The Lamu Archipelago is located in the

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by ...

close to the northern coast of

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

, to which it belongs. The islands lie between the towns of

Lamu Lamu or Lamu Town is a small town on Lamu Island, which in turn is a part of the Lamu Archipelago in Kenya. Situated by road northeast of Mombasa that ends at Mokowe Jetty, from where the sea channel has to be crossed to reach Lamu Island ...

and Kiunga, near the Coast Province. It is a part of Lamu District. The largest of the islands are Pate Island, Manda Island and

Lamu Island Lamu Island is a port, city, and island just off the shore of Kenya in the Indian Ocean approximately 150 miles from Mombasa. It is a part of the East African country of Kenya. Lamu was founded in the 12th Century. Lamu is one of the longest esta ...

. Smaller islands include Kiwayu, which lies in the Kiunga Marine National Reserve, and

Manda Toto Manda may refer to: Places * Kafr Manda, Arab town in the Lower Galilee * Manda Upazila, an upazila in the Division of Rajshahi, Bangladesh * Manda, Kale, a village in Burma * Manda, Guinea, a town in the Labé Region * Manda, Jammu, India, a v ...

. Today the largest town in the archipelago is Lamu Town, on

. The town is on the

World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

. The archipelago contains several archaeological/historical sites of great significance, such as

Takwa The Takwa settlement is situated on the south side of Manda Island, in the Lamu District in the coastal province of Kenya. They are the ruins of a town which was abandoned around the 18th century. The Takwa site can be easily reached from Lamu ...

and Manda Town (both on Manda Island) and Shanga (on Pate Island). Some have been partially excavated in later years, shedding important new light on Swahili history and culture. There are some other accounts that mention Chinese ships of

Zheng He Zheng He (; 1371–1433 or 1435) was a Chinese mariner, explorer, diplomat, fleet admiral, and court eunuch during China's early Ming dynasty. He was originally born as Ma He in a Muslim family and later adopted the surname Zheng conferr ...

's fleet sinking near

in Kenya in 1415. Survivors settled on the island and married local women. This has been proven recently by archaeological work on the island that has resulted in the finding of evidence to suggest this connection. Further DNA testing done on some residents show that they indeed have Chinese ancestors.

References

Bibliography

*Allen, James de Vere: ''Lamu, with an appendix on Archaeological finds from the region of Lamu by H. Neville Chittick.'' Nairobi: Kenya National Museums. * * *Martin, Chryssee MacCasler Perry; Martin, Esmond Bradley: "Quest for the Past: An Historical Guide to the Lamu Archipelago" Marketing and Publishing Ltd., 1973.

Gallery

File:TakwaArch.jpg, The 16th century Takwa Ruins on Manda Island File:Kiwayuusmall.JPG, The west side of

Kiwayuu Island Kiwayuu (alternative spelling Kiwayu) is a small island in the eastern part of the Lamu Archipelago in the Kiunga Marine National Reserve in Kenya. Its main economic activity is fishing, and there is one school, no clinic and one well on the ...

Lamu County Coast Province Coastal islands of Kenya Archaeology of Eastern Africa {{CoastKE-geo-stub