"As an introduction to how the history of an African society can be reconstructed from largely nonliterate sources, and to the Swahili in particular, . . . a model work."-International Journal of African Historical Studies

Derek Nurse is Professor Emeritus of Linguistics at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Thomas Spear is Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Maps
Figures
Preface
Acknowledgments

1 Swahili and Their History
2 The African Background of Swahili
3 The Emergence of the Swahili-Speaking Peoples
4 Early Swahili Society, 800-1100
5 Rise of the Swahili Town-States, 1100-1500

Appendices
Abbreviations
Notes
Bibliography
Index