Pdf this chapter uses a set of models that emphasize power and social agency to understand state formation in the bunyorokitara region of western. Statebuilding in an age of increasing international involvement 16 3. The east african community eac is an intergovernmental organization composed of six countries in the african great lakes region in eastern africa. State formation political science oxford bibliographies.
Near easteuropenorth africa, east asia, predominant eastwest orientation facilitates the diffusion of. This chapter uses a set of models that emphasize power and social agency to understand state formation in the bunyorokitara region of western uganda and, by way of contrast, on the swahili coast. Back to the patterns of world history to the colonialism in africa during 18501950 capitalism and slavery 1. Pdf the british and french empires in the middle east and. The myriad ways in which religious and ethnic identities interact with state formation in the mena have been amply demonstrated throughout the history of the. The term state formation is most commonly used to describe the longterm processes that led to the genesis of modern political domination in the form of the territorial sovereign state. In absolute geographic terms it covers an area of 1,763,769 sq.
They were responsible for the introduction of the printing press in many countries in africa and in many other parts of the third world, from which the present media systems in africa grew. Commonwealth africaghana 1960, tanzania and malawi. Following the upheavals in the middle east and north africa mena that began in 20102011, a major transformation of the regional state system in place since the end of the first world war seemed likely. Theories of state formation msu department of anthropology. Understanding statebuilding from a political economy perspective. Pdf the origins of the state in east africa researchgate. This is a short history of africa excluding egypt, ethiopia and dutch and british south africa, which are the subjects of separate histories. State formation has been a study of many disciplines of the social sciences for a number of years, so much so that jonathan haas writes that one of the favorite pastimes of social scientists over the course of the past century has been to theorize about the evolution of the worlds great civilizations. As you read the census, the distinction becomes clearer. Understanding statebuilding from a political economy. In a few works, the terms statebuilding, nationbuilding, or institutionbuilding are used synonymously with state formation. Journal of comparative economics harvard university. Everybody is counted and classified as either belonging to a race or belonging to a tribe.
Pdf the british and french empires in the middle east. Apter viewed kwame nkrumah as such a charismatic figure in the preindependence days of the gold coast, and bestowed upon him individual responsibility for the new state of ghana. Request pdf on aug 27, 2007, u ugwu and others published the process of state formation in precolonial east africa. Advances an explanation of the state formation process, including internal differentiation within communities, the manipulation of religion, the acquisition of economic privilege, social stratification, the application of force, and the eventual formation of an elite. As already stated, ghana became the first commonwealth african state to. Eastern africa, part of subsaharan africa comprising two traditionally recognized regions. Twin parallel rift valleys that are part of the east african rift system run through the. Explain the similarities and differences in the processes of state formation from c. This book focuses on how these factors interact with globalization and affect state formation. The state in africa 11 a universal value and repression of the practice of polygamy will not bring about its demise. Infrastructures are material forms that allow for the possibility of exchange over space. This paper will argue that detailed analysis of precolonial africa on its own terms can illuminate our understanding of the way the continent functions. The two most striking highlands are in ethiopia and kenya, respectively. The horn of africa is host to highly varied constituent countries.
Near east europenorth africa, east asia, predominant east west orientation facilitates the diffusion of. This size was due to the rapid expansion through agriculture, annexation of smaller kingdoms and strong formation of a strong and standing army as well as the fortification of the military. A fourth major african state formed in south africa during the 1820s and 1830s was the ndebele state ruled by mzilikazi. In order to prove this assertion i will explore state formation in two case studies, asante and buganda, now parts of ghana and uganda, respectively. Papers presented at a conference held in nakuru, kenya in sept.
The understanding of state formation in africa depends on the analysis of attempts by africans to build political institutions which suit their needs in an era when they have been faced with many constraints. Based on the analysis of this paper, which understands state formation and statebuilding as longterm, tumultuous and conflictridden processes that are also deeply political, we draw the following insights, lessons and recommendations. State formation, religion, and ethnicity in the middle east. State formation in africa 337 of the state, but as the embodiment of a social movement at its base. Unwittingly, many egyptologists therefore also failed to see that the formation of the state in egypt preceded the time when this ideology was. Contentious borders in the middle east and north africa. Anthro 102a december 10, 2010 urbanization and state formation in african civilizations. State formation instabilityis largely explained either by political factionalismin more open. I argue that existence of states in the precolonial period should not be dismissed based on eurocentric ideas about state theory and state formation. The process of state formation in precolonial east africa. Polygamy will only be abolished when its material bases no longer exist.
From state collapse followed by deeply flawed reconstruction in somalia, to militarized isolation in eritrea, and a still fragile developmental state in ethiopia, the tensions implicit in the process of state formation now drive the relationships between the once historically close nations of the. The political evolution of state and society in the arab east, journal of contemporary history 28 1993. State formation and identity in the middle east and north africa. Early states and state formation in africa african studies. Its participation in colonial activities was of greatest relevance in central, southern and eastern africa, having lesser. Historicall or archeological evidence of war is found in the early stages of state formation in mesopotamia, egypt, india, china, japan, greece, rome, northern europe, central africa, polynesia, middle america, peru, and colombia, to name only the most prominent examples. Many scholars note that postcolonial africa has been characterized by the near absence of interstate conflict, a feature fundamental to state formation in western europe. Robinsonjournal of comparative economics 41 20 621 7. Today, east africa comprises the countries of kenya, tanzania tanganyika and zambia, uganda and to a large extent burundi, rwanda, and.
The organisation was founded in 1967, collapsed in 1977, and was revived on 7 july 2000. The two most striking highlands are in ethiopia and kenya, respectively, where large areas reach elevations of 6,500 to 10,000 feet 2,000 to 3,000 metres. East africa is widely claimed to be the smallest of the political regions of africa. This chapter uses a set of models that emphasize power and social agency to understand state formation in the bunyorokitara region of western uganda and, by way of contrast, on the swahili coast of east africa. This size was due to the rapid expansion through agriculture. The organisation was founded in 1967, collapsed in 1977, and was revived on. Trace the western effects on the political development of africa and how slavery was a component in the nature of state formation in subsaharan africa.
They claim that interstate relations have a logic and influence of their own, and that state formation therefore responds. Burundi, kenya, rwanda, south sudan, tanzania, and uganda. They claim that interstate relations have a logic and influence of their. State formation, religion, and ethnicity in the middle. East africa and north and west africa counterterrorism. Political instability in africa where the problem lies and. From the precolonial to the modern day toyin falola and tyler fleming department of history, university of texas at austin, usa. East africa, made up of kenya, tanzania, and uganda. It suggests that the significance of the european empires for the nature of postcolonial sovereignty in the arab world is to be found in the patterns of colonial state formation that emerged from the local dynamics of territorially bounded polities, rather than in french and british grand strategy.
State formation has been a study of many disciplines of the social sciences for a number of years, so much so that jonathan haas writes that one of the favorite pastimes of social scientists. State formation and identity in the middle east and north. For states in the middle east, north africa, and south asia, the arab spring has had different implications and consequences, stemming from the politics of identity and the historical and political processes that have shaped development. Explain the effects of agriculture on social organization in europe from c. Pdf state formation in precolonial subsaharan africa. Some, like the kingdom of kongo near the mouth of the congo or zaire river. Eastern africa consists largely of plateaus and has most of the highest elevations in the continent.
In the postcolonial era, from the late 1950s to the present, the region has experienced several devastating inter state wars, including the ethiopiansomali wars 1964, 197778, 20069, the kenyansomali war 1963, the ugandantanzanian war 197879 and the ethiopianeritrean border war 19982000. While the eurasian and north african pattern during 6001450 was that of the formation of religious civilizations that contained commonwealth of states, the pattern of subsaharan africa in the same period was that of religious kingdom and empire formation. Jan 12, 2018 many scholars note that postcolonial africa has been characterized by the near absence of interstate conflict, a feature fundamental to state formation in western europe. Explain how the beliefs and practices of the predominant religions in europe affected european society. Such accounts ignore or otherwise fail to explain the emergence of particular state structures. Some problems of colonial state formation and its legacy. Urbanization and state formation in african civilizations. Two dimensions to slavery and the slave trade there were two dimensions to slavery and the slave trade in precolonial africa, an. State formation in africa before a d 1880 free essays. For example, the dia reported to the dod oig that in east africa, its assessment that the threat posed by al shabaab and isissomalia in east africa remains high, despite continued u. Theories of contemporary state formation in africa.
Today, east africa comprises the countries of kenya, tanzania tanganyika and zambia, uganda and to a large extent burundi, rwanda, and northern mozambique. When it comes to talking about the ancient african civilizations, both africans and those who spent their lives studying africa are aware of how complex and diverse the african precolonial societies really were. This quarter, al shabaab killed at least 90 people in a truck bombing in mogadishu on december 28. State formation is the process of the development of a centralized government structure in a situation where one did not exist prior to its development. From the precolonial to the modern day toyin falola and tyler fleming encyclopedia of life support systems eolss and along the swahili coastline of east africa, vast trade networks developed.
The east african community eac is an intergovernmental organisation composed of six countries in the african great lakes region in eastern africa. The british and french empires in the middle east and north africa. In southern africa the cokwe of angola, the sena of mozambique and the ngoni people scattered across east, central and southern africa were all familiar with the institution of slavery. Nov 08, 2017 12 jan 2010 first, most of the literature on state formation, which models the construction of political 15 those regions are. Appolonia from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century this study looks at the political and social history of the gold coast in west africa from the early 16th century to the second half of the 18th. Africa, christianity, civilizations, colonialism, imperialism, independence, islam, sahara, transatlantic slave trade. But state formation in tropical africa was not simply a reflex of developing external trade. In the foregoing, i argue in the paper that the view that africa is a continent on drift is a notion, which fails to recognise the positive developments in africa, but also the complex mix of factors at local.
The ultimate emphasis of apters analysis became nkrumahs failure. The rise of city states, city leagues, and territorial states. Explain a historical concept, development, or process. Even more complex are the religious values which, dominated by individual faith and belief, are easily transferred to other material bases, and thus continue. Some of the history of these countries, however, is naturally mentioned in this history of the rest of africa but is kept to the minimum needed to make the rest comprehensible. This paper represents an attempt to study african history on its own terms. In the postcolonial era, from the late 1950s to the present, the region has experienced several devastating interstate wars, including the ethiopiansomali wars 1964, 197778, 20069, the kenyansomali war 1963, the ugandantanzanian war 197879 and the ethiopianeritrean border war 19982000. Toward the end of the first millennium ad, the formation of states began across central chad in the sahelian zone between the desert and the savanna. The study of africa during 6001450 ad has to be divided into two regions. The largest of the bantu polities of the colonial period are conventionally. East africa states formation 14001900 publisher nairobi. Well before 1500 ad, a number of states had come into existence, that had no connection at all with the trade across the sahara. In africa, as in eurasia and the americas, state systems demonstrated continuity, innovation, and diversity and expanded in scope and reach.
Early states and state formation in africa african studies oxford. Explain the causes and consequences of political decentralization in europe from c. Until december 2002, he was professor of politics and international relations at lancaster university. After the 0s, the feudal system, a centralized empire, and theocracy waned. He is a specialist in the politics of ethiopia and the horn of africa, and his books include transformation and continuity in revolutionary ethiopia 1988, africa and the international system 1996, and african guerrillas 1998. Early states and state formation in africa african. Paul kagame, the president of rwanda, is the eacs chairman.
To understand where the modern state is coming from, and what differentiates it from other or earlier state forms, it is useful to look into processes of premodern state formation as well as into works that compare the western european process of modern state formation with other regions or highlight the influences the oriental world had on. Colson goes as far as to state that permanent towns existed only on the east african coast, though ancient towns had existed in ethiopia and probably in. State formation and the politics of land in northeastern. This chapter surveys the impacts of western european empire on the middle east and north africa. In developing this account, we move beyond the state literature.
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