Bellringer 2-8-13

1. List 3 facts from your reading of Chapter 13 yesterday. Bellringer2-8-13

2. Medieval Africa Chapter 13

3. The Rise of African Civilizations Section 1

4. 2nd largest continent • Most of Africa lies in the Tropics • Sahara desert North • Kalahari South • Almost all of Africa rests on a plateau an area of high flat land • Nile River • Congo River • Great Rift Valley Africa’s Geography

5. Berbers first known people to settle North Africa • Traded salt and cloth for gold and ivory • During Medieval period, African empires were bigger than most European kingdoms in wealth and size. West African Empires

6. Ghana rose to power in the AD 400s. • “crossroads of trade” • Taxes paid at these crossroads made Ghana rich. • Made iron weapons • Controlled groups who had gold • Salt was very valuable Ghana

7. Gold discovered outside of Ghana’s control, led to lower prices. • Ghana fell in the 1200s and the kingdom of Mali replaced it. • West African griots (storytellers) give credit to a great warrior-king named Sundiata Keita or the “Lion Prince”. • He ruled from 1230 to 1255 • Took control of Ghana’s capital and Timbuktu. • Rebuilt gold and salt trade. Mali

8. Mansa Musa was Mali’s last strong king. • 1468, Sunni Ali, the leader of Songhai stormed into Timbuktu and drove out the Berbers • He used Songhai’s location along the Niger River to his advantage. • Ordered a fleet of war canoes to seize control of the river trade • Took Berber salt mines • By his death in 1492, he had built the largest empire in West Africa. • Empire lasted almost 100 more years Rise of Songhai

9. Griots who live in the Niger delta still tell stories about King Ewuare who founded the empire of Benin around 1440. • Farmers in the rain forest had several advantages • Soil • Warm, wet climate • Often had a surplus of bananas, yams, or rice. • Traded these surpluses for copper, salt, and leather goods from the savannas. Kingdoms of the Rain Forest

10. Queen Makeda rose to the throne of the Saba empire, or Sheba • Glory of the King’s, Africa’s oldest written history, said Makeda traveled to meet with King Solomon of the Israelites. • Once he returned, he introduced Israel’s religion to her empire. East Africa

11. Ethiopia, known in ancient times as Abyssinia did not decline like other African empires of the time. • Abyssinia’s power came from the city of Axum which was located on the Red Sea. • AD 300, King Ezana of Axum sent his armies against Kush and defeated it. Rise of Axum

12. Africa’s Government and Religion Section 2

13. Kings settled arguments, managed trade, and protected the empire. • Merchants would receive favors from the kings and the kings would receive taxes from the merchants. • Kings of Ghana relied upon a council of ministers. • No one could trade without the king’s permission. • No one could own gold nuggets except the king. • In Ghana, the king’s nephew, sister’s son, was the next to rule. Government andSociety

14. Had many officials • King’s divided the empire into provinces • “National Honor of the Trousers” Mali’sGovernment

15. Sunni Ali divided empire into provinces, but he never finished setting up his empire, as he moved from one fight to another. • Muhammad Ture took over after Sunni Ali’s death. Songhai’sGovernment

16. Many Europeans believed Africans did not have a religion • OlaudahEquiano disagreed • Member of the Igbo • “believed that there is one Creator of all things, and that he…governs events, especially our deaths and captivity.” • Most African tribes shared the Igbo belief in one supreme god. • Nanti in East Africa thought people could speak directly with their god. • Igbo thought their god could only be spoken to through lesser gods. • Many believed that when their relatives died, their spirits stayed with the community. Traditional African Religions

17. Ibn Battuta young Arab lawyer from Morocco traveled the Islamic world. • Many believed Sundiata Keita and Sunni Ali did not do enough to advance the faith of Islam. • He found that in West Africa, women did not cover their faces, but many did study the Quran Islam inAfrica

18. Mansa Musa had allowed different religions, but had worked to make Islam stronger • He used the wealth of Mali to build mosques and set up libraries at Timbuktu that collected books from the Muslim world. • 1324, Mansa Musa made Mali known to the world as he set out on a journey to Mecca. • He brought a huge caravan and convinced some of the best architects to return to Mali with him. Mali and Mansa Musa

19. Sunni Ali practiced the traditional religion of the Songhai, but declared himself a Muslim to keep the support of his townspeople. • Muhammad Ture drove Ali’s family from Songhai in a bloody war, then took the name Askia, a rank in the Songhai army. • Under Askia Muhammad, Songhai build the largest empire in medieval Africa. Songhai and Askia Muhammad

20. 1331, Ibn Battuta visited Mogadishu the sultan. • This sultan spoke in Arabic, then again in Swahili. • Swahili Arabic for “people of the coast” • Today, this is a blend of African and Muslim culture • Muslim schools drew people in from all across Africa. Islam in East Africa

21. African Society and Culture Section 3

22. 3000 BC, fishing groups along the Benue River packed their belongings and moved south and west. • These “wanderers” called themselves Bantu, meaning “the people” • By AD 400, Bantu had settled much of Africa. • Today, more than 120 million Africans speak a form of Bantu, including Swahili. • The Bantu believed in one supreme creator and as spirit world where ancestors lived. Life in Medieval Africa

23. Education was carried out by the family and neighbors. • Students learned the history of their culture and skills they needed as adults. • Oral history stories passed down from generation to generation. Education andCommunity

24. Some women were soldiers in African kingdoms. • AD 600s, Queen Dahiaal-Kahina led the fight against a Muslim invasion. • Queen Nzinga spend almost 40 years battling Portuguese slave traders. Role of Women

25. 1441, a Portuguese sea captain captured 12 Africans and they became the first African slaves brought back to Europe. • Bantu chiefs would raid nearby villages and take captives who became their slaves. • Enslaved Africans might earn their freedom through hard work or marrying a free person. • The Quran forbade the enslavement of Muslims, but allowed non-Muslims to be slaves. Slavery

26. Many of the first African slaves worked in Portugal. • Eventually, slaves began working on sugar cane plantations. European Slave Trade

27. Cave paintings are the earliest form of art from Africa. • Would late use wood, ivory, and bronze for carvings. • Music expressed religious feelings or got people through everyday tasks. • Believed dance allowed the spirits to express themselves. • Music of hardship, sung by slaves, was the basis for the modern day genre of the blues. • Griots remained important. African Culture

28. People often lived in extended families families made up of several generations. • Many villages, especially the Bantu were matrilineal, meaning they traced their descent through mothers rather than fathers. • Yoruba believed an ancestor could be reborn into a child. Importance of Family