Ancient Ghana

1. Ancient Ghana Jowan Ball Caleb Rodriguez Leo-Tavio Nunes Joshua Santos

2. Years of Existence and Location • Ghana existed between 800 A.D and 1000 A.D. • Its location is 7 degrees north and 17 degrees west.

3. Leotavio Nunes non-participation!!! 

4. Human Environment Interaction • 4a) Since the Kingdom of Ghana was just above the Niger River, they had access to clean, fresh water used for drinking, washing clothes, and taking showers (http://africa.mrdonn.org, October 8, 2011). Ghana controlled the trade between salt and gold in West Africa because they had more resources than other kingdoms did at the time. Many merchants used Ghana as a trade route to resupply between journeys and they traded some of their own minerals before continuing their trip. “They were taxed for both what they brought in and what they took out.” Ghana had a very high reputation after it became wealthy which caused other nations to get jealous. A Muslim group in a nearby civilization known as the Almoravids tried to take control of Ghana to gain all the power, but they were quickly eliminated. Ghana didn’t only have gold, but they had the Niger River right below them which supplied them with fresh water for agriculture, domesticating animals, drinking, washing clothes, etc… This kingdom was located in the savannah which indicated that they had decent soil for growing crops. They also had a lot of water and sunlight so getting food was fairly easy for them. Not only did they use agriculture for food, but because of their rich environment, many animals migrated here for water and food. These animals were domesticated and later cooked and eaten. With the large amount of animals, there was enough food for the whole village (www.ushistory.org, October 8, 2011). • How did humans interact with the environment? How did they adapt to the climate of the region?

5. 4b) Ghana became rich because they had a very important mineral: gold. Ghana controlled the trade between salt and gold in West Africa because they had more resources than other kingdoms did at the time. This kingdom was located in the savannah, so to produce money they mined gold as well as collected taxes from merchants who travelled through their village. Ghana was one of the richest civilizations until a terrible drought took over one day. This caused a major decline in gold mining which caused them to lose their reputation of being rich. Because of this drought, merchants stopped using Ghana as a trade route because they couldn’t stop and resupply there anymore with the drought still going on. After the drought passed, they had very little water and caused animals such as sheep, cows and goats to migrate to another area (ghanaweb.com October 8, 2011). • What types of mineral and other resources did the kingdom have? How were these resources used?

6. movement • A: Ghana was rich for many things but although they were rich they didn’t have salt. They needed to trade gold for salt and in ancient Ghana salt was a very big deal in that time. Basically goods were moved from time to time. So Ghana depended on trade for salt. Ghana started to trade with northern kingdoms as well, that’s only because the kingdoms in the north were lacking lots of gold. Every trade was once for once. Also as far as Ghana concerned the northern kingdom was fair with their trade so the trade was going to continue. (ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/history/ancient_ghana.php) (oct.15.2011) • What goods were moved/ traded in the kingdom? With which other places/ kingdoms/ regions did they trade?

7. Ancient Ghana gained more power also made more money from gold. When camels became popular it increased the percentage of goods that were being traded and moved to the northern empires because they had little gold in the northern empires. (ancientafricad.wikispaces.com/Ancient+Ghana+Trade) (oct.15.2011)

8. B: The people of Ghana came from farmers, miners, and artists. The farmers, miners, and artists they had children. Also their children never went to school during that the time when they were kids. But, they had Griots. Griots were the people who keep the story passing on to the next generation of their family or friends. There was always someone in the family who was responsible for being the griot. (africa.mrdonn.org/ghana.html) (oct.15.2011) • Where did people go? Where did they come from? Were there people coming in from other parts of the world? What ideas did they bring with them that “diffused” into the culture of your kingdom?

9. C: In the sub-Saharan Africa as Islam provided differently new influences and contacts without African culture. A number of social, religious, and technological changes took into effect. It influenced many of the different people that lived throughout the continent also in the realms of ancient Ghana. (http://www.emayzine.com/lectures/Africa%20and%20the%20Spread%20of%20Islam.html) (oct.15.2011) • How did the movement of goods, people and ideas influence your kingdom?

10. Region The kingdom of Ghana had many resources like gold and water and they gained salt from trading with other empires. As long as all the citizens worked together, they lived a good, rich life. “The earliest of the west African states to develop was Ghana.” During the time that Ghana reigned, it developed greatly with kings and rulers such as TunkaManin (library.thinkquest.org, October 11, 2011). The leader of all the leaders was called the Ghana. He was the most important person in the civilization because whatever he says goes. Also, he controlled the cities’ trade activities and he was the commander and chief of a highly organized army. Whenever there was a conflict in the community, he served as the judge in the court. He would hear both sides of the story and give his judgment about the case. Unless it involved denying a debt or shedding blood, the consequences were reportedly peaceful. • A: How did the kingdoms geopolitical region influence its development? Explain what other kingdoms/societies/cultures were next to/around them and how they influenced them.

11. Interesting Facts • The kingdom is still standing and is moved to a different part of the area it used to be in. The president there today is John Atta Mills who was elected in the year 2009. The ancient empire of Ghana reigned supreme until the 13th century. Ghana today is bounded by Cote d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. Ghana is compared to the size of Oregon and the largest river in the empire is the Volta. The government is a constitutional democracy. Several major civilizations flourished in the general region of what is now Ghana. Its national holiday Is Independence Day which is celebrated on March 6. The race in Ghana is made from black African which conserves about 98.5% (major tribes: Akan 44%, Moshi-Dugomba 16%, Ewe 13 1%, Ga 8%, Gurma 35, and Yoruba 1%). European and other is 1.5% in 1998. Major industries are conserved for mining, lumbering, light manufacturing, aluminum smelting, food processing, cement, and small commercial ship building. Religion in Ghana is Christian 63%, Native beliefs 21%, and Islam 16%.

12. 2 important sources that told historians about the history of the kingdom of Ghana were the writings of a Spanish Muslim named Al-Bakin and archeological finds. The kings of Ghana controlled the gold that was mined in their kingdom and made a system for taxes of their people. Archeologists have worked at excavating a site that many believe to be one of the king’s cities of the kingdom of Ghana, Kombi Salah. The birth rate was approximately 28/1000, the growth rate was about 1.8% and its mortality rate was about 49.9/1000. Its land area was 88,811 sq. miles.

13. The End