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Swahili Dhow
The Swahili dhow crystallizes Arab–Persian–East African shipbuilding traditions of the western Indian Ocean, known for its lateen sail, shallow draft…
Timeline
- c. 800–1200East African coastal ports · Kenya coastArab and Persian merchants brought lateen-rigged dhow technology to East Africa, where local craftsmen built vessels of mango wood, coconut rope, and sewn hulls suited to monsoon and coral-reef navigation.
- c. 1200–1330Waters off Kilwa and Zanzibar · KilwaCity-states such as Kilwa and Mombasa possessed fleets; dhows carried monsoon and tidal trade, transporting East African ivory and gold to Aden and Gujarat, and onward to the Red Sea and Persian Gulf.
- 1331–1340Indian Ocean monsoon routes (Kilwa–Aden–Hormuz) · AdenIbn Battuta arrived at Kilwa in 1331 and recorded a busy port; during this decade dhow fleets maintained regular shipping with India and Arabia, with Swahili merchants dominating coastal transshipment.
- c. 1500–1900Zanzibar and the East African coast · ZanzibarAfter Portuguese caravels entered the Indian Ocean, dhows gradually lost ground in long-distance bulk cargo, but remained in use for coastal and archipelagic short-haul shipping, absorbing some European navigational instruments.
Sources
- The Travels of Ibn Battutah — Ibn Battuta; translated by Tim Mackintosh-Smith (2002)
- Dhows and the Colonial Economy of Zanzibar, 1860-1970 — Erik Gilbert (2004)