Browsing by Author "Sperling, David"
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- ItemThe Contents and discontents of devolution: measuring the "devolution performance" of the counties of Kenya(Strathmore University, 2018-05-23) Sperling, DavidThe session addresses various aspects related to devolution in Kenya, giving examples of the substantive issues involved, in contrast to many superficial assessments that tend to appear in the media. After distinguishing between basic general research and applied research, the presentation examines some specific properties or attributes of the counties of Kenya and explains how one might go about measuring the success or failure of devolution by gathering empirical evidence about one or more of those properties.
- PublicationIslamization in the Coastal region of Kenya to the end the Nineteenth Century(Bookwise, ) Sperling, David; Ogot, B.A.The first Muslims to arrive in what is now Kenya came by sea more than a thousand years ago. Whether they were Arabs or Persians, and exactly where they came from, may never be known. Present evidence indicates that they were most likely from the region of the Persian Gulf. Some came as traders for seasonal visits, or a temporary stay; others came as immigrants and settled in island and mainland towns, always near, though not necessarily on, the coast. The first Muslim settlers were followed by others and, as time passed, the number of Muslim settlements in the coastal region increased.
- PublicationReligion and society(Transaction Publishers, ) Sperling, David; Obudho, R.A.; Hoorweg, Jan; Foeken, DickThe peoples of the Kenya Coast follow a variety of religious traditions. Whereas Islam has been present in the region for centuries, the beginning of Christianity in modern times only goes back some 150 years. African religious beliefs and practices existed long before the coming of Islam or Christianity. This chapter examines the religious traditions of the Kenya Coast, looking first at their historical origins and development. Rather than attempt a detailed description of the tenets and practices of each of the traditions, the chapter seeks to explain how they have influenced and interacted with each other. At the same time it assesses their overall importance, their relation to the social life and political economy of the region, and what their general circumstances are today.
- PublicationRural madrasas of the Southern Kenya Coast, 1971-92(C. Hurst & Co.(Publishers) Ltd, ) Sperling, David; Brenner, LouisThe past two decades in Kenya have witnessed the opening of a large number of new Muslim educational institutions (madrasas), in rural as well as urban areas, in places where Muslim communities predominate and in places where they are a minority. In spite of sectarian differences, the madrasas display marked similarities of style and structure. Nevertheless, they address a wide range of particular problems and goals. Nowhere are specific needs and objectives more apparent than in rural village madrasas. Though village madrasas possess many of the characteristics of their urban counterparts, they have distinct features that set them apart. This essay examines some aspects of madrasa education among rural Muslim communities of the southern coast of Kenya
- PublicationThe coastal hinterland and interior of East Africa(Ohio University press, ) Sperling, David; Kagabo, JoseAlthough Islam has been present on the East African coast for more than twelve centuries (chapter 12), in assessing the extent of Islamic influence we need to distinguish between the Swahili towns, centers of Islam on or near the coast, and the neighboring rural areas of the coastal hinterland, which remained untouched by Islam until relatively recent times. Arabic, Chinese, and Portuguese references to the indigenous peoples of the coast are scanty, but they say enough for us to conclude that prior to the nineteenth century the influence of Islam in the immediate hinterland and the interior was negligible, hardly extending beyond the outskirts of the coastal towns." In this chapter, we look at the way Islam spread, beginning in the nineteenth century, among the peoples of the coastal hinterland, behind a stretch of the East African coast extending for some five hundred miles (eight hundred kilometers), from the Tana River-Lamu archipelago region in the north to the Rufiji River delta region in the south. This stretch, known as the Swahili coast, can be divided into two sections. The sections are dissimilar but roughly equal in length, running I. from the Lamu archipelago south as far as Tanga (in whose hinterland the Usambara Mountains rise); and 2. from Tanga south to the Rufiji River. The dissimilarities stem from a combination of geographical, historical, and economic factors.
- ItemThe growth of Islam among the Mijikenda of the Kenya coast, 1826-1933Sperling, DavidThe Mijikenda peoples of the Kenya coast have been in contact with Muslims at least since the 17th century. The first Mijikenda conversions to Islam occurred in the 18th century through the influence of neighbouring Swahili peoples. Early Mijikenda converts migrated to Swahili towns, thereby establishing a pattern of urban islamization that kept Islam from spreading among the Mijikenda. Beginning in the 1830s, the East Mrican economy expanded, and Muslim commercial activity in the coastal hinterland increased. The migration of Muslims to settle near Mijikenda villages led to closer relations between Muslims and Mijikenda. By the middle of the 19th century, the cultural influence of Islam was evident among the Mijikenda, but few Mijikenda had become Muslim. This was due as much to an absence of proselytising by Muslims as to the strength and integrity of Mijikenda society. Differing Mijikenda settlement patterns north and south of Mombasa influenced the way Islam spread. North of Mombasa, Mijikenda Muslim converts continued to immigrate to towns and or to separate Mijikenda Muslim villages. South of Mombasa, beginning in the 1850s, Digo Mijikenda converts remained resident in their home villages, while centring their social and religious life as Muslims in town. Under the continuing influence of Swahili and other Muslims, including immigrants to Digo villages, Islam slowly gathered strength among the Digo. By the end of the 19th century, the Digo had already built several mosques, and educated Digo Muslims were teaching and actively proselytising among their fellow Digo. Colonial rule brought changes that affected the growth of Islam among the Mijikenda. Legal rulings in favour of Islamic law strengthened Islam, which eventually emerged as the majority religion among the Digo south of Mombasa. The economic decline of Muslim towns and villages weakened Islam north of Mombasa, where only a minority of Mijikenda became Muslim.