Routes of Interaction in the Historical Sultanate of Tadjoura (Djibouti): Results of Two Geoarchaeological and Ethnohistorical Research Seasons in 2023 and 2024

Jacob Hardt; Wolbert Smidt; Kristina Pfeiffer; Mariam Abdoulkader; Ibrahim Osman Ali; Antonia Umlauf

doi:10.34780/42s5am91

Routes of Interaction in the Historical Sultanate of Tadjoura (Djibouti): Results of Two Geoarchaeological and Ethnohistorical Research Seasons in 2023 and 2024

in: Entangled Africa: Intra-African Relations Between Rain Forest Mediterranean from Around 4,000 BCE to 1,500 CE

https://doi.org/10.34780/wwt5ah24

List of Contributors

Jacob Hardt [Author] https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8485-2232
Wolbert Smidt [Author] https://orcid.org/0009-0007-5672-2722
Kristina Pfeiffer [Author] https://orcid.org/0009-0008-8350-0882
Mariam Abdoulkader [Author]
Ibrahim Osman Ali [Author]
Antonia Umlauf [Author]

Synopsis

We report on the results of two geoarchaeological and ethnohistorical field surveys in northern Djibouti (prefecture of Tadjoura) carried out in 2023 and 2024. Three areas were selected for further investigation: Loubatanlé, a crater at wadi A͑ sa Fa ͑o, and Boli. We introduce the geomorphological setting of the sites and put the archaeological structures found at the surface in spatial context. We compare recovered pottery with assemblages from other sites in Djibouti. Together with morphological comparisons of tumuli or ceramics, radiocarbon ages provide an initial insight into the chronologies of these sites. We briefly discuss possible (historical) functions of the sites in the frame of interaction routes, trade relations, and possible trading goods such as incense.