Swahili

Hi peeps, i received this great post, on swahili and thought , i just gotta share this with my readers. The post generally covers the origins of swahili and it's influences. Man does it go deep. "R" thanks girl!!
enjoy

Origins

The word “Swahili” is derived from the Arabic word “sawahil” which is plural for “sahil” meaning coast. When the first Arab Muslims fleeing persecution in Mecca arrived on the East African coast in the 7th Century, they named the people of the coast “Al Sawahiliyyah”. Contrary to popular perception, the Swahili people are an interestingly diverse people who are historically rooted as far north as Mogadishu, Somalia, and as far south as Sofala, Mozambique. Evidence of this is clear even today as many dialects of Kiswahili are spoken along the coastline. For example, the Chimwiini of Baraawe, Somalia speak a dialect of Kiswahili known as Kitikuu. This dialect is spoken all the way down to Lamu, Northern Kenya. Kingwana, another Kiswahili dialect is spoken in Zaïre and Congo.

A conservative estimate would state that there are about twenty Kiswahili dialects that are spoken along the Horn down to Southeastern Africa and into Central Africa. That being said, it is acknowledged that “Kiswahili sanifu” or standard Kiswahili is spoken in Tanzania. Specifically, it is Kiunguja, the dialect of Zanzibar, which was deemed standard Kiswahili by the Inter Territorial Language Committee in 1930. If one is ever blessed to visit Zanzibar, they are apt to hear the eloquence of both accent and speech in the Kiswahili language. As Shaaban Robert, renowned Swahili poet (God bless his soul) said in his poem called “Titi la Mama” (Breast of Mother), “One’s mother’s breast is the sweetest, no other satisfies” [English translation]. This was his metaphor for expressing the beauty of his mother tongue, a language which really serves as one of the main maps on the history of the interactions of East African people. His words were quoted by National Geographic (April 1975) in a feature on Tanzania (Tanganyika and Zanzibar), but they failed to give him proper credit.

It would be an injustice to speak about the Swahili people without mention of the moral fibre that brings to life the beauty of the people. The majority of the Swahili people are Muslims, which should not come as a surprise given the above discussion. For example, in Tanzania over 65% of the total population along the coast is comprised of Muslims, with Unguja and Pemba (the islands which make up Zanzibar) having 98% of its population being Muslim. The remainder is split between, Christian, Hindu, Sikh, pagan and other spiritual beliefs. It should be noted that by the 8th Century, Islam was strongly rooted along the East African coastline. Islamic tradition is so ingrained in the Swahili language and culture that both, in my opinion, would be lifeless without it. Islam was the water that nurtured the growth of the language and culture that sprang out of the coast. For example, many Swahili proverbs and sayings are borne out of inspiration from the Holy Qur’an. The mention of the virtue of patience in the proverb above causes one to reflect on Sura 2:177, Sura 3:17 and so forth. There is also a proverb that says, “kafir anayekufaa si muislam asokufaa” which translates “an unbeliever who benefits you is not the same as a Muslim who does not.” One can assume the proverb manifested through scripts from Sura 3:28 and Sura 4:139. There is also a colloquial saying, “Asiyepiga Bismillah kabla ya kula, hatoshiba” meaning “One who does not say Bismillah (In the Name of God) before eating will never be satisfied”. This saying is often told to children to teach them the importance of asking God to bless their food before eating it because it is God who fills us not food.

If one were to examine some Kiswahili words they will also notice the embedded influence of Islamic tradition. For example, the word “tawadha” which is used to say that one cleanse after helping themselves literally means to “wash ceremonially” [Islamic: prior to prayer]. Alasiri which means “late afternoon” also means “prayer between 3 and 5pm” [Islamic]. Shahada (testimony), sala (prayer), zakat/sadaka (offering/alms), saumu/saum (fast), haji (pilgrim/pilgrim to Mecca), are also Kiswahili words which are derived from the Arabic words used for the five pillars of the Islamic faith respectively. Finally, the example of one of my favourite Kiswahili words “binadamu” which means “person”. The word is derived from the Arabic words “Bin Adam” meaning “son of Adam”. This word serves as a stark reminder that all human beings come from Adam, the first man created by Almighty God. It continually validates both consciously and subconsciously the theory of creation and repudiates any other theories of how humans came about.

Even today, Islamic tradition is evident in the way of life on the Swahili coast. For example, in various cities and towns along Tanzania’s coastline it is common to hear people, regardless of their religious background, greet each other by saying, “Asalaam Aleykum” (peace be onto you) or “Salaam” (peace) or utter phrases such as “Allahamdulillah” (Praise be to God), “InshaAllah” (God willing), “MashaAllah” (It is the will of God), “Wallahi” (By God) and so forth. In fact, if one was to enter some Christian churches along the coast in areas such as Tanga and Zanzibar, the pastor would often say, “InshaAllah, we will see each other next week” at the end of service. I should also mention that Kiswahili was written using Arabic calligraphy for over 500 years until this was all changed in the early 20th Century under the British colonial rule. As far as consuming food is concerned, many Swahili people along the coast, regardless of religion, do not consume pork including other forbidden animals and fish (Sura 2:168, 172-3). As well, many butchers tend to slaughter their flock in accordance with the lawful requirements of the Islamic faith. I remember as a child, wherever I attended a festivity, a Muslim male would always be called to slaughter the animal at hand. Furthermore, Swahili people would never consider a cadaver (an animal that died of natural causes - Kiswahili: maiti/Arabic: maytah) edible. This would also be considered haram to consume. Concerning dress code, girls (and boys) more often than not are taught to dress modestly.

Growing up, most young girls including myself were required to wear loose clothes that covered the knee and concealed the bosom. We were encouraged to keep jewellery to a minimum and cover our heads with a cloth such as a hijab or khanga whenever attending ceremonies such as funerals or when guests where visiting the family. Furthermore, from a young age we were taught by the older women in the family on how to lower our gaze, for it is considered unwomanly to give a brazen stare to a man. This was (and still is to a certain extent) strongly emphasized when rearing a girl to become a virtuous woman who emanates with rahma (grace). All these common customs that the Swahili take for granted did not stem out of vacuum but were mainly influenced by Islam (e.g. Sura 24:31), which was the first religion to manifest on the Swahili coast. There are many other examples that can further illustrate this point but this suffices the issue.