Arab and Spread of Arabic Language during Islamic Age at Eastern Africa

Eastern Africa is defined as the area that surrounds Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Madagascar. This paper discusses the early contacts the Arabs made with Eastern Africa. Before the birth of Christ, and for commercial reasons, such contacts led to the fusion of some Arabs with Africans who borrowed from their culture, eventually leading to the spread of Islam. The Islamic religion spread in the 7th century AD due to Arab contacts on the African Eastern Coast where they established a series of commercial centers. Due to these activities, Arabic spread among Africans, as it became the language of business in that period. Another factor that led to the same result is the Arab migration to this area in the age of the four orthodox caliphs and the Umayyad and Abbasid periods. Due to these migrations, a new generation appeared- with Afro Arab characteristics as a result of marriages between the two communities. This situation continued until the end of the Middle Ages when the Portuguese occupied these areas and then followed by the Germans, the Italians and the French. After that Arabic started to dwindle though still spoken in many of these areas. In conclusion, the Arabs were the main reason for the spread of Arabic during that period and until the end of the Middle Ages. However, after the Colonizers occupied these areas Arabic started to dwindle.