Commercial
contacts refer to the integration and interconnection of different people from
different places where by goods or commodities are exchanged. Commercial
contacts in Tanganyika and Zanzibar islands began in 6th century,
and societies, which involved in the commercial contacts from Tanganyika, were
Nyamwezi from Tabora, Mwela from Lindi, Bagamoyo, Hehe from Iringa. The most
commodities from Tanganyika to abroad were Ivory, Gold, Animal skins, iron and
raw materials from farms as well as slaves. The imported goods were clothes,
glass, beads, guns and gun powders as well as food staffs. The following were
the factors for the commercial contacts in Tanzanian communities.
The
existence of more efficiently organized states in East Africa that had an
active interest in promoting trade. The states such as Nyamwezi, Hehe, Pale,
and Kilwa were so eager in interaction with the foreigners such as Arabs and
Portugues in developing and controlling trade, their existence was so
consistent and influenced very much the introduction of commercial contacts in
Tanzanian communities[1].
The
caravan routes, the caravan trade of the nineteenth century opened up the
interior, bringing many African peoples into the world economy as suppliers of
ivory or slaves or producers of food or local products that provisioned
caravans. The pioneers of all the major routes were African, Nyamwezi caravans
from central Tanzania, reaching the coast about 1800, developed the more important
route from their homeland to Bagamoyo on the mainland directly opposite
Zanzibar. Kamba ivory traders from central Kenya opened a route that ended at
Mombasa[2].
Apart from the factors for commercial contacts there are also impacts of these
commercial contacts as follow;
Developments
of towns and cities, town like Kilwa, Bagamoyo, Ujiji, were most developed due
the practicing of trades[3].
These towns were the centers of trades that is why they were easily developed
because people from different areas met in these towns for the aim of
exchanging their commodities.
Emergence
of intermarriages as well as growth of Swahili language[4].
Foreigner traders from different countries get into marriages with African
traders as a result of commercial contacts, the consequences of this was the
emergence of mulattoes and half cast people and development of Swahili language
in the coast of East Africa. New words such as Sahil, meza, leso, were
introduced in Swahili language.
Growth
of technology, the operation of commercial contacts in Tanzanian communities
led to the growth and development of technology, the technology was diffused
from foreigner traders to Tanzanian traders. Africans began to make different
things from iron such as hoes, knives, axes, arrows and pangas. As a result of this,
there was the increase of productions due to the application of such
technology.
Conclusively,
the growth of some city states, emergence of strong leaders and traders,
increase of productions, growth of population and the integration of African
economy into the world economy were also the impacts of the trades such Long
distance trade, Trans Saharan trade and Trans triangular trade. Those trades
played a significant factor to the development of African continent in general.
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