Author : E. D. Hecht,
Year : 1987
Having been in both cities, Harar as well as Lamu, it is fascinating to compare I the two communities and societies with each other. There are several phenomena both share with each other. To begin with, both are Muslim urban societies in East Africa – Harar in Eastern Ethiopia, Lamu on Lamu Island at the Northern Coast of Kenya. Both their economies had at one time and for long periods largely depended on international and intercontinental trade, and both are remnants of civilizations which at one time had spread over wider geographical areas than they do now. Both are however, even today, intact examples of preindustrial urban societies.