A Decade of Design: The Global Invention of the Kanga, 1876–1886. (2nd January 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Ryan, MacKenzie Moon
• Is Part Of: Textile history. Volume 48:Number 1(2017)
• Page Start: 101
• Page End: 132
• Publication Date: 2017-01-02
• Subjects: Textile fabrics -- History -- Periodicals; Textile industry -- History -- Periodicals; Clothing and dress -- History -- Periodicals; 746.09005
• DOI: 10.1080/00404969.2017.1294815
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0040-4969

Abstract

Abstract : This article examines the early development of printed and manufactured cotton kanga textiles, worn popularly throughout East Africa by women as wrappers. Using archival, pictorial and object collections, I suggest that the decade from 1876 to 1886 was crucial for design. The bold colour and graphics of East African women's cloth printing, Indonesian batik motifs, European-printed handkerchief-style borders and the inclusion of text combined by 1886 to form the now standard composition of kanga cloth.