Threads

Long reads on African history, governance, economics, culture, and what comes next.

All eras Ancient (before 500 CE) Medieval (500–1500 CE) Pre-colonial (1500–1884) Colonial era (1884–1960s) Independence era (1960s–2000) Contemporary (2000–present) Future systems & solutions

Culture & Traditions Medieval (500–1500 CE)

Swahili Coast c.1100-1498 — revisiting Mark Horton on Shanga and the origins of Swahili statehood

Mark Horton's excavations at Shanga on Pate Island, conducted from 1980 through the early 1990s, transformed the understanding of Swahili coastal origins. The pre-Horton interpretation — articulated by …

2 min read · East Africa, Indian Ocean · 19 views

Culture & Traditions Medieval (500–1500 CE)

Ge'ez liturgy, vernacular faith — language and authority in Ethiopian Orthodoxy

Walk into an Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo service on a Sunday morning in Addis Ababa, Adwa, or Asmara, and you will hear the liturgy partly in Ge'ez — a …

2 min read · Horn of Africa, Ethiopia, Eritrea · 18 views