Finding the right words : languages of litigation in Shambaa native courts in Tanganyika, c.1925- 1960

Abstract

This Ph.D. thesis is concerned with the way litigants of the Usambara Mountains in Tanganyika spoke and wrote about their disputes and grievances under British rule. Language and narratives are at the core of my analysis. While I will give an overview of litigation patterns of the so-called 'native courts' in the Usambara Mountains from the late 1930s to 1960, and will examine clusters of recurring cases, my main concern is not to write a social history of these courts, but a cultural one. I am interested in recurring narratives and their intellectual roots. What kind of language did the Shambaa and other African litigants use in lawsuits and the many petitions and letters that accompanied their suits? What might have influenced them in their strategic choice of language? What intellectual sources did they draw from? While I am also interested in the outcomes of cases and the success of narratives, my objective is to treat these emerging narratives as windows into specific local perspectives. Why did Shambaa litigants depart so markedly from legal language? Was the legalistic language unsuitable for a specific Shambaa understanding of the law, or were the courts themselves not perceived as places for the dispensation of justice?