If you were a new settler in Africa where would you want to live?

1. If you were a new settler in Africa where would you want to live? Why?(Provide specific reasons according to geography)

2. African Civilizations How did physical geography influence early African settlements? ------------------------------ Section 1 What landform makes up North Africa? (see video) • The large area of the Sahara desert in northern Africa forced people to move south, into the savannas of west Africa. • The Sahara Desert

3. What type of vegetation region covers more than 40% of Africa? (Animated Map) Describe this type of region. What vegetation zones make up west Africa? • Savannas are flat grasslands that have few trees. Savannas cover most of central, east, and southern Africa. • Desert, grasslands, and forests.

4. Which rivers and lakes are dominant in western Africa? Describe some environments Africans had to adapt to. • Senegal, Niger, and Benue rivers. • Lake Volta and Lake Chad • Dry Sahara Desert • Flat Savannas • Mountains in east Africa • Tropical rain forests in central Africa

5. What are some causes of desertification? ------------------------------ Bantu People Who were Bantu people; where were they from? • Climate change and human activity, such as overgrazing, burning wood or dry grasses for fuel, and stripping the land of vegetation. • West African people who spoke more than 450 similar languages based on the parent language of Bantu.

6. From the map on p.339, describe Bantu migrations. Explain kinship, clans, and the way of life for many Africans. (Read Work and Culture, discuss). • Bantu people migrated south and east around the rain forests and savannas. • Kinship groups (families) formed governments. People of similar clans often followed the same rules of culture. Many Africans farmed as a way of life.

7. My website – Classzone Online Book – Animated History – Chapters 11-15 – Chapter 12 – Modern Griots • My website – Web Resources – Chapter 12, Africa – Mr. Dowling’s Africa (Griots) • My website – World History Documents – Chapter 12 Africa – African Folk Tales

8. Explain what a griot was and why they were important. Explain animism and provide an example. (from textbook) • Griots were story tellers who memorized African history. Without griots, history would have been lost. • Animism is a religious belief that natural objects have souls or spirits. Native Americans’ religion was also based on animism.

9. Read the article of African Folk Tales. Choose a few of the animals that are interesting to you and take notes that you can share with the class. My website – World History Documents – Chpt 12, Africa – African Folk Tales

10. Section 2 - Ghana List the three west African trading empires from 800s – 1500s. Explain where gold and salt were located. What did this cause? (Listen to and read Starting with a Story, Trading Gold for Salt.) • Ghana – 800s–1000s • Mali – 1200s–1400s • Songhai – 1400s–1500s • The forests of west Africa had gold and north Africa had salt. The Trans-Saharan trade routes were formed to exchange salt, gold, food, and slaves.

11. How was trade different after camels came into use? How did Ghana’s king help the empire become wealthy and powerful? • Camels can cover great distances without food or water, known as “ships of the desert.” • He kept gold a secret, limiting its trade, and taxed other goods.

12. Who were the Berbers? What caused the fall of Ghana? (Read article) • Muslims from northern Africa. They introduced Arabic and Islam to west African empires. • Almoravids, Muslims from northern Africa, declared war on Ghana and captured the capital city of Koumbi Saleh

13. Mali What did Sundiata, leader of the Malinke people, do to improve Mali? (See Mr. Dowling) Describe Mansa Musa and his hajj. (See Mr. Dowling) • Sundiata expanded Mali, re-established gold/salt trade, and expanded trade routes. Sundiata also developed Timbuktu, supported farming, and combined Islam with his traditional beliefs. • Mansa Musa allowed his subjects to practice their own religion. He made a pilgrimage to Mecca which brought attention to Africa.

14. How did Mansa Musa’s death affect the empire of Mali? How were Sundiata and Mansa Musa’s religious beliefs different? • Descendants argued about who should rule, which caused internal fighting. The Songhai in the east and Berbers in the north gained strength. • Sundiata combined traditional beliefs with Islam, Mansa Musa was a pure Muslim.

15. Songhai Why did Sunni Ali kill people in Timbuktu? How did Askia Muhammad expand the Songhai empire? • What happened to Askia Muhammad? • (see p. 346 inset) • He was asked by Muslim leaders to help remove Berbers from the city. • Askia took control of the salt mines, organized a strong government, and spread Islam through scholars. • His son banished him to an island on the Niger river, until a year before he died.

16. Section 3 • Explain how Aksum became a powerful trading kingdom. • What was Aksum’s main trading port? What were Aksum’s achievements. • Its location on the Horn of Africa allowed access to the Red Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Indian Ocean and Nile River. • Adulis • Great stone pillars, the written language Ge’ez, and farmers adapted their land with terraces.

17. Why was Kilwa an historically important city? • Explain what a zimbabwe is and in which empire were they were located? • (Find zimbabwes) • African and Arab traders mixed, creating the language of Swahili, and many African converted to Islam. • Zimbabwes are settlements circled by large stone walls. • Shona Empire

18. Briefly explain the history of Kongo: • Where was it located? • Who was the leader? • What was the national religion? • Who did it trade with? • what was the outcome of that trade? • North and South of the Congo River Basin. • Afonso I • Roman Catholic • Portuguese • Slave trade drained West Africa’s population.

19. How did Geography affect early African civilizations? Name:____________________

20. How did human factors such as leadership, trade, and empires shape African civilizations?