Roundhead Rock Art from the Akakus Mountains - Libya |
Map of Libya, highlighting the Idehan Ubari and Wadi al Ajal |
From Aksum to Zimbabwe, Casablanca to Cape Town, learn about the fascinating civilizations and stories of Africa on the first dedicated Pre-Colonial African history podcast.
Roundhead Rock Art from the Akakus Mountains - Libya |
Map of Libya, highlighting the Idehan Ubari and Wadi al Ajal |
Map approximating the extent of Bantu languages. Source: Khan Academy |
Bantu is a term which has become one of the most contentious in the study of African history. The name of a language family stretching across much of the southern half of the African continent, the term has been used in many distinct ways. In anthropology, it has often extended beyond mere linguistics into an idea of a larger shared culture and history across southern and central Africa. In apartheid South Africa, "Bantu" was used as a euphemism for "black" in many of the country's most oppressive apartheid laws. Furthermore, debates around the origins of the original Bantu speaking peoples and their purported spread throughout the southern half of the continent are a historiographical point of contention. In this episode, we examine the origins of the idea of Bantu languages, as well as different theories on Bantu origins and how they were so successful in spreading across such a vast geographic area.
Due to the rarity of written sources in the Bantu speaking regions of Africa prior to colonialism, and the fact that almost all of the written sources focus on more "important" things like theology or records, we have little idea of what Bantu speakers thought about the similarities between their languages and those of their neighbors. However, it seems likely that Bantu speakers were aware of the similarity between different Bantu languages, they likely postulated about why and how these similarities had come to be, and theorized as to why certain people they encountered like the Nilotic or Khoisan speaking groups in Africa, or European and Arab foreigners spoke languages which were noticably more distinct.
Sadly, though, due to a lack of pre-colonial sources on the continent on the topic, the history of studying the linguistics of South and Central Africa is a somewhat Eurocentric one. The idea of a unified Bantu linguistics family is first proposed in writing by James Prichard, a British ethnologist. Decades later, Wilhelm Bleik, a German anthropologist would give the family a name, borrowing the term "Aba-ntu" from the Zulu language of South Africa.
Beyond the recognition of the language family, however, a British colonial administration named Harry Johnston would cement the earliest iteration of the modern theory of Bantu Expansion, claiming that all Bantu speaking groups shared a common linguistic ancestor group which migrated and expanded outwards from an original homeland in Cameroon or Nigeria.
Harry Johnston |
Malagasy Defenders Building a Barricade at Antananarivo (1897) |
French soldiers enter Antananarivo |
Ranavalona and her family in exile in Algeria |
A pair of high ranking Merina officials are executed by the French by firing squad over alleged support for the Menalamba Revolt |
Map of gold deposits in 19th century Madagascar by Gwyn Campbell
The French invasion and blockade of Madagascar in 1884, while it hadn't conquered the island nation, wrecked havoc on the Malagasy economy. With his country's economy in shambles, and with foreign investors being unwilling to take the risk of investing in Madagascar, Rainilaiarivony had to implement a desperate policy to excite investors and potentially reverse Madagascar's economic freefall: the opening of the country's long secret gold deposits for business.
Ranavalona III was crowned empress of Madagascar in the midst of the first Franco-Hova War |
Ravoninahitriniarivo: The Leader of the Malagasy Diplomatic Expedition |
French Cruiser Forfait, one of the ships which blockaded Toamasina in 1882 |
The Palace of Rainilaiarivony |
The Royal Chapel at the Rova of Antananarivo |
To relieve his country from the currency crisis of 1879, Rainilaiarivony attempted to import large quantities of Indian rupees |
Prime Minister Rainilaiarivony |
Empress Rasoherina |
1881 Treaty of Friendship between the United States and Madagascar |
Radama II's coronation by a Catholic Priest |
Radama II and his wife, Radobo |
Joseph Lambert, labelled here with his nickname "Duke of Imerina", which he earned due to his control over |
Prince Rakoto, the future king Radama II |
Prime Minister Rainivoninahitriniony |
Sea mangos (Tangena) the poisonous fruit used in the notorious trial by ordeal |
Much of Ranavalona's negative reputation can be traced back to her falling out with the London Missionary Society. While Ranavalona maintained positive relations with the organization during the early segment of her reign, her perception shifted. She became increasingly concerned that the rising popularity of heavily syncretized Christianity in her kingdom would lead to a decline in veneration of the Merina ancestors, and subsequently a loss of faith in the ideological system which supported her royal legitimacy. Ranavalona banned Christian baptisms and ordered existing concerts to return to their original faith. While most Malagasy christians obeyed the coercive order, the few who refused to de-convert were treated to harsh punishments, often escalating to the death penalty.
An illustration of the persecution of Christians in Madagascar |
An artist's render of a Tangena trial: 1873 |
The Fortress at Toamasina: 1845 |
Large auction of enslaved workers in Antananarivo, 1860s. |
Enslaved worker carrying cattle hides, 1880s. |
The remnants of one of the blast furnaces at Mantasoa |
James Cameron, LMS missionary and artisan, pictured here several decades after his arrival in Madagascar. |
Jean Laborde, the French blacksmith turned industrialist, had a close relationship with the Malagasy royal family |
The Mantasoa Industrial Complex |
1905 portrait of Ranavalona I |
Enslaved workers packing rice - 1856 |
Malagasy workers running an iron forge. |
Chinatown, Port Louis Mauritius, ~1860s |
Bezanozano porters carrying cattle skins to Toamasina |
By 1817, Toamasina (Tamatave) was the busiest port on the east coast of Madagascar |
Workers unload cargo from an outrigger canoe in Toamasina, circa 1880. |
Toamasina gave Imerina its first major port in its history, as well as a direct line of communication with the outside world.
Radama (on the upper left horse) inspects an army |
Using resources acquired from his deal with the British, Radama assembled a modern army equipped with the latest firearms, artillery, and even horses, an otherwise unknown sight on Madagascar. The new Merina army proved unstoppable, with only the former hegemons of Madagascar, the Sakalava kingdoms, putting up successful long term resistance during Radama's reign.
Map of Radama's Conquests of Madagascar |
The king's palace: Tranovola or the Silver House |
Radama, as depicted in an illustration by William Fitzwilliam Owen |
If his father is the most remembered king in Madagascar, Radama is probably the best-known Malagasy king in the rest of the world. Radama is famous not only for leading the first major push to unify his home island but also for his later efforts to modernize and industrialize the Merina Empire. But how did this fascinating man come to power in the first place? Today, we track the rise of Radama from the heir to the kingdom to the man synonymous with the formation of Malagasy identity.
The beginning of Radama's reign was full of chaos. Even before taking the throne, he had already been the target of multiple assassination attempts by brothers, forced into an unhappy marriage, and served in the army on multiple campaigns. After taking the throne, he had to put down rebellions by his Betsileo and Sihanaka subjects.
Ifanadiana, Madagascar. The hill in the background is the site of the "martyrdom" of the Betsileo soldiers. |
A pirate graveyard on Nosy Boraha |
Radama's greatest ambition for conquest would have to wait, though. He specifically desired to conquer the eastern coast of Madagascar. The eastern coast had recently undergone a cultural transformation with the arrival of swarms of European and American pirates to the region. One pirate from New York even established a colony on the island of Nosy Boraha. The arrival of pirates began a cultural and political transformation on the east coast, with some Malagasy using pirates as mercenaries, trading with the seafarers, and some even marrying and having children with pirates. Malagasy who adopted elements of European culture from European pirates and merchants were known as Malagasy Creoles, while those who came from a mixed background were called Zana Malata.
A photo of the old French fort at Fort Dauphin (taken hundreds of years after its abandonment.) |
Our latest premium episode focuses on one of Madagascar's most interesting mixed-race historical figures: the pirate turned king of Madagascar, Abraham Samuel. Listen here.