Note 108 — Chapter XI · THE SPREAD OF ISLAM IN AFRICA.

Islam made its way into Nyasaland also from the East Coast, having been introduced by the slave-raiding Arabs and their allies the Yaos, whose ancestors came from near the East Coast where they had long since accepted Islam. It is said that an Arab is now seldom seen in Nyasaland, but the Yaos constitute one of the most powerful native tribes in Nyasaland, and look upon Islam as their national faith. Though there appears to be no organised propaganda, Islam has spread very rapidly during the first decade of the twentieth century, and that among some of the most intelligent tribes in the country.108