S6E5: Make Way for Prince Ali, the Mysterious Kilwa Chronicles

Decades da Asia - a historical compilation that includes the Portuguese translation of the Kilwa Chronicle

(Yes, I have now made two references to Disney Renaissance movies in season six. I can't promise these will be the last.)

Today's episode concerns the controversial semi-mythical history of Kilwa's foundation, relayed to us through a pair of texts which allegedly translate a much older indigenous document containing the story.

The location of the city of Shiraz in southern Iran

The Kilwa chronicle(s) tell the story of Ali Ibn Hasan, a prince from the City of Shiraz, then a vassal of the Buyid Dynasty of southern Iran and Mesopotamia. According to the chronicle, Ali was shunned by his brothers due to his heritage, with his mother being an enslaved East African woman. As a result, he decided to leave the city to avoid his brothers machinations, taking himself, his family, and an entourage to East Africa to start a new life. Eventually, he ended up on Kilwa, purchased the island from the locals, and created the kingdom that would late become known in history as the Kilwa Sultanate.

The extent to which this story is based on historical reality is highly contentious. Genetic evidence indicates that local Swahili people often have a noticeable degree of Persian ancestry, while archaeological evidence shows the presence of trade between Persia and Kilwa from an early stage.

However, historians are cautious about accepting the tale. Claims of distant Arab, Hebrew, and other Middle Eastern origins are a common trope in much of Africa, and much of the Islamic world outside of the Middle East more generally. For the most part, these stories are regarded as merely attempts to associate a family or people with the prestige that Middle Eastern ancestry holds within the Islamic faith.

These competing factors lead us to an interesting conclusion about the veracity of such a claim in the episode.