A coastal settlement inhabited at least since the tenth century, with Plain Ware of the tenth to thirteenth centuries; its stone mosque (about 1500) and famous pillar tombs (mostly eighteenth century) are much later.
On 1 January 1200 it is a village of earth-and-thatch houses.
Who holds it
- Title
- Headman
- Since
- Not pinned
- Confidence
- low
Lord in 1200
Its own headmen.
How things stand that morning
A village under its own headmen.
Charter
None known: Swahili towns had no written charters.
Council
Not recorded.
Communities
Coast people.
Fairs and markets
No fairs; trade follows the monsoon season (ships arrive with the north-east kaskazi from about November and leave with the south-west kusi from about April).
Militia
Not recorded.
Trade and crafts
Fishing, coastal trade, beads.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Excavations of the 1980s, as summarised.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.