ABSTRACT
The ethnic and economic origins of the Swahili towns are subjects of continuing controversy. The model of Asiatic colonization has been largely rejected by historians and archaeologists (Horton 1984; Nurse & Spear 1985; Horton 1987a; Pouwels 1987) but the identification of the particular African group that was involved has not been satisfactorily concluded (and see Wright, Ch. 40, this volume). For such identification two classes of archaeological evidence are particularly useful: pottery and faunal assemblages. The pottery of the early Swahili communities (called Tana tradition) can be compared to early and pre-iron age forms from the interior and general affinities suggested. Pottery can however be traded and indeed made by specialist groups that may not be entirely representative of the society as a whole.
