September 24, 2026 Dataset Open Access

MPRINTLAMU-NDAU-021

Anne Bang; Scott Reese

MPRINTLAMU-NDAU-021

General Ref/Shelf Mark: MPRINTLAMU-NDAU-021
Collection of original material: NDAU
Owner/Custodian: Abdulrahman Muhammad Bana Yusuf
Description of Content: Miscellaneous work
Modality of text: Manuscript
Text Arrangement: Multi-text item
Physical Description of item: Multitext manuscript containing an aglomeration of scripts likely plucked from separate volumes and bound as a single collection. Various script styles, thematic content, as well as different inks. Some folios are decorated in the traditional red and black format associated with Lamu, while others have none. All folios have become brittle, and indicate severe decay and damage from silverfish.
Physical characteristics (folios): 122
State of completion: Incomplete
Primary Language of object: Arabic
Script of object: Arabic
Keywords: Miscellaneous
Location of original material: NDAU
Location where copied: NDAU

Collection description

The MPRINTLAMU shelf mark introduces a broad range of manuscript texts (and one printed book) from the Lamu archipelago. Each group is named after the village, town, or island where it is found. The island of Ndau, at the northern end of the Lamu archipelago, Pate and Siyu villages on Pate Island, and Matondoni, a village on Lamu Island, are included in this list. The texts date from the late 18th century to the early 20th century and cover a wide range of subjects, including medicine and science, magic, poetry, agriculture, law, genealogy, and Sufism, among others. Some of the manuscripts are held in mosque libraries, while others are in private homes.

Among the unique objects in this collection are Quranic manuscripts produced in Siyu and mawlid texts from 18th-century Pate. These texts increase the Swahili corpus available from this early time period.

TIFF files

High-quality TIFF images are available for researchers upon request. Please send an e-mail to manuscript-cultures@uni-hamburg.de, include your name, institution and specify which MPRINT images you need and indicate their intended purpose. Your request will be reviewed as quickly as possible.

TIFF files

High-quality TIFF images are available for researchers upon request. Please send an e-mail to manuscript-cultures@uni-hamburg.de, include your name, institution and specify which MPRINT images you need and indicate their intended purpose. Your request will be reviewed as quickly as possible.