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Paper short abstract:

The Rufiji River delta interrelates the Indian Ocean timber trade, the spiritual significance of trees and movements for decolonization. This paper examines oral history accounts of Iranian sailors, shedding light on their participation in the political and spiritual landscape of the delta.

Paper long abstract:

Simba Uranga, the Rufiji River delta in present-day Tanzania, is where notable historical events unfolded: the delta was the first colonial nature reserve to be declared in Africa. It was the place where the Maji Maji Rebellion took root, inspiring inter-ethnic decolonialization movements all across the continent (Sunseri 2003). The belligerent showdown between the British and the German warship Königsberg in World War I happened here. And it was the site for the “best mangrove poles in the world” (Villiers 1948: 414).

A semiotic relationship connected timber-producing mainland mangrove forests with port cities along the old Indian Ocean trading routes. People in Simba Uranga cut the timber, sailors transported it for construction and shipbuilding to the Persian Gulf (Kaplan 2015). Songs, spirits and slaves were hidden under the mangrove poles. From Iranian sailor’s anecdotal stories, we learn about the cooperation between Tanzanians and Persian Gulf sailors for circumventing colonial conservation legislation. We get a glimpse of the participation of sailors in movements for decolonialization and independence. We learn about the racialized violence of the slave trade that continued long after formal abolition. And, if we pay close attention, we can see transnational Zar spirits at play.

Kaplan, Marion (2015): So Old a Ship. Twilight of the Arab Dhow. Wiltshire: Moho Books.

Sunseri, Thaddeus (2003): Reinterpreting a Colonial Rebellion: Forestry and Social Control in German East Africa, 1874-1915. In: Environmental History 8 (3), 430-451.

Villiers, Alan (1948): Some Aspects of the Arab Dhow Trade. In: Middle East Journal 2 (4), 399-416.