An Archaeological survey of Islamic Shrines in South Western Ethiopia

Islamic shrines are sanctuaries devoted to Muslim saints and used for ritual practices. Shrine is any man made sanctuary (sometimes associated with natural objects) devoted to a Muslim saint (wali). The custom of venerating saints and visiting their shrines is a common phenomenon found in the Muslim world. In Ethiopia, the presences of several shrines are typical proofs of the existence of a deep rooted tradition of venerating saints among the Muslim people. Islamic shrines in Ethiopia are not only a religious place, but are also important depositors of the pre-Islamic cultures of the indigenous communities. Hence, Islamic shrines are important heritages used to understand cultural changes and continuities of the past and the present. However, due to the past socio-political and historical marginalization of Islam in Ethiopia, Islamic shrines have been studied very little. The previous researches conducted on Islamic shrines have been geographically and thematically limited. Consequently, shrines in the historically prominent Muslim lands (the five Gibe states) of the present day Jimma zone remained unstudied. Therefore, this book presents archaeological survey research conducted