goods and foodways were used to create social relationships. Changes in herd management compensated for ecological changes after AD 1300. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1254.  
  1255. Find this resource:
  1256.  
  1257.  
  1258. Maggs, Tim. “Iron Age Patterns and Sotho History on the Southern Highveld: South Africa.” In Special Issue: Archaeology and History. Edited by Colin Platt. World Archaeology 7.3 (1976): 318–332.
  1259.  
  1260. DOI: 10.1080/00438243.1976.9979644Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1261.  
  1262. Although dated, this is still a useful introduction to stonewalled settlements on South Africa’s southern Highveld, combining archaeological, historical, and ethnographic evidence. Available online by subscription.
  1263.  
  1264. Find this resource:
  1265.  
  1266.  
  1267. Parkington, John, and Mike Cronin. “The Size and Layout of Mgungundlovu, 1829–1838.” In Iron Age Studies in Southern Africa. Edited by Nikolaas J. van der Merwe and T. N. Huffman, 133–148. Goodwin Series 3. Claremont: South African Archaeological Society, 1979.
  1268.  
  1269. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1270.  
  1271. An example of 19th-century South African urbanization, this settlement was built by Dingane, king of the Zulu nation. The settlement’s main enclosure was of approximately 22.5 hectares, with a circumference of approximately 1.7 kilometers. Its population has been estimated at 5,500.
  1272.  
  1273. Find this resource:
  1274.  
  1275.  
  1276. Pistorius, Julius C. C. Molokwane: An Iron Age Bakwena Village: Early Tswana Settlement in the Western Transvaal. Johannesburg: Perskor, 1992.
  1277.  
  1278. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1279.  
  1280. Although described as a village, this was an urban settlement, 3 kilometers in length, averaging 1.5 kilometers in width and with an area of approximately 4 to 5 square kilometers. The settlement appears to date from the 18th and 19th centuries AD but perhaps originated a little earlier.
  1281.  
  1282. Find this resource:
  1283.  
  1284.  
  1285. Swanepoel, Natalie, Amanda Esterhuysen, and Philip Bonner, eds. Five Hundred Years Rediscovered: Southern African Precedents and Prospects: 500 Year Initiative 2007 Conference Proceedings. Johannesburg: Wits University Press, 2008.
  1286.  
  1287. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1288.  
  1289. This consists of a collection of essays reinterpreting the archaeology and history of South Africa since the early 16th century, one of the most formative periods in its past but the least known. Examines methodological considerations and material evidence, concluding with a section on warfare, state formation, and migration in the interior.
  1290.  
  1291. Find this resource:
  1292.  
  1293.  
  1294. Watson, E. J., and V. Watson. “‘Of Commoners and Kings’: Faunal Remains from Ondini.” South African Archaeological Bulletin 45.151 (1990): 33–46.
  1295.  
  1296. DOI: 10.2307/3887916Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1297.  
  1298. Ondini functioned as the Zulu king Cetshwayo’s capital and the barracks for his favorite regiment. Ondini was occupied from c. 1873 until its destruction in 1879, during the Anglo-Zulu War. The region covered about 35 hectares and had a population of up to five thousand people at times. Available online by subscription.
  1299.  
  1300. Find this resource:
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