In
the first part, we looked at general encoding and decoding (kufumba na
kufumbua). In the second part, we look at encoding and decoding that
specifically utilizes differences in languages (kusimba na kusimbua). Similarly,
computer code can be either general language-agnostic programming or be language-specific
and hence have to use language binding API.
Language
coding
simba2 - code a language
simbua – decode a language.
msimbo1 - 1 nickname/pseudonym. 2 code/cipher.
3. (computing) source code
msimbo
fiche – encrypted code
Codes
are generated in a symbiotic form. To serve the purpose of ‘closing out’
information from outsiders, and simultaneously provide a mapping of information
for insiders. For insiders, the base structure of the code acts as a source
that maps out the entire system that is consequently produced by it. For
outsiders, they remain oblivious of the source and base since they only see all
the varied superficial features that the products of the code are embellished
in and hence it becomes difficult to locate and draw out the common base
structure of origin.
In
Gĩkũyũ
language,
the word ‘Hinga’ is the word used
for ‘spy/hypocrite’ as well as for
‘closing’. This was especially used as a reference from the 18th to
early 20th century during a time of incessant infiltration by
multilingual spies from other nationalities such as Gallas, Maasai, Somalians
and others.
To have a look at some documented widespread use
of coding, we can use the example of the Roman republic and Roman empire. Roman
polities often utilized the method of Latinization of names to map out public
figures for the purpose of record keeping/historical preservation. This was
because within Roman polities themselves, there were diverse ethnic groups with
names unintelligible to Roman officials hence the need to Latinize them for the
purpose of mapping and memory. The same policy was extended to outside
polities, for example, a very popular public figure from east Asia known as Kong
Fuzi (born Kong Qiu 孔丘), was Latinized as ‘Confucius’.
Latinization was used continuously by the
Papacy from the earliest times, in religious tracts and in diplomatic and legal
documents. It was also used by the early European monasteries. Following the
Norman Conquest of England, it was used by the Anglo-Norman clerics and scribes
when drawing up charters. Its use was revived in the Renaissance when the new
learning was written down in Latin and drew much on the work of Greek, Arabic
and other non-Latin ancient authors. Due to the immense borrowing of
intellectual material from non-Latin sources while at the same time keeping the
tradition of Latinization, the practice experienced a degeneration in the
ancient meticulous attention to meaning for words that are latinized. For example,
The Anglo-Norman scribes often simply “translated” the vernacular name into
Latin words based on similar sounds, without much effort to make sense or to
avoid absurdity, which produced some strange results due to the confusion. The
proliferation of these sound-to-sound “translations” from the renaissance writers
onwards, can be seen in this list,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Latinised_names
Nevertheless,
in the times of imperial Rome, the Latinization of names often took the form of
pseudonyms/nom de guerres to ensure preservation of meaning. People who
received these pseudonyms were often well-known public figures. For the general
population, they were given “saint names” during a Christian baptism ritual.
These saints they were named after are believed to be their patrons and
guardians in life.
An example
of a public figure who received a latinized pseudonym was ‘Frumentius’. He was
of mixed Greek and Arab descent, from Phoenicia, which was a province of Rome
at the time of his life. He is remembered as the leading figure towards the Christianization
of Axum. His translation of the Septuagint from Greek into Ge’ez was used as
the bible in Axum and its successor Abyssinia, up to this day. He is also
credited with developing Ge’ez from a skeletal abjad script into a syllabic
script. The legend transmitted to explain his arrival in Axum was first written
by Tyrannius Rufinus, who cites Frumentius' brother Edesius as his authority.
As
children (ca. 316) Frumentius and Edesius accompanied their uncle Meropius from
their birthplace of Tyre (now in Lebanon) on a voyage to 'India'. When their
ship stopped at one of the harbors of the Red Sea, local people massacred the
whole crew, sparing the two boys, who were taken as slaves to the King of Axum.
The two boys soon gained the favor of the king, who raised them to positions of
trust. Shortly before his death, the king freed them. The widowed queen,
however, prevailed upon them to remain at the court and assist her in the
education of the young heir, Ezana, and in the administration of the kingdom
during the prince's minority. They remained and (especially Frumentius) used
their influence to spread Christianity. First, they encouraged the Christian merchants present in the
country to practice their faith openly, and they helped them find places
"where they could come together for prayer according to the Roman
Rite"; later they converted some of the natives.
It is important to note that prior to the
arrival of Frumentius, the story tells of Christian merchants already present
in the country. The red sea was an important trade route to India for the Roman
polities hence they maintained outposts along the route to guard their ships.
This remained so until the eastern provinces of the eastern Roman empire (Byzantium)
were later overrun by Sassanids, which cut off access to the red sea. As a consequence,
Axum became isolated and impoverished. Axumite Christians resorted to living as
hermits, with trade replaced by occasional visits by European Christian monks. After
the rise of the Ottoman caliphate in Levant, this polity similarly embarked on
trade along the red sea to India and hence had to establish outposts along the
route. In the country where Axum existed, they established the Adal sultanate
to serve the Muslims as an outpost the same way Axum served Christians as an
outpost. Adal leader Ahmed ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi led the raid and conquest of
Axum in the sixteenth century. Aksum was sacked and burned in 1535 by his
troops. The response from the Christian world was the renaming and reorganization
of Axum into Abyssinia to maintain Christian presence in the country. Later, Abyssinia
and Adal were renamed Ethiopia and Somalia and continue to perform their age-old
functions. It is important to note that ‘Ethiopia’ was appropriated by Abyssinia
from the ancient name for the lands and peoples south of Abyssinia and Sahara
desert who Emperor Menelik II desired to conquer “up to the Nyanza” as he
declared it. Abyssinian expansion into Ethiopia was met and marked at the Omo
valley by Britain who occupied the portion of Ethiopia they called British East Africa protectorate. Emperor Haile Selassie
who came after Menelik renamed Abyssinia plus its captured portions of Ethiopia
in the south as ‘one Ethiopia empire’, while European-occupied portions of Ethiopia were divided-up and given various new names.
The
name ‘Frumentius’ is a Latin pseudonym. - Unlike the late-era writers who did sound-to-sound
“translations” with only a few exceptions to this easy-going habit like Georg
Bauer who was renamed Georgius Agricola to maintain the Germanic meaning of
Bauer (farmer) in Latin,- in the ancient days of Rome, the people renamed were
fewer and the Latinization more meticulous and meaningful.
Frumentius
is derived from ‘frūmentum’ which means ‘corn’ in Latin. It also
means ‘spy’. *On the flipside of the coin, the Aksumites and later
Abyssinians gave him the pseudonyms Abuna ("Our Father") and Aba
Salama ("Father of Peace") to encode what he meant to them. The term ‘frūmentum’ is infamously associated with ‘frumentarii’
who as part of an ancient Roman military and secret police organization were
used as an intelligence agency. They were originally distributors of corn
rations to Roman military officers, deliverers of messages between the
provinces and the empire, and collectors of tax money. They were later
recruited as spies especially towards the citizenry, farmers, soldiers and far-flung
Roman provinces and outposts. Frumentarii
would also carry out assassinations. They were headquartered in the Castra
Peregrina and were run by the princeps peregrinorum. Farmers disliked
the frumentarii due to false and arbitrary arrests. They were seen as a
tyrannical "plague" on the empire. They were sometimes called ‘nomas’
("nomads" in Latin) to protect their identity in foreign territory. Complaints
by Roman citizens lead to the disbandment of the body in 312 CE during the
reign of Diocletian. The ‘frumentarii’ were renamed and reorganized into ‘agentes
in rebus’. The arrival of Frumentius in Axum (316 CE) was four years after the renaming
and reorganization of frumentarii. ‘Agentes
in rebus’ continued to serve as spies under the guise of couriers, ambassadors,
custom agents and so forth especially for Byzantine Rome before it collapsed.
Usefulness
of coding
The
pseudonym ‘Frumentius’ used for the Half Greek/Half Arab agent of Rome was
useful for them (as insiders) at that time and continues to be so to present successors of the
Roman polities. It helps in deriving meaning, purpose and chronological
mapping. It enables them to gain insight into the relationships of people,
places and events with important milestone markers and to key contextual
factors (e.g., social, economic, political, demographic, and cultural events
and trends). This supports thinking, decisions, and practice.
This
form of mapping from coding can be categorized into three forms, namely:
contexts, connections, and patterns.
(1)
Context
•
Understand an issue’s landscape/context and history.
•
Identify how contextual factors influence a topic/goal.
•
Put a group’s progress/challenges in context (e.g., relative to external factors,
key activities, and funding levels).
(2)
Connections
•
Explore the relationship between the group’s activities or achievements and
other actors’ activities or achievements.
(3)
Patterns
•
Determine where the energy is in the system and where there are gaps or blockages.
•
Understand the group’s role or focus and how this has shifted over time.
•
Explore how the focus of other actors (or the larger system in general) has
shifted over time.
•
Visualize momentum, traction, and trends over time.
•
Understand how policies, structure, or social and cultural norms are changing.
•
Understand the relationship between outputs/outcomes and external events.
References & further reading:
Adejumobi, Saheed A. (2007).
The History of Ethiopia. Greenwood Publishing Group.
Carlisle, Rodney (2015).
Encyclopedia of Intelligence and Counterintelligence. Routledge. ISBN
978-1-317-47177-6.
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911).
"Frumentius". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 11 (11th ed.). Cambridge
University Press.
https://www.army.mil/article/273223/multinational_planners_draft_final_details_of_justified_accord_24
https://www.dvidshub.net/feature/JustifiedAccord
Kazhdan, Alexander, ed.
(1991). The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. Oxford and New York: Oxford
University Press.
Sheldon, Rose Mary
(2004-12-16). Intelligence Activities in Ancient Rome: Trust in the Gods but
Verify. Routledge.
TUKI (2001), Kamusi Ya
Kiswahili-Kiingereza; Swahili-English Dictionary. Published by Taasisi ya
Uchunguzi wa Kiswahili (TUKI), Chuo Kikuu cha Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
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