Settlement history of the islands on the Pangani River, northeastern Tanzania

Part of the history of human settlements on the islands along the Pangani River at Korogwe in northeastern Tanzania has been misconstrued. Eurocentric accounts claim that the islands were inhabited during the nineteenth century and that they were refuges for the Zigua from Maasai cattle raiders. Those accounts also claim that these settlements served as staging posts for trade caravans during the nineteenth century to provide food and security to coastal traders. An historical archaeology study conducted at the four abandoned islands of Ngombezi, Old Korogwe, Kwa Sigi and Maurui necessitates a rigorous re-examination of the documented historical narratives of these settlements. Current archaeological evidence suggests that the islands have been inhabited continuously for more than five centuries. The island communities were not isolated: instead, they were part of regional systems of trade and exchange that had developed long before the nineteenth century.