Around 1 BC Indonesian (Javanese or Austronesian if you preffer) sailors reached Madagascar and established a colony there, one of the first overseas colonies. With them they brought theirs culture and language. Today, Madagascar still speaks an Austronesian language.
Now, from that base they traded with Mozambique and other peoples of South East Africa. There are some cultural elements that seems to come from Indonesia in the region, particularly the marimba. I wonder how much these outsiders influenced Africa, besides musical instruments.
Any comments on the state of the investigation in this obscure historical event?
Good question…I like to amaze my geography students with a map showing the extent of Austronesian languages, from Madagascar clear across to Easter Island.* Madagascar looks close to Africa, but if you look at the ocean currents, it’s actually not too surprising that it was populated in large part by folks to its east rather than to its west.
I have nothing substantial to add to the OP. You mention the marimba…if what you say is true, that is very cool.
I would recommend that you request the mods to change your thread title, though, and replace “Indonesian” with “Austronesian”. It’s very confusing otherwise. Indonesia is a 20th century nation-state, nothing more.
(*Yet, the DIVERSITY of Austronesian languages sits squarely in and around Taiwain, their probable place of origin.)
I read a book years ago that speaks about lot of influences of the Austronesians on Africa. It is called “Phantom Voyagers” by Phillip Dick-Read. In that book he speak about lots of influences of these sailors into the East Coast of Africa and beyond. Particularly in Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
It is a fascinating book, but a bit especulative. The only confirmed influences is in musical instruments, although the evidence is not accepted by all the schollars.
You can read something here
http://www.robertdickread.co.uk/tag/africa-and-indonesia/
all i’ve read about is the second millenium inter-action between two dutch colonies: batavia (indonesia) and the cape of good hope (south africa.)
The author of that book as no academic qualifications whatsoever, and I can’t find any serious references to this theory (which has become the author’s singular obsession) besides an article in a journal from 1934.
While of course Austronesians had an influence from their trade networks and much of Africa has been a dynamic, internationally connected place for ages, I think it’s safe to say that the theory that all accomplishments in Africa come from Austronesians can be put in the same bin as the thoroughly discredited claims that Europeans/Persians/Chinese/Aliens/Anyone-but-Africans built Great Zimbabwe. Just like some Afrocentrists want to claim all great things for Africa, there are apparently bizarro Afrocentrists who will do the opposite.
If you are cherry-picking examples, you can find “astonishing connections” between any two given cultures. Australian Aborigines and Fulani both require young men to live away from society for a set of time- OH WOW! Peruvians and Greeks both like panpipes- OMG!
But we know what an African place looks like with heavy Austronesian influence- it looks like Madagascar. We don’t see Madagascar and then shades of Malagasy culture coming out of it as Austronesian culture spreads and mixes- we see Madagascar and a whole lot of African places that don’t resemble Madagascar much at all. Furthermore, we have pretty good ideas of how ideas DID spread through Africa.
Yes, the man has no academic qualifications but the book is interesting. The part on musical instruments makes a lot of sense.
, and that part is a theory which was created by serious musicians.