We follow Salama binti Rubeya’s life in the 1910s, as remembered by her daughter, Salha Hamdani, and her granddaughter, Dr Ida Hadjivayanis. These memories, some drawn directly from recorded interviews, others recalled through family stories, create an intimate portrait of a resilient woman whose life carried the weight of history.
Marriage. A word that once meant nothing but love to me: noble, selfless, pure. As I grew older, I began to see the cracks in that simplicity. Marriage, I’ve come to realise, is layered, complicated, and never just about romance.
Reading Salama Binti Rubeya: Memories from the Swahili Littoral by Dr Ida Hadjivayanis and Bi. Salha Hamdani deepened that understanding. In its pages, marriage becomes more than love. It is a symbol of freedom, independence, and a transition from girlhood into womanhood.
We follow Salama binti Rubeya’s life in the 1910s, as remembered by her daughter, Salha Hamdani, and her granddaughter, Dr Ida Hadjivayanis. These memories, some drawn directly from recorded interviews, others recalled through family stories, create an intimate portrait of a resilient woman whose life carried the weight of history.
“Salama’s narrative lets us into a world that once was and allows us to see a retelling of a certain event in history through the eyes of a woman.”
East African history has often been recorded by academics, with little space for the voices of ordinary citizens. This book shows that powerful narratives can also emerge from women like Salama, whom Dr Ida refers to as “an unassuming woman” in the coastal story.
The book bridges formal history with lived memory, demonstrating how family stories intersect with those of scholars.
It does not reject the work of historians but complements it by placing Salama’s memories alongside academic research. In this way, it demonstrates how personal experience can add depth to written history, providing readers with a fuller understanding of the past.
Salama’s childhood highlights how gender roles defined daily life. As a girl in Kilwa, she was free to move within the world of women, listening to her grandfather’s conversations with guests until age forced her behind a curtain. It was from that hidden corner that she first saw Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Hamdani, the man who would become her husband and the father of her children.
“She was free to roam the world of women, indoors, but it is through a curtain that she gets glimpses of the world of men. To her, it feels almost revolutionary because she did get to hear more than what most women around her ever did.”
Within this world, women were barred from school and excluded from social life unless they were wives or accompanied by men. Marriage and divorce became some of the few routes to freedom and self-determination. It was not unusual for women to marry multiple times without shame.
Salama’s mother, Binti Mbwana, remarried after her husband's death. As a widow, she lacked the liberty of a married woman or even a divorcee.
“Salama believes that she remarried because she missed her social life and the liberty that came with marriage rather than falling in love with the man.”
Stories like Salama Binti Rubeya's show how marriage has evolved. Today, it carries a different meaning, raising questions about whether those changes have improved or worsened it. This makes the book a compelling read for anyone interested in social issues.
Race, identity, class, and ethnicity also run through these pages. When Salama moved to Zanzibar, a cosmopolitan port shaped by the Indian Ocean trade, she encountered rigid hierarchies. Arabs from Oman controlled most of the land, and Salama observed how wealth and privilege were unequally distributed.
Another theme is the importance of female friendship and sisterhood. Such relationships offer women a safe space to heal, to share their struggles without fear of judgement. From Salama’s mother to Salama herself, we see how friendship provided a sense of belonging and a vital outlet.
For Salama, sisterhood took shape in her neighbourhood, built on common interests such as food, fashion, and art.
“In fact, women used to walk together and return home together as they discussed the film they had just watched. For a week or so following the screening, women would discuss the film, link it to reality, and draw new conclusions.”
Salama Binti Rubeya: Memories from the Swahili Littoral sheds light on the struggle for independence, the Zanzibar Revolution, and its aftermath for Salama’s family. Her son, Abdulrahman Guy, the primary breadwinner, bore the brunt of this turbulent period. His fate was another testament to Salama’s resilience and endurance.
A reminder that history is not just a collection of dates and events, but the choices and struggles of people like Salama.
It is for anyone who wants to understand the Swahili littoral through the lived experience of a woman who was curious, multicultural, and unapologetically herself. It takes us through Zanzibar and Kilwa before colonialism, into the revolution, and its aftermath. Above all, it reminds us why telling our stories matters.
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Jane Shussa is a digital communication specialist who loves books, coffee, nature, and travel. She can be reached at [email protected].
