Discuss the factors that contributed to the emergence of a cosmopolitan Swahili culture.

The question requires that candidates offer a considered and balanced review that includes a range of factors that contributed to the emergence of a cosmopolitan Swahili culture. Evidence may include the development of Swahili as a regional lingua franca that facilitated the transmission of ideas. The development of Indian Ocean trading networks, particularly those that linked the coast to the Red Sea and Persian Gulf regions, led to the intermingling of cultures and the emergence of Swahili city states such as Kilwa, Malindi and Zanzibar. These acted as cosmopolitan hubs for the region. Traders from Arabia, Persia, Iran and Portugal settled in the cities and sometimes married African women. Other factors include the caravan routes from the Great Lakes region that brought influences from Central Africa. Candidates may conclude that the common faith of Islam worked as a gel that bound together diverse cultural influences.