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East Africa's Cultural Diversity: Impact of Geography and Changing Ideas about Land Ownership

Explore how geography has shaped the development of East African cultures and the evolving concepts of land ownership. Discover the Swahili's rich heritage and the significance of languages in the region. Understand the shift in attitudes towards land and the connection between urbanization and ancestral ties.

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East Africa's Cultural Diversity: Impact of Geography and Changing Ideas about Land Ownership

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  1. Objectives: In this section you will: • Find out how geography has affected the development of East African cultures. • Learn how and why ideas about land ownership are changing in East Africa.

  2. Key Terms • Swahili (swah HEE lee) n. an ethnic group in East Africa that resulted from the mixing of African and Arab ways more than 1,000 years ago; also a language • heritage (HEHR uh tij) n. the values, traditions, and customs handed down from one’s ancestors

  3. East Africa is a large, coastal region bordering the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. Like West Africa, East Africa is a land of great cultural diversity: • mixture of traditional and modern ways of life • many languages • many religions

  4. East Africa

  5. East Africa’s diversity is tied to its location along the Indian Ocean. The ocean provided a travel route, linking Africans with people living in lands to the east. For centuries, East Africa’s port cities were centers of trade among Africans, Arabs, and people from as far away as India and China.

  6. Contact among different cultures resulted in the exchange of customs, languages, and ideas. Over time, this exchange changed life for people in East Africa. For some, a new culture resulted—one that blended elements of African and Arab traditions.

  7. Today, the Swahilis are one of hundreds of ethnic groups found in East Africa. The Swahili language, however, is spoken throughout the region. Swahili is: • a Bantu language containing Arabic words • taught in schools • used for business and communication

  8. Swahili Culture

  9. Promoting Swahili helps East Africans preserve their heritage. Yet, with so many different ethnic groups in the region, many other languages are also spoken. This variety of languages is due to the long history of migrations of people throughout the continent, including the Bantu migration.

  10. Most East Africans know more than one language, and many speak three languages or more.

  11. East Africa: Languages Each major language group, shown here, includes many different languages.

  12. Religions in East Africa

  13. Attitudes toward the land are an important part of East African culture. For centuries, extended families farmed plots of land to feed family members. • Men cleared the land and tended livestock. • Women worked in the fields and harvested crops. • Land was not bought or sold. These ideas changed when Europeans took over parts of Africa.

  14. Changing Ideas about Land Ownership

  15. Today, urban areas are growing in East Africa. Yet many city dwellers still feel a strong bond to the land. They think of “home” as the village of their family or clan. Julius Nyerere, the first president of Tanzania, shared this feeling: • served as president in Dar es Salaam • returned to his home village after retirement

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