HSY1511 Assignment 3 2025 – Due April 2025

HSY1511 Assessment 3: Essay Outline
Essay Question:

My option in assignment 2

Discuss how linguistics, anthropology, archaeology, and geography have
enriched history writing on Africa, using Great Zimbabwe as an example.

Great Zimbabwe stands as a powerful example of African civilisation and innovation,
and its historical significance has been greatly enriched through interdisciplinary study.
Archaeology has uncovered the material remains of a wealthy urban centre, while
anthropology and linguistics have helped reconstruct the cultural and social life of its
people. Geography explains the site’s strategic location and environmental advantages.
Together, these disciplines have countered colonial myths that denied African agency
and have contributed to a richer, more accurate understanding of Great Zimbabwe’s
role in African history. I will look at how each discipline has played a role in rewriting the
historical narrative.

MAIN IDEAS / ARGUMENTS
Archaeological excavations since the early 1900s uncovered stone structures, pottery,
and imported goods that confirm Great Zimbabwe’s rise as a regional power by c. 1100
CE (Pikirayi, 2001).