Lacustrine Villages: Legacies of the Transatlantic Slave Trade

Lacustrine village of Nzulezu, Ghana. 

    

    The transatlantic slave trade was an economically fueled global phenomenon strife with ethnic violence that irreversibly altered the quintessential way of life for many African communities. For this discussion, we will focus on Dahomey (now Benin), an area that played a prominent role in the supply of captives for enslavement in the Americas, and their internal efforts to resist such traffic through changes in their built environment. During the era of the transatlantic slave trade, Lake Nokoué and the swamplands surrounding it provided an ideal refuge for various migrants who came to constitute a homogenous ethnic group, that of the Tofinu. At this time, isolation and inaccessibility equated to safety from the raids of slavers; as consequence, many of the region’s people found safe haven by constructing lacustrine or waterborne villages. 

Lacustrine village on Lake Nokoué

    This defensive strategy entailed the relocation of entire villages to the edges of lakes, whereby access to said village could only be done through the use of canoes. This lack of accessibility resulted in a village that was more adeptly secured against outside forces that were unfamiliar with the lacustrine way of life, such that these villages became largely unattractive to raiders due to their decentralized nature where in many cases a canoe is needed to visit a neighboring household. The shift to waterborne villages was indeed radical as it necessitated the learning of new architectural practices while simultaneously embracing new forms of subsistence, as fishing virtually became the only form of viable economic activity. The existence of lacustrine villages, a rather extremist response, across West Africa (from Benin to at least western Ghana) elucidates the prolific nature of raiders and the lengths that they would go to in order to capture viable specimens for their trade. 

Project ideas: 

1. Santeria: For one of my project ideas, I would like to explore Santeria, a regional religion from Cuba whose inception dates back to the transatlantic slave trade. Santeria (also known as the Regla de Ocha) is a result of syncretism between Roman Catholicism and the traditional Yoruba religion of West Africa. The project would focus on the salience of Santeria in Cuba, along with discussion relating to the temporal survival of the religion. How did Santeria develop? Why has Santeria survived? What aspects of the religion have made it conducive to survival? Are there certain tenants that have made the religion more attractive than traditional Roman Catholicism? How has the religion been transmitted intergenerationally? Are there regional differences in Santeria? How has Santeria responded to shifts in society, such as migration? The project would take the form of an interview, supplemented by a podcast of my findings along with a physical model of a typical shrine. I would interview either a Padrino, a Santero priest, or a believer of the religion. 

2. Afro-Brazilian Architecture: For my second project idea, I would like to explore Afro-Brazilian architecture, with special attention to the West African coast. The project would seek to track the development of this idiosyncratic neo-baroque style as a product of displacement. How did Afro-Brazilians use architecture to define their shifting identity in light of both their physical and psychological displacement? What was the reaction of the natives to this architectural style? How did the architectural style intrinsically shift native social norms? For this project, I would build a physical model of a neo-baroque structure. This would be supplemented by a podcast of my findings.