Popular Kiswahili Fiction: An Overview of Characteristics and its Development

In the history of Kiswahili literature, it is possible to identify a number of traditions. For example, we have what is generally categorized as popular literature on the one hand, and serious or scholarly literature on the other. As far as fiction is concerned, both traditions emerged in the 1950s and 1960s when the works of pioneers such as Shaaban Robert and Muhamed Said Abdulla were published. The former represents what can be categorized as serious fiction while the latter represents popular fiction. Shaaban Robert and the tradition he represents has received a lot of critical attention in the form of scholarly articles, books and dissertations. The same cannot be said of M.S. Abdulla and the tradition he represents. This is because of the prevalent view among scholars and students of Kiswahili literature that serious fiction is more important, and, therefore, more worthy of study than popular literature. This paper is a contribution towards rectifying such thinking.