Re- Islamization of Afro- Islamic Language (Kiswahili).
Introduction
The most famous local language in Africa today is Kiswahili others call it
Swahili.
It belongs to the Bantu family of African structure, which was known as
“Kingozi”.
The most interesting about Kiswahili is that it is at once the most idiomatically
Islamic of all the Bantu languages in East Africa as well as in Africa. Kiswahili is
also the most successful language in terms of spread.
Both secularists and Christians have done tremendous efforts to secularise and
Christianise this Afro-Islamic language. The purpose of this paper is first and for
most to present it Islamic origin, as well as show the contribution of Islam on the
development of Kiswahili. The paper shall later on discuss the role played by
the church and secular states to fight against this Afro- Islamic Language.
Last but not least the paper shall give the way forward on how Kiswahili can be
Re- Islamised and return to its origin.
Definition of the term Re-Islamization:
Re- Islamization is a process of remodelling all disciplines of knowledge (so
called modern sciences) such as psychology, sociology, History, Economics,
Politics etc in to an Islamic content and terms as defined by the Qur’an and
Sunnah.
The Islamic origin of Kiswahili language:
The Islamic origin of this Afro-Islamic language lies mainly on the following
factors:
1. Its readiness to borrow concepts, culture, words and idioms from the
Arabic language the language of the Holy Qur’an.
2. It links with the sultanate of Zanzibar. During the European rulers of
East Africa “Kiunguja” the dialect of Zanzibar was standardized and
became the language of schools, medium, administration, courts etc.
And because Zanzibar was under the influence of Islamic civilization,
its dialect therefore was rich in Islamic culture and idioms than any
other Swahili dialect such as; Ki-amu, Ki-pate, Ki-mvita, Ki-pemba, Ki-
makunduch etc which had stronger Bantu foundations and slightly
weaker in Arabism.
3. Its original alphabet. For almost five hundred year, Kiswahili has been
a written language. Its script was on Arabic alphabet. To feet the
sound system of the Afro-Islamic language some modifications were
made. Letters such as “pa” “cha” “nga” were added in the
Arabic alphabet. It was during the European colonial rule in the
twentieth century when the Arabic alphabet was totally changed and
replaced with by Roman alphabet. Today very few people if any
among the waswahili who can use the Arabic alphabet while writing
Swahili language. Although the language has given up the Arabic
alphabet, it still continues to borrow more Arabic words than ever
before.
4. It classical poetry. The oldest poetry of Kiswahili is fully of Islamic
content. For example when you read long Swahili poems such as Al-
inkishafi, the song of Mwankupona, the song of muyaka, the poems of
Shaaban Robert etc are all written in Islamic tradition. (1)
The role of Islam on the development of Swahili culture:
Islam has played a grate role on the development of Kiswahili not as a language
but as well as a culture. With a growing population of its speakers estimated to
be in tens of millions, Kiswahili has functioned as a medium of trade, religion,
education, administration, politics not only in Kenya but in the whole of East
African region.
At the international level Kiswahili today is taught as subject not only in its
original home in East Africa, but also in countries such as Nigeria, Ghana in west
Africa and in some western countries like U SA, Britain, Canada, Germany etc.
Nevertheless, some prominent African writers such as Wole Soyinka and Ngugi
wa Thiongo they once suggested Kiswahili to be used as a language of Africa. (2)
Our aim in this paper is not to elaborate how powerful Kiswahili is, in terms of
its spread in to other community. But what we are intending here is to focus on
the contribution of Islam towards the development of Kiswahili.
Three Muslim authors in Kenya, Sheikh Al-Amin bin Ali Mazrui (1890-1949)
Sheikh Abdallah S. Al-farsy (1912- 1982) and Sheikh Musa (1944) demonstrated
the historical chain of Muslim scholarship in East Africa as a whole. Their works
underline the major role played by Islam in developing Kiswahili literature.
The use of Kiswahili in East Africa as the language of Islam, has really
contributed to the popularisation of Kiswahili and spread in many parts of Africa
outside the geographical boundaries of East Africa. (3)
Today places like Bunya and kisangane in Zaire (DRC) road-signs are written in
Kiswahili to inform drivers where to get halal and Islamic foods. Islamic schools
at Bunya use Kiswahili as the language of instruction. Muslim refugees from
Sudan and Uganda who were living in Ariwara (northern Zaire) were taught
Islam in Kiswahili. (4)
In Kenya Sheikh Al-Amin bin Ali, was the first Muslim scholar to realise the
importance of Islam for the spread of Kiswahili in East Africa. He was as well
the first Swahili scholar to be aware of the potential impact of Kiswahili for
Islamic reform movement. Due to the above factors Sheikh Al-Amin established
two Newspapers in Mombasa one was called “shifa”(October 1930) and the other
one was known as “Al-islah” (february1932). The major aim of these papers was
to inform his readers especial the Swahili Muslims along the Coast about the
problems facing the Muslim Ummah in East Africa such as the Euro-Christian
colonial rule, as well as the danger of the Christian missionary. (5)
Similarly, Sheikh Abdallah S. Farsy considered Kiswahili language, to be a
language own its own which can write about Islam without necessarily relaying
on a foreign language as the sole medium of Islamic expression. Secondly
Sheikh Al-farsy believed that Kiswahili had in fact become the Muslim language
in East Africa. These attitudes have contributed to the evolution of what might
be described as “Swahili Islam.” (6)
Another prominent Muslim scholar from East Africa is Sheikh Said Musa, who
considered Kiswahili to be the obvious and natural medium for the publication
of Islamic literature in Eastern Africa. Furthermore, Sheikh Al-farsy was
convinced that Kiswahili could be used as a stepping-stone not only for teaching
and propagating Islam, but also as the contemporary means for transmitting and
imparting Islamic knowledge.
He implemented his dreams, by adopting the translation of the Holy Qur’an as
his first attempts. In 1950 he published his own selected translated chapters of
the Holy Qur’an including; Surat Yasin, Mulk and Waqia. Then in 1969 he
published the complete translation of the Holy Qur’an, which was financed by
the Kuwaiti Ministry of education and Islamic affairs. (7)
It was through these translations of the Qur’an Kiswahili managed to spread all
over East Africa, and the wave of Islamic revivalism came about. This revivalism
took place not only in Kenya, but in Tanzania and Uganda as well. It was
therefore during this period different Muslin association and movements were
established. The Answar Muslim Youth (Kenya), the Tanzania Council for
Qur’an recitation, Tabligh Muslim Youth (Uganda), the Youth Muslim
Association (Kenya, Tanzania) etc. All these Islamic movements had no medium
other than Kiswahili language. (8)
The other factor contributed to the development of Kiswahili through Islam was
the Iranian revolution in 1989. Although the Swahili people along the East Coast
of Africa are Sunnis but the Iranian movement had a direct impact on East
African Islam at different levels. Firstly, and for most was the growth of Swahili
poetry which seems to be a desire to revive the old historical relation ship
between Iran formerly called Persia, and the East Coast of Africa, through the
use of Swahili in its classical form. This work was done through their monthly
magazine called (Sauti ya Ummah). (9)
Secondly, some of the important literatures of religious leaders from Iran have
been translated into Kiswahili. Though many Muslims in East Africa disagree
with Iran in terms of its Islamic monotheism, they do accept the political
movements in Iran, and its hatred towards American policy. It was through this
circumstance that Islam played a big role in developing the Afro-Islamic
language.
Last but not least the Iranian reform has also touched the political arena of East
Africa. In 1988 later Prof. Kigoma A. Malima former controversial minister of
education in Tanzania, visited Iran. And the Iranian officials requested him to
introduce the teaching of Qur’an and Islamic studies in all government schools.
The Tabligh movement in Uganda led by Sheikh Sulaiman Kakeeto were allowed
to propagate Islam after the three-day visit of Iran by president Y. Museveni in
1991. In 1994 Mr. Rashid Mzee a former Kenyan member of parliament,
announced that Iranian government had promised an Islamic University to be
initiated in Kenya. The news came after his return from Iran. (10)
Although Kiswahili began as an African language, later on Islam played a great
role on the growth of its culture. Today it has increasingly become the heritage
of Africa, and Islam as a whole.
Secularisation and christianisation of Kiswahili as an Afro- Islamic language:
As I have earlier indicated, Kiswahili started as an Afro-Islamic language but
now is becoming less Islamic and more African. There are two major reasons
which contributed to that. One is the secularisation and the second one is the
christianisation. Kiswahili today has been involved in areas of African life, which
are no longer deeply Islamic as they once were. During Eruo-colnial and post-
colonial contexts Kiswahili was used in administration, economic and politics.
Kiswahili today has become the second language in Kenya after English, and it is
used as a most important instrument of nation building and economics
development. (11)
Kiswahili language has also become a medium of worship and theology for
Christianity and traditional African religions. It has strongly lost its Islamic
background and converted to the language of Christian songs of praising God.
Swahili’s Islamic concepts that were only intended particularly for Muslims have
now penetrated into it, the vocabulary of the Bible as well as African paganism.
In addition to that, the process of replacing Bantu vocabulary instead of Arabic
words has also contributed to the secularisation of the Afro- Islamic language.
Different scholars of Kiswahili language especial the non-Muslims among them
are doing tremendous efforts to remove all Arabic words available in this
language. But this campaigning has totally failed because of universalization of
Kiswahili.
Concerning the relationship between Kiswahili and the western world is a bit
contradicting. The west is fighting against the spread of Islam world over, but at
the same time it’s supported the spread of this Afro-Islamic language. The
religious part of Islamic civilization suffered, whereas the linguistic side of
Islamic civilization enjoys. The European missionaries also promoted
Christianity by using this Afro- Islamic language Kiswahili to spread the Gospel
of Jesus, but at the same time constrained the spread of Islam.
Although the British rule forced Kiswahili to leave the Arabic alphabet, and
adopt the latten script, Kiswahili has become the most serious challenger to the
English language in East Africa today.
The falling standards of English in Kenya are not only in public life and political
processes, but also in the educational institutions as will. The issue of falling
stand of English language has been recurrent issue in Kenyan government
reports and the media. A report made by the Kenya national examination
council of 1993 noted that the standard of English language has fallen, while that
of Kiswahili has improved, since it was made a compulsory paper in the 8-4-4
system of education.
Professor J. Kiptoon, the former Vice chancellor of Egerton University claimed
that many undergraduate students in Kenya’s public universities are very poor
in English and they could not even write a simple application for a job in the
language. (12)
The secular colonial rulers viewed education as a method of winning the African
mind, while the Christian missionaries viewed education as a method of winning
the African soul. The European colonial policy makers were interested in
producing some indigenous manpower that can work for them. They were
therefore providing education for modernization rather than an aid for
spiritualization.
Although both the European missionaries and secular colonial rulers differ in the
concept of education, their target was one to fight against Islam. It was under
this circumstance, Kiswahili became involved in the debate between the soul and
the mind, as well as between the spiritually oriented missionaries and the
modernising colonial administrator.
Another factor contributed to the secularisation of Kiswahili was the shifting of
the capital city from Islamised town of Mombasa to Christianise Nairobi.
Although the spread of Kiswahili as a language suffered with this transfer, but
the centrality of Nairobi increased the spread of the Afro- Islamic language on a
national level. (13)
Re-Islamization of Afro-Islamic language:
A number of specific attempts have been made to introduce the re-Islamization
process on various disciplines such as sociology, history, laws, arts and
literature. An organized appeal for the re-Islamization of knowledge was first
made in 1970s. The establishment of the International Institute of Islamic
thought in 1981 followed this.
To implement the re- Islamization of Kiswahili language, can be done through
different channels including media, academic, and practical activities should take
place in the following areas: books and publication, conferences, seminars,
lectures and institutions.
One particular institution which is of central importance and that can form the
major tool for putting the plan into practice is the educational establishment,
begging from primary school to University level. This establishment is the chief
executive instrument of the contemporary education systems.
From the moment of early awareness the children in primary school should be
taught both Roman and Arabic alphabet the original script of this Afro-Islamic
language. This should also educate them how to put into practice what they
have learned through writing and reading.
Another way of re-Islamising Kiswahili is by taking it back to it roots. Literacy
among the Swahili people has been a phenomenon of the mosque and the
Quranic schools. Until the more recent day s of German and British colonization
of East Africa, when western formal schools became the order of the day (and the
scrip changed from Arabic to Roman.) Now re-Islamization process can be done
through the following:
By re- borrowing the concepts, culture, words, poems, idioms from the Arabic
language, which is the Islamic mother tongue. The borrowing system of
Kiswahili from Arabic language sometimes has been almost a balancing act in
vocabulary between Bantu and Arabic language for example:
The words north and south in Kiswahili are probably Bantu (kusini and
kasikazini) while the words for east and west are Arabic –derived (mashariki and
magharibi). The word (uchumi) for economics Bantu, whereas the word (siasa)
for politics is Arabic-derived. The word for monarchy is probably Bantu
(ufalme) whereas the word for republic is derived from Arabic word (jamuhuri).
The word (mungu) for God is Bantu whereas the word for angel is Arabic origin
(malaikah).
To go back to the classical poetry of this language. The oldest Kiswahili poetry is
strongly Islamic in content, mood and orientation. Long Swahili poems such as
“waji waji” “Al-inkishafi” and song of “mwankupona” plus the general poetry o
f “muyaka” etc, are full of Islamic tradition and imaginative. Nevertheless the
poems were also written originally using the Arabic alphabet and preserved up
to date. (14)
Kiswahili can also be re-Islamised by reconsidering the other neglected Swahili
dialects such as (ki-amu) (ki-mtangati) (ki-mrima) (ki-pemba) (ki-pate) etc
instead of using only the so-called stranded Swahili (ki-Unguja dialect). Most of
these neglected dialects have very strong Islamic background that could assist
our young generation to accrue the proper knowledge of Kiswahili as an Afro-
Islamic language.