“What’s in a name?” Swahili toponymy of past towns on the East African coast

dc.contributor.authorBaumanová, Monika
dc.contributor.authorTramutoli, Rosanna
dc.date.accessioned2023-01-09T11:00:11Z
dc.date.available2023-01-09T11:00:11Z
dc.date.issued2022
dc.description.abstract-translatedFor the last century, archaeologists have surveyed and studied sites on the Swahili coast of East Africa, that represent the remains of past Swahili settlements and, in few cases, living historical towns. This paper is the first discussion of a collection of the names under which these past towns have been known, some of which may date back to the precolonial period. The present enquiry is concerned with the analysis of linguistic features, folk etymology and the conceptual content of these toponyms. It considers the recognised important themes in archaeology and history of the Swahili society, such as the political functioning of these towns as city states and the attested social and economic relevance of trade, the built environment and the role of the ocean. Utilising this knowledge, it reflects on how the names contributed to place-making and defining the identity of these towns both as individual entities and as part of the Swahili cultural sphere. The interdisciplinary approach and perspectives (linguistic and archaeological) help to elucidate the connection between the socio-historical relevance of these sites and their cultural conceptualisations.en
dc.format23 s.cs
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.citationBAUMANOVÁ, M. TRAMUTOLI, R. “What’s in a name?” Swahili toponymy of past towns on the East African coast. Kervan: International Journal of African and Asian Studies, 2022, roč. 26, č. 1, s. 3-26. ISSN: 1825-263Xcs
dc.identifier.doi10.13135/1825-263X/6892
dc.identifier.issn1825-263X
dc.identifier.obd43937170
dc.identifier.uri2-s2.0-85141045259
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11025/50847
dc.language.isoenen
dc.project.IDGJ20-02725Y/Srovnání transformace městské morfologie z předkoloniálních do koloniálních urbánních tradiccs
dc.publisherUniversita degli Studi di Torino, Facolta di Lingue e Letterature Straniereit
dc.relation.ispartofseriesKervan: International Journal of African and Asian Studiesen
dc.rights© Universita degli Studi di Torino, Facolta di Lingue e Letterature Straniereen
dc.rights.accessopenAccessen
dc.subject.translatedtoponymsen
dc.subject.translatedSwahilien
dc.subject.translatedurbanismen
dc.subject.translatedarchaeological sitesen
dc.subject.translatedenvironmenten
dc.subject.translatedoral historyen
dc.subject.translatedfolk etymologyen
dc.title“What’s in a name?” Swahili toponymy of past towns on the East African coasten
dc.typečlánekcs
dc.typearticleen
dc.type.statusPeer-revieweden
dc.type.versionpublishedVersionen

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