Rethinking Materiality on Social Identities: Archaeological Perspective of Thimlich Ohinga and Gedi Ruins, Kenya from 1000ce -1900ce
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Date
2023
Authors
Muthegethi, D. Maina
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
kenyatta university
Abstract
This research explores the social identities of Thimlich Ohinga and Gede archaeological sites which are juxtaposed at the lacustrine environment in Lake Victoria and the Indian Ocean, respectively. The site of Thimlich Ohinga was roughly occupied from the middle of the second Millennium to the current era. At the same time, Gede had a continuous occupation from the tenth century onwards for over six hundred years before it was finally abandoned in the seventeenth century. Although the two sites are different in terms of their history, development trajectory and complexities, they offer a platform for examining how social identities were expressed and their implication on material records. The general objective of this study was to explore how social identities, especially gender and social hierarchies, were expressed and changed through time and space in Thimlich Ohinga and Gede archaeological sites. To that end, the specific objectives of the study were: to examine the materiality of gender identities; to investigate how gender was expressed in material form in Thimlich Ohinga and Gede; to explore how social hierarchies were expressed in material form in Thimlich Ohinga and Gede; to explore continuity and discontinuities of gender and social hierarchies in Thimlich Ohinga and Gede.The study adopted structural functionalism and Social Identity Theory (SIT) theories in conceptualizing material that remains in relation to social identities. The feminist theoretical framework was adapted as the basis of minimizing generalization as well as making gender visible in the interpretation process. Overall, processual, post-processual, and middle-range frameworks were employed in collecting and subsequent data analysis. Furthermore, the study used an exploratory and descriptive research design since this is a relatively new area of inquiry and also entailed to ascertain certain materials to specific social identities respectively. The study aimed to explore gender and social hierarchies’ signatures in the material record. To achieve that, extensive surveys were carried out in Thimlich Ohinga and Gede archaeological sites. Also, an examination of the cultural materials of both sites stored in various museums was undertaken. Besides examination of already excavated materials, an extensive excavation of Gede archaeological sites was carried out to supplement archival materials. Lastly, an extensive ethnographic study was undertaken of contemporary Luo and Swahili communities as the basis of making inferences and analogies concerning archaeological materials data. Key findings show that since Gede was more complex, gender and social hierarchies’ signatures were more visible as compared to Thimlich Ohinga. Furthermore, gender and social hierarchies were fluid and responsive to factors such as diversification of subsistence strategies, cultural diffusion and intensification of trade. Overall, this study reiterates the importance of employing multivariate approaches in examining social identities, especially gender and social hierarchies in archaeological inquiry. Most importantly, this study showed that methods advocated by processual archaeology of exploring social structures, including gender, are reliable methods. However, employing perspectives advocated by post-processual archaeologists and insights suggested by feminist’s aid in minimizing generalizations that often plague past archaeological interpretation. This study recommends that more studies methods, such as osteology, should be incorporated in future while examining social identities in the archaeological record. This trajectory is insightful, especially in mortuary data analyses. That is, it opens a path of correlating material cultures with the biological sex and social status of individuals hence opening an avenue of understanding how such identities were expressed in material form and subsequent impact on social landscapes
Description
A Dissertation Submitted to the School of Law, Arts and Social Sciences in Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Award of Degree of Doctor of Philosophy of Kenyatta University
Keywords
Social Identities, Archaeological, Thimlich Ohinga, Gedi Ruins, Kenya, 1000ce -1900ce