Department of Archeology and Heritage Studies

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Global post-medieval/historical archaeology: what’s happening around the world 2018?
(Taylor & Francis, 2018) Biginagwa, Thomas J.; Eric, Tourigny
This collection of papers represents our second series highlighting the state of post medieval archaeology in non-English speaking parts of the world. Our first edition explored how post medieval/historical archaeology was experienced by archaeologists working in Finland, Spain and the island of Borneo. This year we investigate how our discipline operates in three other parts of the globe: Venezuela, Tanzania and Iran. The purpose of this series is to expand the annual review issue of Post-Medieval Archaeology by presenting our readership with a brief summary of how post-medieval archaeology is practiced in parts of the world they may not be familiar with. Archaeologists working in these areas are asked to summarise how post-medieval/historical archaeology is conducted and perceived by local governments, the public and even other archaeologists while identifying existing government and/or other institutional supports available to them. They are asked to describe the benefits and challenges related to conducting research in these countries. Common themes that became apparent in our first issue persist in this one. This includes the challenge of getting regulating authorities and other archaeologists to recognize the value of archaeology of the recent past and issues related to how we define post-medieval/historical archaeology.
Multi-Directional Connectivity in Eastern and Southern Africa during the First and Early Second Millennia AD: Archaeological Evidence from Lupilo, Southern Tanzania
(Brill, 2021) Biginagwa, Thomas, J.; Mapunda, Bertram, B.B.; Ichumbaki, Elgidius, E.B.
Archaeology of connectivity has attracted researchers since the beginning of the discipline when migration theories reigned in archaeological research. In East Africa, it started close to the mid-twentieth century with a strong emphasis on coastal archaeology, because that is where imported and datable mate rials such as glass beads and porcelain were plentiful. Apart from contributing to the chronology of the culture history of the west coast of the Indian Ocean, such materials also acted as strong proofs for the connectivity between East Africa and the northern coast of the Indian Ocean and the Far East. As archaeological research expanded into the interior, these mate rials came to be used as markers of connectivity between the coast and the hinterland, and through it with the eastern world. Gradually, false assumptions emerged: first, that connectiv ity is almost always coast-interior oriented, and second, that it is almost always evinced by imported materials. This paper attempts to refute these assumptions using an inland site from southern Tanzania, which has proven to have strong links with the coast and, more strongly, with other inland sites as far as in what is today Zambia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and South Africa. The evidence for this connectivity varies from symbol ism and technology to trade objects.
Archaeological Perspective on the Impacts of Caravan Trade Expansion in East Africa: Emerging Alternative Histories
(UDSM, 2020) Biginagwa, Thomas; Katto, Philbert
The last two decades have witnessed an increase of archaeological research interest in the East African caravan trade, a topic that was traditionally exclusive to historians. Long-term empirical evidence currently generated by archaeologists continues to consolidate our understanding of the caravan trade, and helps to question some inferences previously drawn from colonial libraries. This paper presents archaeological evidence unearthed from the Northern and Southern caravan routes located in the corresponding areas in the contemporary northern and southern Tanzania. The paper engages material evidence to re-examine some of the consequences of the caravan trade commonly reported in historical writings. Doing so, the paper demonstrates the utility of considering material culture records in studying and re-writing Africa’s recent past.
Development of Cultural Heritage Registration in Post-Colonial Tanzania
(2020) Biginagwa, Thomas
Although Tanzania is endowed with a significant amount of nationally and internationally renowned cultural heritage resources that span about 3.6 million years to the present, very few of them feature in the national heritage register. The government has only proclaimed and registered fifty-five heritage assets deemed to be of national significance since independence, almost six decades ago. Most of the registered heritage resources are built heritage with colonial ties, at the expense of traditional African ones. Spatially, heritage properties in regions along the Indian Ocean coast dominate the proclaimed heritage properties. This paper investigates the reasons for these trends, by tracing the roots of the heritage registration system in the country to the colonial period and by uncovering the shortcomings in the creation and maintenance of the heritage register, and proposes solutions and strategies for addressing the challenges. The paper cites examples from African countries and beyond to illustrate how comprehensive heritage registers are created and maintained
Local animal economies during the nineteenth century caravan trade along the Lower Pangani, north-eastern Tanzania: a zooarchaeological perspective
(Taylor and Francis, 2021-07-08) Biginagwa, Thomas John; Paul, Lane
The expansion of the caravan trade in eastern Africa during the nineteenth century is considered to have had significant ecological, economic and social consequences. While available historical documentary and oral sources provide valuable evidence concerning the scale, timing and spatial extent of these, as well as information about some of the key actors and agents, there remain significant gaps that have the potential to be filled by targeted archaeological research. This paper presents one such study, which aims to establish how influential the expansion of the caravan trade was on local animal economies, with particular reference to a sample of known caravan halts on the northern route on the Pangani River, Tanzania. The results of zooarchaeological analysis of faunal assemblages recovered from four sites suggest that the impacts may have been less than has often been argued by some historians. The study also provides fresh insight on the continuing importance of wild resources, especially rodents, in local diets in the late nineteenth century and on local herd management strategies.
Historic Caravans in Tanzania: Towards reinvigorating multidisciplinary exploration
(Taylor and Francis, 2022-03) Biginagwa, Thomas John
Although the nineteenth-century caravan trade is extensively documented in both primary and secondary sources, there are still some knowledge gaps to be addressed. In particular, there is a need to generate a clear understanding of prevailing situations prior to the expansion of the pre-1840 caravan trade and to set a reference baseline against which changes can be examined. It is on this basis that archaeological research like those examples presented here needs to be encouraged in order to make important contributions to this topic. Additional long-term empirical information can help to reveal how much the material lives of local populations were actually transformed as a consequence of caravan trade expansion in the region, and how this model can be applied elsewhere. Multidisciplinary research projects designed within the framework of historical ecology should therefore be invigorated (Lane 2010).
Local People’s Interpretations of the Hominin Footprints at Laetoli, Tanzania.
(Routledge, 2019) Ichumbaki, Elgidius E.B.
In 1976 and 2014, scientists reported hominin footprints in Pliocene volcanic deposits at Laetoli, north-eastern Tanzania. They hypothesized that the footprints belong to the extinct hominin species Australopithecus afarensis. Not only have the footprints shaped scientists’ understanding of human biological evolution, but they have also placed Laetoli and Tanzania on the world’s paleoanthropological studies map. However, there have been different interpretations of who made these footprints. Opinions of the scientists on the footprints are widely documented, yet narratives of Maasai (local people living around Laetoli) have never been investigated. This paper documents the perceptions of Maasai on what these footprints are, and to whom they belong. We report that concepts related to the nature and genesis of the footprints and who made them form part of the Maasai’s history. Finally, we suggest that for sustainable footprints preservation, local narratives about footprints be integrated into scientific interpretations of the site.
Musicalizing Heritage and Heritagizing Music for Enhancing Community Awareness of Preserving World Heritage Sites in Africa.
(Routledge, 2020) Ichumbaki, Elgidius E.B.
For the past two centuries or so, education systems in Africa have changed from parental- to school-based training. With this pedagogical shift, children and young people are mentored using school curricula that say very little about the cultural heritage sites in the community in which they were born and raised. Heritage research outputs, such as books and articles in international journals, cannot be accessed by local people. If they do manage to access these publications, the content is too technical for them to understand the central arguments. Consequently, local people, especially teenagers and young adults, have little awareness of the scientific interpretation of heritage sites and their associated value. The question remains as to what methods could be used to make young people appreciate cultural heritage sites and hence collectively engage in heritage preservation projects. Using Tanzania’s ‘Bongo Flava’ (BF) music as a case study, this paper provides empirical evidence of how music could be used to make people aware of the value of heritage sites in Africa. We report that BF music at Kilwa Kisiwani World Heritage Site in Tanzania is continuing to motivate young people to develop an interest in preserving monuments and to participate in conservation initiatives.
Valuing the Swahili Cultural Heritage: A Maritime Cultural Ecosystem Services Study from Kilwa, Tanzania.
(Routledge, 2020) Ichumbaki, Elgidius
During the second millennium CE, the medieval settlements of Kilwa in southeastern Tanzania were part of the Indian Ocean trading system that left a clear physical legacy of stone towns along with oral histories and sailing traditions. Modern developmental activities including exploration of oil and gas, house building, and establishment of tourism infrastructures have led to the reuse of heritage site, hence, an inevitable pressure upon heritage preservation. Unfortunately, despite being outdated and very colonial, legislations enacted to support protection of heritage sites are inadequately enforced. This paper looks at complementary conservation challenges by considering the value of medieval monuments and intangible heritage assets within the ecosystem services. We also provide some suggestions on how exploitation of non-material benefits in the form of Cultural Ecosystem Services from legends based on intertidal limestone features resembling boats and giants, as well as the venerated baobabs and mangroves can become sustainable.
Usable Pasts Forum: UNESCO and Heritage Tourism in Africa.
(Routledge, 2021) Ichumbaki, Elgidius
Multi-Directional Connectivity in Eastern and Southern Africa during the First and Early Second Millennia AD: Archaeological Evidence from Lupilo, Southern Tanzania.
(Routledge, 2021) Ichumbaki, Elgidius
Archaeology of connectivity has attracted researchers since the beginning of the discipline when migration theories reigned in archaeological research. In East Africa, it started close to the mid-twentieth century with a strong emphasis on coastal archaeology, because that is where imported and datable materials such as glass beads and porcelain were plentiful. Apart from contributing to the chronology of the culture history of the west coast of the Indian Ocean, such materials also acted as strong proofs for the connectivity between East Africa and the northern coast of the Indian Ocean and the Far East. As archaeological research expanded into the interior, these materials came to be used as markers of connectivity between the coast and the hinterland, and through it with the eastern world. Gradually, false assumptions emerged: first, that connectivity is almost always coast-interior oriented, and second, that it is almost always evinced by imported materials. This paper attempts to refute these assumptions using an inland site from southern Tanzania, which has proven to have strong links with the coast and, more strongly, with other inland sites as far as in what is today Zambia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Botswana, and South Africa. The evidence for this connectivity varies from symbolism and technology to trade objects.
Contemporary wooden watercraft of the Zanzibar Channel, Tanzania: type and technologies, innovation and change.
(Routledge, 2022) Ichumbaki, Elgidius
This article documents and presents the range of wooden fishing and cargo-carrying watercraft in use in the contemporary Zanzibar Channel, Tanzania. The work is based on surveys conducted in 2018 on Unguja, the principal island of the Zanzibar archipelago, and in 2019–2020 in Bagamoyo, mainland Tanzania, and its immediate environs. The authors present a broad typology of the principal wooden vessel types in the form of 3D photogrammetric models, orthographic views, and photographs. The principal construction features and uses of each type are presented and the state of play of contemporary wooden-boat construction in this part of East Africa discussed.
Names of Contemporary Wooden Boats of Coastal East Africa: Origins and Meanings.
(Routledge, 2022) Ichumbaki, Elgidius
The coast of eastern Africa, commonly referred to as the Swahili coast, has a rich artisanal heritage of boats — both in their building and use. This iconic history is marked by the presence of various boat types that have historically been used for fishing and transporting people and cargo between coastal settlements (of eastern Africa), the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba, Mafia, Comoros, Madagascar, and other distant parts of the Indian Ocean world. Currently, the sailing boats such as the double-outrigger logboat (ngalawa), various plank-built craft, and several other types, line the shores of Tanzania, Kenya, Mozambique, Somalia and the islands of Zanzibar, Mafia and the Comoros. Some of these boats, almost all locally built, have names, decorations, and engravings. However, the boats’ names, decorations and engravings alongside the conveyed message(s) have remained undocumented. Thus, taking a maritime-heritage perspective, and by focusing on the nineteenth century historic port town of Bagamoyo in Tanzania, this paper documents the boats’ names and the messages they carry.
Building a ngalawa double-outrigger dugout in Bagamoyo, Tanzania: a craftsman at his work.
(Routledge, 2022) Ichumbaki, Elgidius
This article documents master logboat-builder Alalae Mohamed’s construction of a ngalawa fishing vessel in Bagamoyo, Tanzania. The ngalawa is an extended logboat with double outrigger and lateen sail used by low-income, artisanal fishers. It is the most common marine vessel type of the East African coast. This article follows the construction process from Alalae’s selection and the felling of the tree(s) to the launching of the vessel. It outlines the tools and materials used, details the sequence he followed, and presents his choices and considerations made along the way. It is accompanied by a documentary film recording the construction process, a 3D digital model of the vessel and detailed construction drawings.
Ours or Yours? Localizing ‘Mixed Sites’ Concept for the Sustainable Preservation of Heritage in Africa: The Case of Chongoleani Peninsular, Tanzania.
(Routledge, 2022) Ichumbaki, Elgidius
Heritage scholars, professionals, and practitioners continue to debate the separation of nature and culture and their linkage. The discussion, however, centres on World Heritage Sites (WHS) but not those valued locally, some of which are on the national register. This practice threatens many local heritage sites that would have benefited from having a management plan that treats nature and culture as interconnected and interlinked. For example, in north-eastern Tanzania, a Wall Enclosure, namely Chongoleani, was declared a National Monument in 1961. A hundred metres away from the enclosure, there is a Sacred Grove the local people value and protect using customary laws. Whereas the Government of Tanzania considers the Wall Enclosure a national monument, the Chongoleani local community does not regard it (the Wall Enclosure) as necessary for protection. Instead, they have let it deteriorate. While the Wall Enclosure continues to decline, the Sacred Grove enjoys complete protection from the local community. For the two assets’ sustainable preservation, the current paper proposes a decolonial approach that considers the localisation of UNESCO’s World Heritage ‘mixed sites’ concept. We argue in this paper that, had the two properties been declared together as one national monument, valuing one heritage over the other would have been minimised.
User Acceptance of Mobile Payment: The Effects of User-Centric Security, System Characteristics and Gender
(Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries, Wiley, 2017) Lwoga, Edda Tandi; Lwoga, Noel Biseko
This paper investigates the effects of user-centric, security, and system characteristics and the moderating effects of gender on behavioral intention to use mobile payments (m-payment) services in Tanzania. The study extended the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to better explain and predict the users’ intentions to use m-payment services. A questionnaire survey was conducted with 292 m-payment users in Morogoro and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The study used structural equation modeling and multi-group analysis for data analysis. The study found that compatibility, social influence, and m-payment knowledge determined perceived usefulness, while m-payment knowledge, trust and compatibility predicted perceived ease of use of m-payment services. Moreover, perceived ease of use determined perceived usefulness, and perceived usefulness and personal innovativeness in turn, had positive effects on the behavioral intention to use m-payment. There were gender differences on the behavioral intention to use m-payment. The effect of compatibility and personal innovativeness on perceived ease of use, and the influence of ease of use on behavioral intention were moderated by gender such that it is more significant for men more than women. The effects of social influence on perceived usefulness were stronger for female more than their male counterparts. The paper provides empirical findings for mobile service providers to improve their marketing plans, and development of new applications in the Tanzanian culture or other countries with similar conditions.
Challenges Facing Accessible Tourism in Cultural Heritage Sites: The Case of Village Museum in Tanzania
(Journal of tourism – studies and research in tourism, 2017) Lwoga, Noel Biseko; Mapunda, Bertram B.
Serving people with disabilities is vital to fully attain equality and equity, which are pillars of sustainable tourism development. However, this is not a straightforward endeavor as sites are faced with challenges, including the dilemma of site modification versus the preservation concerns of experts. By drawing largely on the Village Museum site in Tanzania, this study uses the barrier approach to examine the challenges faced by cultural tourism sites in their endeavor to cater for people with disabilities as visitors. By employing mainly a qualitative case study, the study found that, to a certain extent, the site caters for people with disabilities, although inadequate designated facilities are among the challenges that the site faces in its endeavor to cater for people with disabilities, as well as inadequate funds, and lack of personnel skilled in communicating with visitors with disabilities. The barrier approach revealed the presence of doubts about jeopardizing the heritage’s authenticity when installing specially designed facilities. The paper recommends that the site and the cultural tourism sector at large takes appropriate measures to address the concerns and barriers that the disabled encounter when visiting the sites. It also provides recommendations for further research.
Influence of participation, trust and perceptions on residents' support for conservation of built heritage in Zanzibar Stone Town, Tanzania
(Ethiopian Journal of Environmental Studies & Management, 2017) Lwoga, Noel Biseko; Anderson, Wineaster; Andersson, Tommy
This study develops a model of residents’ support for conservation using social exchange theory, complemented by the concept of participation in decision making borrowed from the Arnstein’s Model of Participation. The framework posited that residents’ support for conservation is influenced by the trust in conservation authorities and perceived benefits, and trust is determined by perceived benefits. It uniquely posited that participation in decision making indirectly influence support for conservation through its effects on trust and perceived benefits. The model was tested using a questionnaire survey to 543 local residents in Zanzibar Stone Town in Tanzania. Results from structural equation modelling indicate that residents’ support for conservation is significantly influenced by the trust in conservation authorities and perceived benefits. Results also show that support for conservation is indirectly influenced by residents’ participation in decision making, which inherently influences residents’ trust in conservation authorities and perceived benefits. The contribution of the study to the body of knowledge emanates from the addition of the participation in decision making variable in the social exchange model and the testing of the model in a relatively neglected setting of cultural heritage. The study discusses the practical implications and provides some suggestions for future research.
Dilemma of local socio-economic perspectives in management of historic ruins in Kilwa Kisiwani World Heritage Site, Tanzania
(International Journal of Heritage Studies, Routledge-Taylor & Francis, 2018) Lwoga, Noel Biseko
The study explored the value that local residents place on historic ruins, focusing on their socio-economic value. It also explored the implications of conventional Cultural Heritage Management’s (CHM) indifference to this. Using in-depth data from 22 residents in Kilwa Kisiwani World Heritage Site in Tanzania, the study found that residents not only attach cultural value to the ruins, but also consider them a conservation project and tourist attraction, from which they can earn money and get employment and see infrastructure and social facilities developed. It also found that the destructive activities of illegally digging to construct toilets and water collectors, letting domestic animals wander in the ruins, quarrying old underground walls for coral stones, and lighting fires are partly the result of limited socioeconomic benefits, inconsistent business opportunities, complaints about employment and payment, and few feasible alternatives for making a living. By engaging with the socio-economic discourse, this study broadens our understanding of the integration of conservation in the broader social agenda, and contributes to the economist-anthropologic debate on CHM. It informs heritage managers and policy makers on alternative strategies that would maintain the sustainability of the heritage.
Cultural heritage tourism and the community in Tanzania
(Institut Heritage Studies, 2017) Lwoga, Noel Biseko
This paper explores cultural heritage tourism approaches and practices, putting a special focus on community involvement issues with reference from cultural heritage sites in Tanzania. The paper uses the analysis of documents and empirical insights to enlighten our understanding of how cultural heritage tourism operates, and is being approached, in Tanzania. Cultural heritage tourism is considered as a form of tourism, involving people visiting cultural heritage sites away from their usual residences for not more than one consecutive year, for the purposes of leisure and education, and others that do not include the practice of an activity remunerated from within the place visited. Cultural heritage tourism is a growing segment of tourism all over the world, accounting for about 37% of all tourist trips in the world. However, its contribution to the development of the place partly depends on the involvement of community members. Thus, as this paper highlights, it is important to put a special focus on the community involvement issues when exploring the approaches and practices of the cultural heritage tourism industry. This is particularly important in broadening our understanding of the complexity of the management of cultural heritage, which is often preoccupied with, and overwhelmed by, the protection of cultural heritage objects while marginalizing the community and their perspectives. The paper begins by defining key terms such as heritage, culture, and cultural heritage tourism with reference to Tanzanian cases. Finally, there is an exploration of community involvement and management practices in cultural heritage tourism in Tanzania.

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