JIA/“Becoming Muslim”: A Comparative Archaeological Approach to the Material Markers of Islam in the Niger Bend, Mali and Eastern Ethiopia

Resource added
How to Cite: Insoll, T. (2023). “Becoming Muslim”: A Comparative Archaeological Approach to the Material Markers of Islam in the Niger Bend, Mali and Eastern Ethiopia. Journal of Islamic Archaeology, 9(2), 135–171. https://doi.org/10.1558/jia.25864

Full description

Archaeology is in a unique position to offer a material culture based perspective on Islamization and conversion to Islam, particularly in regions where historical sources might be limited or absent. This is explored with reference to two archaeological areas, Gao in Mali, and Harlaa in Ethiopia to assess if similar material markers can recur archaeologically through evaluating mosques, Muslim burials and Arabic epigraphy, settlement structure and domestic architecture, animal and plant remains, ceramics, and miscellaneous artifacts potentially suggestive of Islamization in both regions, primarily for the period between the 11th–13th centuries CE. It is concluded that the evidence from Gao and Harlaa attests the variety of interpretations of Islam that exist, but, correspondingly, through the recurrence of key markers such as mosques, Muslim burials, and Arabic epigraphy, also affirms material similarity, yet without having to make course to a unitary and erroneous concept of “African Islam.”

  • type
    Image
  • created on
  • file format
    jpg
  • file size
    135 KB
  • container title
    Journal of Islamic Archaeology
  • creator
    Timothy Insoll
  • issn
    2051-9729 (Online)
  • issue
    9.2
  • publisher
    Equinox Publishing Ltd.
  • publisher place
    Sheffield, United Kingdom
  • rights holder
    Equinox Publishing Ltd.
  • volume
  • doi