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'Swahili architecture' is a style of building along the Eastern and Southeastern coasts Africa. Previously thought by many scholars to be essentially of Arabic or Persian style and origin; archaeological, written, linguistic, and cultural evidence instead suggests a predominantly African genesis and sustainment. This would be accompanied later by an enduring Arabic and Islamic influence in the form of trade, inter-marriage, and an exchange of ideas.^[1] Archaeologist, Felix Chami notes the presence of Bantu settlements straddling the East African coast as early as the beginning of the 1st millennium. They evolved gradually from the 6th century onward to accommodate for an increase in trade, population growth, and further centralized urbanization.^[2] Architecture included arches, courtyards, isolated women's quarters, the mihrab, towers, and decorative elements on the buildings themselves. Many ruins may still be observed near the southern Kenyan port of Malindi in the Gede ruins (''the lost city of Gede/Gedi'').^[3]

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References

See also

References

1. East African Coastal Historical Towns: Asiatic or African? - by Jacob L. Kimaryo (2000)
2. African Archaeological Review, Volume 15, Number 3, September 1998 , pp. 199-218(20)
3. Ruins of the walled city of Gedi, Kenya

See also

★ Malindi

★ Dar es Salaam

★ Zanzibar

★ Pillar tomb