Civilizations of Africa

1. Civilizations of Africa Chpt 11

2. Africa’s Physical Geography • Bantu- Large group of Africans and related languages they speak • Tropical rainforests are located on either side of the equator • Surrounding the forests are the savanna or areas of grassland with scattered trees, this is most of Africa • Lions, Zebras, and elephants live in the savanna • Deserts are north and south of the savanna • Sahara is a desert stretching across most of North Africa. It’s the worlds largest desert • A band of lakes, deep valleys, and rugged mountains are in East Africa • There is little farming in the deserts, people herd cattle on the savannas but they cant survive in the rainforest because the flies and pests carry disease

3. The Bantu Migration • Physical barriers such as lakes and mountains did not stop the migration of people across Africa • Pg 313 • They were among the largest population movement in human history

4. History of Sub Saharan Africa • Historians know a great deal about North Africa but know very little about Africa south of the Sahara • This area is called Sub-Saharan Africa • The Sahara cut off Africa from Europe so little was known about this area • One reason it is hard to find things out is because the tools these people used were wood and clay and much has disinegrated • Oral traditions or stories by word of mouth have lead historians to learn about new areas of exploration

5. Bantu • Most Bantu speaking people were fishers, farmers, and herders. • Villages were made up of families of the same clan • Many clans traces their roots through the mother not the father • Because of this possessions and property were passed down through the mother’s side of the family • Bantu-speaking people moved slowly from their traditional homelands- only a short distance to find better farmland • Even a short distance, they entered a different environment and had to change they way they lived • They learned to raise different crops and different kinds of animals

6. Spread of Bantu culture • Bantu people would often move into areas where people had already lived • Sometimes they joined that group and the older cultures adopted the Bantu culture • Other times they forced the older culture out of the area • The Bantu knew metalworking and that allowed them to have Iron tools and more control over their environment • These migrations continued over many generations with groups moving whenever an area became crowded • The Bantu finally settled throughout the Central and Southern Africa

7. Questions??? • What were the main physical features of Africa? • Tropical rainforests located on either side of the Equator, Savanna north and south of the equator, desert areas with oases and high temps are located north and south of the Savanna • Why are the Bantu migrations an important part of African history? • Largest population movements in all of human history, affected large parts of Africa

8. Kingdoms of Savanna • Mali was a rich kingdom of the West African savanna- King was Mansa Musa • Kingdoms of the savanna controlled the trade routes across the Sahara • The Niger River was also an important trade route • Traders traveling through there had to pay taxes on all goods • Because they were rich the rulers kept peace and order throughout the land • So merchants and their caravans could travel safely from one place to another

9. Ghana, A Kingdom Built on Trade • Salt and Gold were the basis of West African trade • The salt came from mines in the Central Sahara and was very valuable • It was needed to flavor foods, preserve meats and maintain good health • Salt was scarce in the rain forest region so people of the rain forest traded gold to get salt • The first African kingdom based on wealth of salt and gold trade was Ghana • By 400, the people of Ghana took control of the trade routes across the Sahara because its location was ideal • By 800, Ghana was a major trading kingdom

10. Ghana’s capital, Kumbi Saleh, was divided into two cities. One was the center of trade and the other was the royal city where they king had his court and handed down his decisions • Around 1000, Ghana began to weaken • Invaders from the North overan the capital and other cities • By 1200, Ghana had broken into small independent states • Soon trade was controlled by a powerful new kingdom called Mali

11. Powerful kingdom of Mali • Mali was in the Upper Niger Valley • Under the leadership of Sundiata Mali took control of the Gold and Salt trade • By 1255, when Sundiata died, Mali was rich from trade and had become the most powerful kingdoms in West Africa • In 1312, Mansa Musa became the ruler • By this time, traders from North Africa brought a new religion, Islam • Mansa Musa expanded his kingdom and made the official religion Islam • He made a pilgrimage to Mecca and created new ties with the Muslims of North Africa and Southwest Asia

12. During his 25 years, Mansa Musa used his ties to the Muslim people to make Mali a center of learning • Scholars came to teach religion, mathematics, medicine, and law • In the late 1300’s, Mali’s power began to fade • Raiders attacked from the north • Several provinces broke away and became independent • One of the former provinces became an empire in its own right and was called Songhai

13. Rise and Fall of Songhai • Songhai became the leading kingdom of the West African savanna during the 1400’s • They also controlled salt and gold in their time • The wealth and power grew when it conquered the rich trading city of Tomboutou in 1468 • In less than 100 years they began to lose power • In the late 1500’s, they began to fight amongst themselves

14. Kingdom of the Forest • During the time of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai, there were kingdoms that arose around the rainforest to the south of the grasslands or savanna • They were not muslims and had a religion that worshiped hundreds of gods • Two of the most important kingdoms centered around cities of Ile-Ife and Benin • Trade also made these forest kingdoms powerful and wealthy • Because of their wealth and stability they were able to support a larger population than other rain forest regions

15. Ile-Ife: A Center of Culture and Trade • About 1000, Ile-Ife bacame a major cultural and trading center • The powerful leaders were called onis • Little is known about these people but oral story tellers say it was “the place the world was created.” • One of the reasons we know so little is because the modern town of Ife is located on top of the original city • The region is thickly forested and damp and trees have covered old sites outside of the town • Most of the important artifacts that survived are sculptures and those were only discovered within the last 10 years • Many are lifelike and show the portraits of the onis

16. Benin Rules an Empire • Benin dates back to 1200 • Workers in that region minded copper, iron, and gold • The leaders were called obas and sold slaves to African traders • Many were forced to work as servants for rich families on the savanna • By the 1500’s, Benin was at its greatest strength and size • The oba controlled a large army, priests, govt workers, and less important local chiefs • The city also ruled trade routes along the rivers to the north and south • It became very rich

17. It remained strong until late 1600’s where the kingdom began to lose power over the region • It also became a center of art • The obas hired skilled artists to make many beautiful objects from bronze, brass, ivory, and copper • The artists of Benin and other West African Kingdoms unfluenced modern artists in Europe and the Americas

18. Questions???? • What were the names of the three major kingdoms of the West African savanna? • Ghana, Mali, and Songhai • What made them rich? • Trade • What were the names of the two major kingdoms of the rain forest? • Ile-Ife and Benin