Swahili Coast City-States

Name: Swahili Coast City-States
Start: 1000
End: 1100

Type Event Region Africa Time c. 1000–1100

Around 1006 CE, the Swahili city-state network on the East African Indian Ocean coast kept expanding, with ports like Kilwa, Mombasa, and Zanzibar fu…

Timeline

1006Kilwa Kisiwani · TanzaniaPorts such as Kilwa developed from fishing villages into urban settlements with stone buildings, mosques, and markets; a local elite class (waungwana) gradually formed, and Swahili rose in status as a trade lingua franca.
c. 1006–1050East African Indian Ocean coast · Swahili CoastAfrican goods such as ivory, gold, slaves, and timber were shipped from the coastal city-states to the Arabian Peninsula, Persia, and India, in exchange for textiles, porcelain, and metalware, forming a stable monsoon trade cycle.

Sources

Kilwa Kisiwani https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/144
Swahili city states of the East African coast https://www.britannica.com/topic/Swahili