Prehistoric Africa and African Kingdoms

1. Chapter 10
100-1500 AD

2. Prehistoric Regions of Africa
• Regions in Africa
– Sub-Saharan Africa vs. Northern Africa (inc. Nile Valley)
• The Sahara is the greatest physical and cultural barrier
• North settled early by Berbers, Hamites (Caucasian groups)
– Sub-Saharan Africa has larger regions with many micro regions
• West Africa Forest, Sahel called Sudan, Central Africa, East Africa, South Africa
• Each region defined by physical geography and vegetation; many micro cultures
• North and East Africa saw first “African” civilizations
– The Nile River: Pharaohnic Egypt; Kush-Meroë (often called Nubia)
– The Ethiopian Highlands: Axum (Aksum) or Ethiopia
– North Africa: Carthaginian Empire, Roman and Greek civilizations
• The Sudan
– Sudanic region was sahel or plains stretching across Africa south of Sahara
– 9000 B.C. domestication of cattle; cultivation of sorghum, cotton
– Became home to most Sub-Saharan civilizations
– Small states based on tribes, clans developed
– Religion: polytheism, shamanism, placation of spirits, divination
• Climatic Change
– Prior to 5000 B.C. Sahara was one large inland sea surrounded by plains
– After 5000 B.C. development of Sahara Desert began as desertification increased
– Increasing desertification forced mass popular migration to water
– Nile shifts to east; formation of large lakes in Central Africa that feed Nile

3. REGIONS IN AFRICA

4. AFRICAN CLIMATE ZONES

5. AFRICAN LANGUAGE FAMILIES

6. Temperature Zones in Africa

7. EARLY AFRICAN RELIGION
• Creator god
– Recognized by almost all African peoples
– Created the earth and humankind, source of world order
• Lesser gods and spirits
– Often associated with natural features, forces in world (animism)
– Participated actively in the workings of the world
– Believed in ancestors' souls influencing material world
• Diviners
– Mediated between humanity and supernatural beings
– Called shamans and inappropriately “witch doctors”
– Interpreted the cause of the people's misfortune
– Used medicine or rituals to eliminate problems
• African religion was not theological, but practical
– Religion to placate the gods, ask for assistance, cures, fertility
– Public celebrations inc. dancing, singing formed community
– Genders honored different deities, had separate ceremonies

8. CHRISTIANITY IN
AFRICA
• Early Christianity in North Africa
– Christianity reached Africa during 1st century AD.
• St. Mark converted Egypt, spread up Nile
• Romans introduced faith to North Africa
– North Africa was home to many heresies
• Arianism = Jesus was human
• Monophysites = Jesus had one nature
• Donatists = Apostate Christians could not return
• Vandal German settlers were Arian Christians
• Byzantine conquest returned north to Catholics
– Region had no influence on sub-Saharan African
• Monophysite Christianity along the Nile
– Believed Christ had one nature, largely divine
– Persecuted; declared heresy by Chalcedon
• The Christian kingdoms of Nubia and Axum
– 1st Christian kingdom, 4th century AD,
– Nubians of Kush also became Christian
– Both adopted Monophysite form of Christianity
• Ethiopian and Nubian Christianity
– Had little contact with Christians of other lands
– Shared basic Christian theology/rituals, developed own features
– Isolated, attacked by Islam

9. MOVEMENT IN AFRICAN HISTORY

10. ARRIVAL OF ISLAM IN AFRICA
• Islam in Africa
– North Africa
• Arab armies conquered region by early 8th Century; pushed up Nile
• Mass conversions of local inhabitants due to Koran threats to kill infidels and tax
incentives
– West Africa
• Introduced by Trans-Saharan Trade route
• Merchants were greatest contact with Islam
• Local rulers, elites converted by 10th century
• Gave elites control of trade, many benefits
• Allowed people to observe traditional beliefs
• Nomadic Berbers in North Africa
– Berbers and Arabs were bitter rivals
– Arabs settled coastlands, cities
– Berbers lived in deserts, mountains
– Berbers became puritanical Muslim, Shi’a
– Berber fanatics invaded Ghana, Morocco
– Ghana weakened, fell 10th century AD
• Elite religion vs. common practices
– Most people remained polytheists especially outside of cities, towns
– Produced syncretic blend such as accommodation of African gender norms
– After conversion by elites, old beliefs remained; part of inherited traditions
– Religion introduced writing, literary traditions

11. The Influence of Islam in Africa
How it spread • Arabs conquered North Africa.
• Muslim traders arrived in Ghana and elsewhere.
• Rulers in Mali and Songhai converted to Islam.
How it changed
religion
• Islam gained many followers in northeastern Africa. It also became the
religion of the ruling and trading classes in the trading classes in the
trading cities of the Swahili coast and West Africa.
• African rulers who converted to Islam often followed both Muslim
practices and traditional African ancestor and spirit worship (animism).
How it changed
society
• Schools were opened to teach the Qur’an and other Islamic texts in
Arabic; Timbuktu became a center of Muslim learning.
• In Ghana and elsewhere, Muslim rulers adopted Islamic laws and
government.
How it changed
language
• African trading languages, such as Swahili, used many Arabic words.
• Arabic spread and became the language of the people in North African
countries and in the Sudan.

12. ECONOMIC REGIONS OF AFRICA

14. Ancient African Cultures
People Approximate Time
of Origin
Location Way of Life
Nok 500 BC Present-day central
Nigeria
Farming, herding,
metalworking
Bantu 500 BC Sub-Saharan Africa Fishing, farming,
herding,
(ironworking among
later migrating
peoples)
Kushites 1600 BC Part of present-day
Egypt, Sudan, and
Ethiopia
Trade, farming,
herding, mining
(ironworking among
later peoples)
Aksum 100 AD Northern highlands
of present-day
Ethiopia
Farming, trade

15. Prehistory, Regions, Religions, and
Cultures of Africa Graphic Organizer
Social
Religious,
intellectual,
artistic
Geography
Where is it? Is the
land mountainous?
Desert? Oceanic?
Economic
What type of
economy? How
do people make
a living?
Political
Who controls what? What type
of government was there?
Anything to do with laws or
war.

16. Prehistory, Regions, Religions,
and Cultures of Africa Quiz
1. Give two regions of Pre-historic Africa
2. How did Christianity enter Africa?
3. How did Islam enter Africa?
4. What was the center of Muslim learning?
5. Name an African culture and its way of life (economy).

18. The Kingdoms and Empires of
Africa
The African continent had many kingdoms and empires during its early history. Ancient
Egypt, one of the first centralized states in human history, developed in the lower Nile
River valley nearly five thousand years ago. Although this Egyptian state eventually
dissolved, state control over fertile agricultural regions was a pattern that reappeared
elsewhere in Egypt, northern Africa, and Ethiopia. At various times, the northern African
states were controlled by outside powers. For example, the Romans conquered part of
North Africa, and its fertile lands became the granary of the Roman Empire. In the 2nd to
5th centuries AD, an Ethiopian state called Axum developed, based on the rich agricultural
resources of that region, and exercised control over the trade routes on the Red Sea and the
Gulf of Aden. Other regions of Africa did not have such extensive international trading
systems until much later.

19. What is North Africa?
North Africa, which includes Morocco, Tunisia,
Algeria, and Libya, is also called the Maghreb
(“west” in Arabic). It is a mountainous region
bounded by the Mediterranean Sea on the
north, the Sahara on the South, the Libyan
Desert on the east, and the Atlantic Ocean on
the west. The population, mostly Arabic-speaking
Muslims, is of Berber ancestry.
Because of cultural, religious and linguistic
links, the area is sometimes considered part of
the Middle East.
Tataouine and Ksar Ouled Soltane, Southern Tunisia
Mosque of Abu
Abbas al-Mursi
Alexandria, Egypt

20. The People of Egypt
Most Egyptians are descended from the
successive Arab settlements that followed
the Muslim conquest in the 7th century,
mixed with the indigenous pre-Islamic
population. The typical Egyptian, of mixed
heritage, is the Fellah, or peasant; the
Fellahin constitute more than 60% of the
population. Egyptian Copts, a Christian
minority who constitute about 5% of the
population, are the least mixed descendants
of the pre-Arab population. The Nubians,
who live south of Aswan, have been
Arabized in religion and culture, although
they still speak the Nubian language.
Nomads, who live in the semi-desert
regions, are composed of both Arab and
Berber elements. Small minorities of
Italians and Greeks live in the cities.
Colossus of
Memnon
Aswan souq

21. The Founding of Carthage
Elissar or Elissa Dido (Elishat, in Phoenician) was a princess of Tyre. She was Jezebel's
grandniece — Princess Jezebel of Tyre was Queen of Israel. Her brother, Pygmalion king
of Tyre, murdered her husband, the high priest. She escaped tyranny in her country and
founded Carthage and thereafter its Phoenician Punic dominions. Carthage became later a
great center of the western Mediterranean in its golden age.
About 800 B.C., the Phoenicians established Carthage on the edge of a region in North
Africa that is now Tunisia. The city became the commercial center of the western
Mediterranean and retained that position until overthrown by Rome.
According to tradition, Queen Dido founded Carthage after she fled from Tyre. The
inhabitants there agreed to give her as much land as she could encompass with a single
oxhide. It was near Carthage, according to Virgil’s Aeneid, that Aeneas was shipwrecked.
Carthage lay on a bay. Its Phoenician settlers were seafarers and traders. Aided by slave
labor, they built wharves, markets, and factories. Carthage grew rich and strong, with
colonies in North Africa, in Spain, and on the Mediterranean islands.

22. Hamer women adorn their necks with heavy
polished iron jewelry.
Karo women scarify their chests to beautify
themselves. Scars are cut with a knife and ash
is rubbed in to produce a raised welt.
Mursi Making Fire, Omo River
Region, Ethiopia

24. THE NOK CULTURE
• Discovered 1928 in Northern Nigeria
– Was it a civilization or advanced culture?
• Flourished 900 BC to 200 AD on Niger-Benue River
• Clearly first Sub-Saharan civilization/culture
• Precursor of Bantu, West African forest peoples
– Knowledge is based on archeology
• Iron makers and sculptors
– Animals and humans made from fired clay
• Figures of animals, peoples including leaders
• Seem to have been pastoralists, farmers
– Could smelt iron
• Have found iron tools, weapons; probably also used wood
• Seemed to have skipped copper, bronze ages
• Indigenous or borrowed from North Africa, Nile River?

25. GHANA: 1ST SUB-SAHARAN CIVILIZATION
• Camels
– Camels came to Egypt from Arabia, 7th century B.C.
– Romans introduced them to North Africa, patrolled desert
– After 500 A.D. camels replaced horses, donkeys as transport animals
– Camels' arrival quickened pace of communication across the Sahara
– Islamic merchants crossed the desert to trade in West Africa
– Established relations with sub-Saharan West Africa by 8th century
• The kingdom of Ghana
– Kings maintained a large army of two hundred thousand warriors
– A principal state of west Africa, not related to modern state of Ghana
– Became the most important commercial site in west Africa
– Controlled gold mines, exchanged it with nomads for salt
– Provided gold, ivory, and slaves
– Wanted horses, cloth, manufactured goods
• Koumbi-Saleh
– Capital city
– Thriving commercial center

26. West African Kingdoms
Ghana
People from African kingdoms to the northwest probably settled in what is
now Ghana in the 1200's. It was the primary source of gold for the large
medieval West African empires that engaged in trans-Saharan trade.
Portuguese explorers landed on the coast in 1471 and named the area the
Gold Coast. In 1487, the Portuguese established a fort at Elmina as
headquarters for the gold trade. Competition among European powers for
gold and slaves led to the establishment of numerous bases on the Gulf of
Guinea coast. Later, the Dutch came to compete with the Portuguese for
gold. By 1642, the Dutch had seized all the Portuguese forts, and ended
Portuguese control in the Gold Coast. A large slave trade developed in the
1600's, and the Danes and English competed with the Dutch for profits. The
British gained control of the Gold Coast. In 1807, the British abolished the
slave trade. The slave trade ended during the 1860's, and by 1872, the
British had gained control of the Dutch and Danish forts. Inland the Ashanti
Union of Akan States with the capital at Kumasi controlled commerce in
gold and slaves. Ashanti expansion southward brought them into conflict
with the British.

27. The kingdom of Ghana probably began
when several clans of the Soninke
people of west Africa came together
under the leadership of a great king
named Dinga Cisse.
Ghana had few natural resources
except salt and gold. They were also
very good at making things from iron.
Ghanaian warriors used iron tipped
spears to subdue their neighbors, who
fought with weapons made of stone,
bone, and wood.

28. "The King . . .(wears). . . necklaces round
his neck and bracelets on his forearms and
he puts on a high cap decorated with gold
and wrapped in a turban of fine cotton.
He (meets people) in a domed pavilion
around which stand ten horses covered
with gold-embroidered materials…and on
his right, are the sons of the (lesser)
kings of his country, wearing splendid
garments and their hair plaited with gold.
At the door of the pavilion are dogs of
excellent pedigree. Round their necks they
wear collars of gold and silver, studded
with a number of balls of the same
metals."

29. Muslims and the Growth of Trade
Beginning in the 7th century AD, the Arabs, inspired by the newly founded religion of
Islam, conquered a vast territory, including much of North Africa. These Arabs established
an Islamic state structure called the Caliphate to control the conquered areas. The
Caliphate lasted in name until the 13th century, though it had actually divided into smaller
states much earlier. In many cases, the leaders of non-Arab Muslim groups took control of
territories within the domain of the Caliphate. For example, the Almoravids, a nomadic
people from the western Sahara, conquered several North African provinces during the 11th
century.
Merchants from the Muslim world soon became aware of the economic potential of the
African continent. North African merchants, for example, began to trade regularly with
areas of West Africa during the 9th century. This system of trade was based primarily on the
exchange of North African salt for West African gold and slaves. West Africa soon became
the most important source of gold for North Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. Through
their trade contacts with North Africa, the West African merchants were introduced to Islam
and became the first West African converts to that religion. Political leaders of West
African states that benefited from this trade also became converts to Islam, though they
continued to respect the ideas and cultural practices of those groups of non-Muslim peoples
who still lived within their states.

30. Muslims and the Growth of Trade
(cont’d)
In East Africa, merchants from Arabia established cities along the coast during the 12th
century. These cities were part of a trading system that reached as far away as China and
Indonesia. The Arab merchants were primarily interested in gold, which was mined in what
is now Zimbabwe. A large state emerged there that controlled the flow of gold to the coast.
Massive stone ruins now known as the Great Zimbabwe are the remnants of a structure
built by one of the dynasties of that state, which reached its greatest glory in the 15th
century. The Arab merchants traded with East Africans all along the coast, and some
settled there. This cross-cultural interaction resulted in the creation of a new language,
Swahili, which combines a Bantu language foundation with an Arabic vocabulary.

31. Ghana became a rich and powerful nation, especially
when the camel began to be used as a source of
transport. Ghana relied on trade and trade was
made faster and bigger with the use of the camel.

32. Islamic
Mosque
in Ghana
After 700 AD, the religion of Islam began to spread over northern
Africa. Followers of this religion are called Muslims. Muslim
warriors came into Ghana and fought with the non-Islamic people
there. This weakened the great civilization of Ghana. Local
warriors then decided to break away from the power of Ghana and
form their own local kingdoms. This ended many of the trade
networks and eventually weakened the civilization of Ancient
Ghana.

33. Ghana developed in West Africa
between the Niger (NI-jhur) and
the Gambia Rivers. It was an
important kingdom there from
about AD300 to about 1100. The
rivers helped Ghana to grow rich
because they were used to
transport goods and develop
trade. Ghana also collected taxes
from traders who passed through
the kingdom. The people called
their nation Wagadu; we know it
as Ghana --that was the word for
war chief.

34. West African Kingdoms
Benin
• During the 1100's or 1200's, several African
kingdoms were founded in the region that is
now Benin. By the 1600's, the kingdom of
Dahomey, with Abomey its capital,
controlled the area. Europeans began to
establish slave-trading posts along the coast
at about this time. The power of the king of
Dahomey was based largely on the slave
trade.

35. KINGDOM OF MALI
• Mandike Peoples
– Ghana was established by Mandika
– After fall of Ghana, Mandika established many small states
– Most people were not Muslims but merchants were
• Sundiata
– After Ghana dissolved, political leadership shifted to Mali empire, a Mandika state
– The lion prince Sundiata (reigned 1230-55) built the Mali empire
– Ruling elites, families converted to Islam after his death
• The Mali empire and trade
– Controlled gold, salt; taxed almost all trade passing through west Africa
– Enormous caravans linked Mali to north Africa
– Besides Niani, many prosperous cities on caravan routes
• Mansa Musa
– Sundiata's grand nephew, reigned from 1312 to 1337
– Made his pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324-1325
• Gargantuan caravan of thousand soldiers and attendants
• Gold devalued 25% in Cairo during his visit
• Mansa Musa and Islam
– Upon return to Mali, built mosques
– Sent students to study with Islamic scholars in North Africa
– Established Islamic schools in Mali
• The decline of Mali
– Factions crippled the central government
– Rise of province of Gao as rival to Mali
– Military pressures from neighboring kingdoms, desert nomads

36. West African Kingdoms
Mali
• From about the A.D. 300's to the late 1500's, one or more of three powerful
African empires-Ghana, Mali, and Songhai-thrived in what is now Mali.
Mansa Musa, pronounced MAHN sah MOO sah (?-1337?), also known as
Kankan Moussa, was the ruler of the Mali Empire in Africa from 1312 to
about 1337. He was a great-nephew of Sundiata Keita, the empire's founder.
Mansa Musa greatly expanded Mali and made it West Africa's political and
cultural power. He brought the trading cities of Gao, Walata, and Timbuktu
under his rule and made Timbuktu a center of learning. Mansa Musa spread
Islam, the Muslim religion, throughout the empire. In 1324, he traveled to
Mecca, the holy city of the Muslims. Mansa Musa's party supposedly included
thousands of his people and hundreds of camels bearing gold and gifts. He
brought back many learned people, including an architect who designed
mosques (Muslim houses of worship) for Gao and Timbuktu. After Mansa
Musa died, his son Mansa Magha I became ruler of the empire.

37. Timbuktu, Mali
Timbuktu was originally a meeting place for nomads, or wandering peoples, in the Sahara.
About 1000 AD, it was no more than a well next to a sand dune. Its name is said to have
come from the name of a slave girl, Buktu, who was left to guard the possessions of her
masters. The Tim part of the name means “place.” The city was founded about 1100,
when nomad tents were replaced by straw huts. These eventually gave way to more
permanent houses.
The city was ruled by a succession of tribal empires. In 1468, it was conquered by the
Songhai. During the period from 1493 to 1591, Timbuktu was at the height of its
commercial and cultural development. Merchants gathered to buy gold and slaves, and
Islamic scholars established schools that attracted students from a wide area. The
population is said to have reached 1 million. In 1591, the sultan of Morocco captured the
city. By the end of the 18th century, it was reduced to desolation and poverty, never to
regain its former status. In 1893, the French took the city and partially restored it.

38. A powerful king named Sundiata ruled
this area from around 1230-1255 AD.
He led the people in conquering and
expanding his kingdom to be as great as
Ghana had been.
Perhaps the greatest
king of Mali was Mansa
Musa (1312-1337). He
developed the gold and
salt trade of Mali and his
kingdom became very
powerful and rich.

39. Mansa Musa was a Muslim,
meaning he followed the religion
of Islam. He built many beautiful
mosques or Islamic temples in
western Africa.

40. In 1324 Mansa Musa made a pilgrimage ( a journey to a holy
place) to Mecca, which is a holy city in Arabia, with 60,000
servants and followers and 80 camels carrying more than
4,000 pounds of gold to be distributed among the poor. Of
the 12,000 servants 500 carried a staff of pure gold. This
showed his power and wealth to the other people he visited.

41. When Mansa Musa died there were no kings as powerful
as he was to follow. The great kingdom of Mali
weakened. Eventually a group of people known as
Berbers came into the area and other people came up
from the south to claim territory that was once part of
the kingdom. Although Mali fell, another advanced
African kingdom took its place, the kingdom of Songhai.
The Berbers still
live in North
Africa. This
picture, taken in
1893, shows a
Berber group.

42. Africa produced many great civilizations.
During the time of the Middle Ages of
Europe, the African kingdoms of Mali,
Ghana and Songhai were places of
advanced learning and great wealth. At the
time of ancient Egypt, Nubia was a
powerful force with an advanced culture.
Strong leaders and vast natural resources
helped these cultures rule large areas of
northern and western Africa for hundreds
of years.
Return

43. SONGHAI EMPIRE
• Origins
– Sorko fishermen of Niger became merchants
– Joined Gao state (part of Malian Empire)
– Mali could never collect taxes from Gao
• Rise
– Sonni Ali the Great build cavalry, war fleet
– Disputed Mali, conquer Timbuktu
– Anti-Muslim: saw them as a threat
• Zenith
– Askia Muhammad seized power after Sonni’s death
• Devout Muslim, promoted Islam; launched jihads
• Visited Cairo, Mecca; promoted Songhai to Muslims
• Declared Caliph of the Sudan
• Built centralized state using Muslim jurists as advisors
– Tradition and Trade
• Maintained tribal rituals of sacred drum, sacred fire, dress
• Privileged caste craftsmen; slaves important in agriculture
• Traded kola nuts, gold, slaves for horses, salt, luxuries, finished goods
• Fall
– Civil war erupted in 16th century
– Demographic Changes
• Drought, desertification hurt economy
• Diseases spread
– Moroccan Empire invades and destroys state in order to control gold trade

44. West African Kingdoms
Songhai
• A black trading state in West Africa that reached its peak during the 1400's and 1500's. The
empire extended from what is now central Nigeria to the Atlantic coast and included parts
of what are now Burkina Faso, Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Senegal.
Gao, the capital, stood on the Niger River.
• Songhai's roots date back to at least the 700's. The empire developed from large towns
around Kukiya, near the present-day Mali-Niger border. By the 1000's, Gao had become
the center of a kingdom known as Kaw-Kaw. During the 1400's, Kaw-Kaw expanded to
become the vast and rich Songhai Empire. Songhai became powerful chiefly by
controlling trade across the Sahara. Most of Songhai's people farmed, fished, or traded. The
traders exchanged gold, slaves, and other West African products for goods from Europe
and southwest Asia.
• Two kings, Sunni Ali and Askia Muhammad, strengthened the empire more than any other
rulers. Sunni Ali, a great military leader, ruled from 1464 to 1492. His army conquered
Timbuktu and Djenne, two large West African trading centers. Askia Muhammad, also
known as Askia I or Askia the Great, became king in 1493. Songhai reached its greatest
size under his reign. He encouraged the spread of Islam and governed Songhai according to
strict Muslim law. He also expanded trade. Askia's son deposed him in 1528. The empire's
power declined after a Moroccan army defeated Songhai at the Battle of Tondibi in 1591.

45. This map was
created in 1375.
The same trade
routes were used
by the merchants
of the Songhai
kingdom. What
kinds of pictures
do you see on the
map and why do
you think the
mapmaker put
them there?

46. The picture above is one artist’s idea of what the great Songhai
leader, Sunni Ali might have looked like. Sunni Ali saw that the
kingdom of Mali was weakening and he led his soldiers to conquer
the area. He began the kingdom of Songhai. He also set up a
complex government to rule all the lands he had conquered.

47. Songhai remained a rich and
strong kingdom under
Muhammad Ture’s rule. It
had a complex government
centered in the city of Gao,
and great centers of learning.
But later rulers were not as
powerful. In the late 1500s,
Morocco invaded Songhai to
take its rich trade routes.
Moroccans had a new weapon,
the gun, and the army of
Songhai did not. This led to
the fall of Songhai.

48. All three
kingdoms
of West
Africa
relied on
trade for
their
strength
and wealth.
Salt
Timbuktu Gao
Jenne
Gold, Ivory, Wood, Slaves
Silk, Ceramics, Beads, Islam from
Europe and Asia
Coming into West Africa
Coming from Africa and going to
Europe and Asia

49. Sunni Ali died in 1492 CE. His
son took over the rule of
Songhai but he did not accept
Islam as a religion. Islam was
accepted as a religion by many
people in northern Africa. One
of Sunni Ali’s generals, named
Muhammad Ture, overthrew
the new king and made himself
king of Songhai. Ture was a
follower of Islam (Muslim) and
so he made Islam the religion
of his kingdom.
This is a photo of a mosque,
or place of worship for
Muslims, in western Africa.
Many mosques were built of
local materials.

50. KANEM-BORNU
• Origins
– Situated north east of Lake Chad.
– In 11th century, Sefawa dynasty was established
– Shift in lifestyle
• From entirely nomadic to pastoralist way of life with agriculture
• State became more centralized with capital at Njimi; maintained large cavalry
• Islam and Trade
– Kanem converted to Islam under Hu or Hawwa (1067-71).
• Faith was not widely embraced until the 13th century.
• Muslim traders played a role in bringing Islam to Kanem
– Wealth of Kanem derived from ability of rulers to control trade
• Main exports were ostrich feathers, slaves and ivory; imported horses, luxuries
• Exports were crucial to their power, ability to dominate neighbors
• A Change
– Combination of overgrazing, dynastic uncertainties, attacks from neighbors
• Rulers of Kanem to move to Borno, state now referred to as Kanem-Borno
• New contacts with Hausa of Nigeria; capital becomes center of knowledge, trade
– Army modernized by trade with Muslim, Turks: acquired firearms
• Decline was long, gradual and peaceful: fell in the 19th century

51. North and West African
Kingdoms Concept Map
What is it?
Kingdoms
Comparisons
How are they alike?
Examples/Comparisons
Contrasts
How are they different?
Carthage

52. North and West African Quiz
1. What was the first African state that originated
over 5000 years ago?
2. What two ethnic groups make up most of North
Africa?
3. What Phoenician princess established the
Carthaginian empire?
4. What four West African empires traded in slaves
internally and externally to Africa?
1. What ruler of Mali brought so much gold during
his trip to Mecca that it devalued the price of gold?

54. EARLY EAST AFRICAN HISTORY
• Early visitors to east Africa
– Egyptians visited, traded with area
• Famous expedition of Hatshepshut to Punt
– Indian, Persian visited after 500 B.C.
– Greeks, Romans called area Azania
– Malays established colonies on Madagascar
• Kingdom of Axum (Aksum)
– Sabeans of Yemen created Axum
– Arose in highlands of Ethiopia
• Trading state across Bab el Mandeb straits
• Tribute empire on land; trade gold, frankincense, myrrh, food, ivory
• Built stone structures, issued own coins
– Eventually became Monophysite Christian
• King Ezana converted and court followed in early 4th century
• Developed Ge’ez language, writing in association with Christianity
• Maintained strong contacts with Egypt
– Traded with Romans, Byzantines, Persians, Indians, Arabs
• By 2nd century: Bantus populated much of East Africa
• By 7th century: Arab merchants begin to visit
• By 8th century: Muslim armies, merchants push up Nile

55. Swahili City-States
• By 1000, the Swahili city-states dominated trade along the east
African coast. The largest cities included Manda, Mogadishu,
Mombasa, Kilwa, Pate, and Zanzibar. The city-states were all
independent, but rivalries sometimes led to conflicts and war. The
Portuguese, attempting to gain control of the Indian Ocean trade,
attacked Zanzibar in 1503 and destroyed Kilwa in 1505. These
European invasions began the decline of the Swahili civilization.

56. THE SWAHILI CITY-STATES
• Intermarriage of the Bantu and the Arab produced Swahili
– An Arabic term, meaning "coasters"
– Dominated east African coast from Mogadishu to Sofala
– Swahili is a Bantu language mixed with Arabic
• The Swahili city-states
– Chiefs gained power through taxing trade on ports
– Developed into city-states ruled by kings, 11th-12th centuries
– Controlled trade from interior: slaves, gold, ivory, spices
– Exchanged goods for finished goods, cloths, dyes, luxuries
– Craftsmen, artisans, clerks were Muslims
– Slaves used for domestic, agriculture
– Zanzibar clove plantations needed slaves
• Kilwa
– One of the busiest city-states
– Multistory stone buildings, mosques, schools
– Issued copper coins from the 13th century
– By 15th century, exported ton of gold per year
– Merchants from India, China, Arabia visited
• Islam in East Africa
– Ruling elite and wealthy merchants converted to Islamic faith
– Conversion promoted close cooperation with Muslim merchants
– Conversion also opened door to political alliances with Muslim rulers

58. THE BANTU
• The Bantu peoples
– Originated in the region around modern Nigeria/Cameroon
– Influenced by Nok iron making, herding, agriculture
– Population pressure drove migrations, 2000 BC – 700 BC
– Two major movements: to south and to east and then south
– Languages split into about 500 distinct but related tongues
• Bantu agriculture and herding
– Early Bantu relied on agriculture – slash-burn, shifting
– Pastoralists, semi-nomadic due to agriculture, cattle
• Iron metallurgy
– Iron appeared during the 7th and 6th centuries B.C.
– Iron made agriculture more productive
– Expanded divisions of labor, specialization in Bantu societies
• Population Pressures
– Iron technologies produced population upsurge
– Large populations forced migration of Bantu

59. THE BANTU MIGRATION
• The Bantu Migration
– Population pressure led to migration, c. 2000 B.C.
• Movement to South, along Southeast and Southwest coasts
• Languages differentiated into about 500 distinct but related tongues
• Occupied most of sub-Saharan (except West) Africa by 1000 A.D.
• Split into groups as they migrated: Eastern, Central, Southern
– Bantu spread iron, herding technologies as they moved
• Bananas
– Between 300/500 A.D., Malay seafarers reached Africa
• Settled in Madagascar, visited East African coast
• Brought with them pigs, taro, and banana cultivation
• Bananas became well-established in Africa by 500 A.D.
– Bantu learned to cultivate bananas from Malagasy
• Bananas caused second population spurt, migration surge
• Reached South Africa in 16th century A.D.
• Population growth
– 3.5 million people by 400 B.C.
– 11 million by the beginning of the millennium
– 17 million by 800 A.D.
– 22 million by 1000 A.D.

60. MAP OF THE BANTU MIGRATIONS

61. BANTU LANGUAGES

62. BANTU POLITICAL ORGANIZATIONS
• Stateless societies
– Early Bantu societies did not depend on elaborate bureaucracy
– Societies governed through family and kinship groups
– Village council, consisted of male family heads
– Chief of a village was from the most prominent family heads
– A group of villages constituted a district
– Village chiefs negotiated intervillage affairs
• Chiefdoms
– Population growth strained resources, increased conflict
– Some communities began to organize military forces, 1000 A.D.
– Powerful chiefs overrode kinship networks and imposed authority
– Some chiefs conquered their neighbors
• Kingdom of Kongo
– Villages formed small states along the Congo River, 1000 A.D.
– Small states formed several larger principalities, 1200 A.D.
– One of the principalities conquered neighbors, built kingdom of
Kongo
– Maintained a centralized government with a royal currency system
– Provided effective organization until the mid-17th century

63. SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS
• Diversity of African societies in Sub-Saharan Africa
– Complex societies developed into kingdoms, empires, and city-states
– Coexisted with small states and stateless societies
– Lineages consisted of all members descended from a common ancestor
• Kinship groups of stateless societies
– Extended families and clans as social and economic organizations
– Communities claimed rights to land, no private property
– Village council allocated land to clan members
• Sex and gender relations
– Men undertook heavy labor, herding,
– Women were responsible for child rearing, domestic chores, farming
– Men monopolized public authority but women could be leaders
– Women enjoyed high honor as the source of life
– Many societies were matrilineal; aristocratic women influenced public affairs
– Women merchants commonly traded at markets
– Sometimes women organized all-female military units
– Islam did little to curtail women's opportunities in sub-Saharan Africa
• Age grades
– Publicly recognized "age grades" or "age sets"
– Assumed responsibilities and tasks appropriate to their age grades
– Coming of age ceremonies and secret societies restricted by age, gender

64. SLAVERY
• Slavery statistics in Africa
– Most slaves were captives of war, debtors, criminals
– Kept for local use or sold in slave markets
– Often used as domestic laborers especially agricultural workers
– Generally not a social stigma attached
– Slaves could receive freedom, become part of family, tribe
– Children born to slaves were not slaves
• Slave trading
– Slave trade increased after the 11th century A.D
– Primary markets
• Across Sahara to North Africa and Egypt and ultimately Arabia
• Out of East Africa to Arabia and Middle East
• In some years, 10 to 12 thousand slaves shipped out of Africa
• Males preferred, could also act as carriers of trade goods
• 10 million slaves transported by Islamic trade between 750/1500
– Demand for slaves outstripped supply from eastern Europe
• Original slaves preferred in Muslim world were Caucasian Slavs
• Word “slave” comes from Slav
– Slave raids against smaller states, stateless societies
– Muslims could not be used as slaves (Quran) yet often ignored

66. South Africa
As the southernmost country of the African
continent, South Africa has been the goal of
successive groups of invaders—from the earliest
hominids, through the Stone and Iron ages, to the
Khoisan peoples, finally to the Bantu. All these
migrations took place over land. There is no
evidence of any prehistoric invasions from the
sea.
When Portuguese navigators reached Table Bay
(Cape Town) in the 15th century, their first
contacts were with the Khoisan hunters and
pastoralists. As they sailed along the southeast
coast, shipwrecked crews encountered well-developed
Bantu settlements of cultivators and
cattle herders who confined themselves to well-watered
lands and abundant grasslands.
Dutch occupation of Table Bay in 1652, as a
halfway port for the Dutch East Indian fleets,
resulted in a gradual penetration of the interior
by wheat and vine growers. They drove the
Khoisan peoples into the northern deserts.
Kalahari San
Bushman
woman with
crafts
Kalahari San Bushman with
hut

67. ZIMBABWE
• South Central Africa
– Wooded and grass savannahs
– Rich in minerals especially copper, gold
– Bantu herders, ironsmiths found it wonderful
• Zimbabwe
– A powerful kingdom of Central Africa arose in 13th century
• From 5th centuries AD built wooden residences known as zimbabwe
• By the 9th century began to build stone zimbabwe
• Magnificent stone complex known as Great Zimbabwe, the 12th century
• 18,000 people lived in Great Zimbabwe in the late 15th century
– Kings and wealth
• Organized flow of gold, ivory
• Trade include slaves
• Counted wealth in cattle, too
• Traded with Swahili city-states

68. Great Zimbabwe

69. Great Zimbabwe

70. East, Bantu, and South African
Kingdoms Concept Map
What is it?
Kingdoms
Comparisons
How are they alike?
Examples/Comparisons
Contrasts
How are they different?
Swahili City-States

71. East, Bantu, and South African
Kingdoms Quiz
1. What language group dominated the eastern
and southern parts of Africa?
2. What economic polity developed along the
east coast of Africa?
3. What metallurgy appeared in the 6th and 7th
centuries that replaced agriculture?
4. Give a slavery statistic and a fact about the
slave trade in Africa.
5. What powerful kingdom arose in central
south Africa in the 13th century?