I recognize that the crucial concept of “modernism” is somewhat taken for granted in this essay. Obviously, the term is culturally loaded and begs major historical questions. However, a thorough discussion of the issue in addition to the material already contained herein would extend the length of this essay too greatly for one concise article. Suffice it to say that “modernism,” as it has been used in this article, connotes at least a partly secular approach to education. Educational reformers like Sh. Muhammad Abduh and Sb. al-Amin b. Ali Mazrui, for example, sensed a need for “modern” subjects in the madrasa curriculum, such as geography, science, and mathematics, which ideally were to be taught in such a way as to be detached from any particular “religious” (though not philosophical) view of man and nature. Ultimately, such a reform was seen as needed, not to accept a Christian Western epistemology, but as one means for Muslims to successfully resume competition with the West in technological and military areas.

¹ Several examples can be cited. Among these are those of ibn Hanbal, ibn Taymiyya, and alGhazali, as well as the famous Almoravid and Almohad movements in North Africa and Spain.

² Actually, of course, these movements and sets of ideas were often quite distinct from each other and the historical developments which produced them were considerably more complex than presently allowed for in this essay. A more ambitious discussion of Islamic reform in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, for example, would have to take account of regional histories and the overriding factor of regional antipathy toward the Ottoman tanzimat.

³ The Journal of African History alone has run an extensive literature on West Africa in the past decade. For example: Curtin, P. D., “Jihad in West Africa: Early Phases and Inter-Relations in Mauretania and Senegal,” XII, I (1971), 11–24;Google ScholarKlein, M. A., “Social and Economic Factors in the Muslim Revolution in the Senegambia,” XIII, 3 (1972), 419–442;Google ScholarLamin, Sanneh, “The Origins of Clericalism in West African Islam,” XVII, 1 (1976), 49–72;Google ScholarSteward, C. C., “Southern Saharan Scholarship and the Bilād al-Sūdān,” XVII, 1 (1976), 73–94;Google Scholar and Willis, J. R., “The Torodbe Clerisy: A Social View,” XIX, 2 (1978), 195–212, to name a few. No attention has gone to East Africa.Google Scholar

⁴ Nimtz, A., “The Role of the Muslim Sufi Order in Political Change: An Over-View and Microanalysis from Tanzania,” Ph.D. diss., Univ. of Indiana (1973);Google Scholarel-Zein, A. H., “The Sacred Meadows: A Structural Analysis of Religious Symbolism in an East African Town,” Ph.D. diss. University of Chicago (1972), since published under the same title (Evanston, 1974).Google Scholar

⁵ Salim, A. I., The Swahili-Speaking Peoples of Kenya's Coast, 1895–1965 (Nairobi, 1973), pp. 159–65.Google Scholar

⁶ See A. S. Farsy's treatment of Sh. al-Amin and the influence he had over his disciples in “Baadhi ya Wanavyuoni wa Kishafli wa Mashariki ya Afrika” (unpublished manuscript, nd.). pp. 42–43.

⁷ Doubtless the greatest modernist influence before Sh. al-Amin stemmed from the baraza of Sayyid Mansab b. Ali Abu Bakr b. Salim. Most notable among these early reform influences was one Umar Lutfi who chose not only to confine his convictions to his circle of friends, but to “give lessons” involving modernist ideas from Egypt in Zanzibar's Jumaa Mosque. There, according to Sh. Farsy, he was especially influential among the young men of Zanzibar who had grown impatient with old ways and ideas and who hungered for “progress.” Interview, Mombasa: Farsy, A. S. (03 and 12 05 1975);Google Scholar and Farsy, , “Baadhi ya Wanavyuoni”, p. 8. Additional information collected in interviews, Mombasa: Yahya Ali Omar (27 Jan. 1975); Lamu: Harith Swaleh Maawi (15 April 1975).Google Scholar

⁸ Al-Amin, b. Ali Mazrui, Dini ya Islamu (Mombasa, 1939), p. 33: interview, Mombasa: Muhammad Sulaiman Mazrui (22 Jan. 1975).Google Scholar

⁹ Albert, Hourani, Arabic Thought in the Liberal Age, 1798–1939 (London, 1970), pp. 151–52. According to Abduh and Rida, what often was in the “public interest” was that which permitted modern technical innovation and experimentation and, therefore, allowed Muslims a higher standard of living.Google Scholar

¹⁰ Interview, Mombasa, : Omar, Y. A. (13 01 1975).Google Scholar

¹¹ Ibid.

¹² For a fuller description of “traditional Islam” and religious leadership in the coastal towns, see Pouwels, R. L., “Islam and Islamic Leadership in the Coastal Communities of Eastern Africa, 1700 to 1914,” Ph.D diss., University of California, Los Angeles (1979), pp. 142–351.Google Scholar

¹³ lnterview, Mombasa: Muhammad Ahmad Matano (28 Feb. and 13 March 1975). Interviews, Lamu: Sayyid Bahasani (14 April 1975) and Muhammad Abdallah Bakathir (15 April 1975).

¹⁴ lnteresting examples concerning the applications to which oral traditions could be put arose in land ownership cases at Mombasa. See Civil Appeal 12 of 1913, High Court of Mombasa, Kenya National Archives (hereafter K.N.A.), DC/MSA/3/1, 88−109; Civil Case #60 of 1913, K.N.A. DC/MSA/3/1, 110−26; Lamu Political Records, Vol.11, Sec. XV, under “Land,” K.N.A., DC/LAM/3/2, 173.

¹⁵ lnterview, Lamu: Sayyid Bahasani (14 03 1975).Google ScholarLyne, R., Zanzibar in Contemporary Times (London, 1905), p. 239.Google Scholar

¹⁶ lnterview, Mombasa: Abdallah Salih Farsy (7 Feb. 1975).

¹⁷ Pouwels, “Islam and Islamic Leadership,” pp. 425–475.

¹⁸ The most blatant example that can be cited is the policy that required hut taxes from those recognized as “Africans” while none was collected from the “Arabs.” See, e.g., the reports of Reddie, P. C., K.N.A. DC/LAM/1/7, 8–9, and K.N.A. DC/LAM/3/2, 70–71.Google Scholar

¹⁹ See Hourani, , Arabic Thought, p. 271Google Scholar, where mention is made of the visit of the Pan-Arabist, al-Kawakibi, to East Africa. It seems unlikely that Kawakibi would have chosen to visit an out- of-the-way spot like East Africa unless he was in contact with a faction that he believed was sympathetic to his views. Also, the racial issue reached a boiling point by the 1920s. See, e.g., Kindy, Sh. Hyder, Life and Politics in Mombasa (Nairobi, 1972), pp. 21, 26–45Google Scholar, where this competition is illustrated. A significant aspect of this dispute involved questions about the racial and ethnic background of the Prophet Muhammad. Al-Amin seems to have been involved in this issue, taking the Arab perspective, of course, as indicated in questions he raised concerning the color of the Prophet in Hidayatu'l-Itfaki (Mombasa, ca. 1945), p. 15.Google Scholar

²⁰ Several examples from the nineteenth century can be cited. A poem entitled “Wapungaji” (Against Exorcists), written by Sh. Muhya ad-Din al-Qahtani, along with a similar poem by Sh. Abdu'l-Aziz b. Abdu'l-Ghani al-Amawy can be found in Farsy, , “Baadhi ya Wanavyuoni,” pp. 4, 14–15, respectively.Google Scholar Also, interviews at Mombasa revealed that Sh. Ali b. Abdallah Mazrui and Sayyid Ahmad bin Sumayt both were outspoken critics of dance competitions and tariqa activities. …” which appeared in al-Islah in 30 05 1932) cited herein date from the period 1930–31.Google Scholar

²³ Al-Amin, b. Ali Mazrui, “ice, Ni Kweli Dini Ndiyo Iwarudishayo Watu Ngumu?” in Uwongozi, p. 51.Google Scholar

²⁴ Al-Amin, b. Ali Mazrui, “Kutizamia,” p. 20.Google Scholar

²⁵ lnterviews, Mombasa, : Abdallah, Salih Farsy (22 and 24 02. 17).Google Scholar Also, Farsy, , “Baadhi ya Wanavyuoni,” p. 9.Google Scholar

²⁶ Interviews Mombasa, : Omar, Y. A. (23 and 26 12. 1974).Google Scholar

²⁷ Interviews, Mombasa, : Omar, Y. A. (23 and 24 12., 1974);Google ScholarFarsy, A. S. (7 02Google ScholarFarsy, , “Baadhi ya Wanavyuoni,” p. 10.Google Scholar

²⁸ lnterview, Mombasa, : Farsy, A. S. (03 1975).Google ScholarFarsy, , “Baadhi ya Wanavyuoni,” pp. 6–9.Google Scholar

²⁹ See, e.g., SirRichard, Burton's remarks on coastal erudition in his Zanzibar: City, Island, and Coast, Vol. 1 (London, 1872), pp. 421–423;Google Scholar and First Footsteps in East Africa, 2d ed. (London, 1966), p. 71.Google Scholar

³⁰ It would be a mistake, however, to assume that only the upper classes were thus affected. Two informants, especially, mentioned Swahilis who studied abroad or who at least studied the written sciences under Arab ulama on the coast. Interview, Mombasa, : Myhammad, A. Matano (27 02 1975);Google ScholarFarsy, , “Baadhi ya Wanavyuoni, pp. 6, 9;Google Scholar also, interview: Mombasa, (17 02 1975).Google Scholar

³¹ Becker, C. A., “Materialen zur Kenntnis der Islam in Deutsch-Ostafrika,” Der Islam, 11 (1911)Google Scholar, ed. and trans. Martin, B. G., “Materials for the Understanding of Islam in German East Africa,” Tanzania Notes and Records, 68 (1968), 16.Google Scholar

³² For discussions of these four individuals, see the aforementioned Zein, . “The Sacred Meadows,” Nimtz, “Muslim Sufi Order,” and Farsy, “Baadhi ya Wanavyuoni,” pp. 25–53.Google Scholar

³³ SirArthur, Hardinge, Report on the East African Protectorate, 1898 (London, 1899), pp. 35–36.Google Scholar

³⁴ lnterviews, Mombasa, : Athman, b. Abdu'r-Rahman Saqqaf (02. 1975)Google Scholar, Matano, Muhammad Ahmad and Abdallah, Barua Msegeju (20 03 1975).Google Scholar

³⁵ lnterview, Mombasa, : Matano, M. A. (20 02 1975).Google Scholar It should be explained that British colonial policy in East Africa aimed for the projection of British power and interests behind the legitimizing facade of the Busaidi Sultanate of Zanzibar. On one hand, this required the total subversion of local elites, like the Mazrui in Mombasa and the Maawi in Lamu, to the Sultanate. On the other hand, however, effective Busaidi power was undermined and replaced by a European bureaucracy which functioned in the Sultan's name as the real “government” in Zanzibar. Thus, faced with a popular insurrection against Mazrui prestige and influence at Mombasa, the British District Officer was only too happy to accommodate Swahili demands while propping up the position of cooperative Busaidi liwalis like Salim b. Khalfan. For details, see Pouwels, , “Islam and Islamic Leadership,” pp. 426–434, 517–535;Google ScholarSalim, A. I., “Sir Ali b. Salim” in King, K. and Salim, A. I., eds., Kenya Historical Biographies (Nairobi, 1971), pp. 112–129.Google Scholar

³⁶ Interviews, Mombasa: Abdu'r-Rahman Saqqaf, Athman b. (02 1975);Google ScholarAthman Yahya, Ali Omar (2112 1974).Google Scholar

³⁷ lnterviews, Mombasa: Omar, Y. A. (18 and 23 12 1974).Google Scholar

³⁸ Interview, Mombasa: Athman, b. Abdu'r-Rahman Saqqaf (02 1975). Note, however, that the exact identity of these “Arabs” is unknown.Google Scholar

³⁹ lnterviews, Mombasa: Omar, Y. A. (26 and 28 12 1974).Google Scholar

⁴⁰ Al-Amin, , “Kutizamia,”, p. 20.Google Scholar

⁴¹ Opening of railways inland was at the root of the sudden rise of up-country settlement of Dar es-Salaam and Mombasa after 1902. In these cities young men could find work as stevedores, porters, railway workers, policemen, clerks, servants, and public works officers. See Henderson, W. O., “German East Africa, 1884–1918,” History of East Africa, Vol. IIGoogle Scholar, Harlow, V. and Chilver, E. M., eds. (Oxford, 1965), pp. 149–152;Google ScholarPearce, F. B., Zanzibar (London, 1920), p. 242.Google Scholar

⁴² Al-Amin, b. Ali Mazrui, “Baraka ya Umoja na Ukorofi wa Kutangukana,” in Uwongozi, p. 5.Google Scholar

⁴³ 1t was only much later that the idea of a coastal nationalism erupted briefly before independence in the notorious mwambao episode. See Kindy, , Life and Politics, pp. 184–192.Google Scholar

⁴⁴ Al-Amin, b. Ali Mazrui, “Jamiatu'l-Islam,” in Uwongozi, p. 13Google Scholar, and “Mapenzi ya Watan,” in ibid., p. 33.

⁴⁵ Al-Amin, b. Ali Mazrui, “Fahari ya Watu ni Kwa Vitendo Vyao,”in Uwongozi, pp. 8–9, and “Jee ni Kweli,” p. 50.Google Scholar

⁴⁶ Al-Amin, b. Ali Mazrui, “Khatari Nyeusi,” in Uwongozi, p. 32.Google Scholar

⁴⁷ Ibid., pp. 32–33.

⁴⁸ Wrigley, C. C., “Kenya: The Patterns of Economic Life, 1902–45,” History of East Africa, Vol. II (London, 1965), pp. 223–224;Google Scholar W. O. Henderson, “German East Africa, 1884–1918,” Mid-East Journal ibid., pp. 149–152; Cooper, F., Plantation Slavery on the East Coast of Africa (New Haven, Conn., 1977), pp. 55 and 131.Google Scholar

⁴⁹ See el-Zein, , “The Sacred Meadows,” pp. 102–104;Google Scholar and Cooper, , Plantation Slavery. pp. 92–93, for examples.Google Scholar

⁵⁰ See Bujra, J., “Conflict and Conflict Resolution in a Bajuni Village,” Ph.D. diss.,University of London (1968), pp. 60–80;Google Scholarel-Zein, , “The Sacred Meadows,” pp. 93–95;Google ScholarAnderson, J. N. D., Islamic Law in Africa (London, 1970), p. 90.Google Scholar Also, interview, Lamu, : Hen, Salim and bti, Amina. Salim, (17 05 1975).Google Scholar

⁵¹ el-Zein, , “The Sacred Meadows,” pp. 120–121.Google Scholar

⁵² Al-Amin, , “Jee, ni Kweli,” p. 48.Google Scholar

⁵³ Ibid., p. 48.

⁵⁴ Ibid., pp. 50, 51.

⁵⁵ Al-Amin, , “Kutizamia,” p. 19.Google Scholar

⁵⁶ Al-Amin, , “Baraka ya Umoja,” p. 4, and “Kutizamia,” p. 20.Google Scholar

⁵⁷ Al-Amin, , Dini1 ya Islamu, pp. 2–14, 59–60.Google Scholar

⁵⁸ Al-Amin, , “Jee, ni Kweli,” p. 49;Google ScholarDini ya Islamu, p. 33.Google Scholar

⁵⁹ Al-Amin, b. Ali Mazrui, “Ndiya ya Kuzuiliya Maasiya,” in Uwongozi, pp. 34–36.Google Scholar

⁶⁰ Al-Amin, b. Ali Mazrui, Kufanya Madrasa Yetu ni Ndia ya Kuhifadhi Dini,” in Uwongozi, p. 27.Google Scholar