 It was not the case, as British archeologists assumed during the colonial period (today some people still believe this outdated information, which is not corroborated by evidence), that Arab or Persian colonizers brought stone architecture and urban civilization to the Swahili coast.Local people--who of course also had overseas connections and relations--developed the Swahili coast built environment.Most importantly, even when a house was made to look like a house across the Indian Ocean it structured local experiences.