have been trying to narrow down an exact topic for this research project and i was initially going to research the trade of pigments and dyes in ancient aksum (in what is now eritrea and ethiopia) and how this connected to indian ocean trade networks but my prof told me that i should instead research the textile industry in the sultanate of kano (1350–1805ce in what is now northern nigeria) because it was and still is known as a global hub for textile production and thus would be easier to find information on it so i'm pivoting to that for this project [he didn't really give me a choice lmfao but its fine] but i do want to return to dye & pigment trade in the horn of africa at some point because the preliminary research i was doing on it was fascinating. he is very much right about it being easier to find info on kano though, like i even have some saved readings about textiles in kano on my gdrive that i found years ago without even trying and when he brought it up i already knew why so like. i get it lol