The African Kingdoms
Starting Points Africa is the second largest
continent in the world Has a wide variety of
climates and environments, from desert to grassland to rainforest
Africa also has a huge amount of natural resources (minerals, gems, iron, etc.)
The continent’s geography dramatically shaped the way Africa developed
More on Geography low, wide plains run
across the northern and the western interior
High plains on top of plateaus run across the central and southern interior
The Great Rift Valley is in the east, where many narrow lakes and rivers are located
Several mountain ranges are located toward the outer part of the continent
Climate/Vegetation The Sahara Desert makes up most
of northern Africa, though there are oases scattered throughout the region
The Sahel, a strip of plains just south of the Sahara, is fairly dry but has not as hot as the desert
The Savanna, a tropical grassland, is even farther south and contains many herds of animals – the majority of Africans live here
Tropical rain forests are located near the Equator
Learning to Adapt Farmers had to learn how
to grow crops with little water and poor soil
Rainfall was very unpredictable – too little and there wouldn’t be enough land for livestock to graze on – too much and the grasslands would flood, washing away any good soil
Harmful parasites thrive in the tropical areas and spread diseases like malaria and sleeping sickness
Early African Societies The earliest farming
societies in Africa settled in the Sahara region – it was much wetter then
Over time, the climate changed and these people had to migrate – many went west and others moved the Mediterranean coast
As they migrated to different areas, a variety of diverse cultures developed
Social Structure Many African societies
shared common features even though they were separated from one another
Many societies developed cultures around clans – families with common ancestors
Extended families were very common
Everyone had a specific role in society, and members of a village were extremely loyal
Religion and Culture Many Africans believed that the spirits of their ancestors were
always nearby, so they needed to honor the spirits by making sacred spaces
These spaces were marked with statues and family members would gather there to share news and food – they believed this would convince the spirits to protect them
Africans also believed in animism Not very many early societies developed a writing system – most of
their identity came from oral traditions (songs, stories, poems, etc.) Griots – the storytellers – they had the responsibility of memorizing
and sharing a society’s oral tradition with the next generation. They were highly respected
Music, dance, and art were very important in most kingdoms – these were seen in religious ceremonies and many daily activities
Africa’s Iron Age
When Africans learned how to produce high-quality iron, it allowed them to make new tools and weapons that advanced their societies
Nok – one of the first societies that learned iron working – they became better farmers, hunters, and warriors – their power increased as well
Learning how to use iron also allowed Africans to move to new places – they could clear the land for more space to grow food
The Bantu Bantu refers to a group of languages
that are related to one another As the Africans began to migrate
around the continent, Bantu languages spread and so did knowledge of farming and ironworking technology
Bantu-speaking groups used their language and information to gain power and soon became the dominant groups throughout much of Africa
Bantu societies became more complex – leadership revolved around food and social status was measured by the size of your cattle herd
East Africa
Aksum Aksum was a state made up of
descendents of farmers and migrants from Arabia
Became wealthy through trade – its location made land and sea trade very easy and Aksum gained access to rare items
King Ezana helped make Aksum strong by having the military attack nearby kingdoms
Eventually Aksum defeated Kush and became the greatest power in East Africa
Aksum Culture Trade brought Aksum new
products and new ideas Traders eventually brought
Christianity to the region – King Ezana became a convert and made Christianity the official religion of his kingdom
Ge-ez – the written and spoken language of Aksum, it is still used in the region today
Aksum also used coins to regulate its economy
The Decline of Aksum Muslim invaders gradually
conquered lands all around Aksum and the kingdom became isolated from other Christian societies
Muslims destroyed Aksum’s main port city and crippled their sea trade
While Aksum wasn’t ever conquered, the kingdom’s people moved into what is now Ethiopia
Ethiopia Name refers to the region
around Aksum, began to develop under the Zagwe dynasty
King Lalibela, the most famous Zagwe ruler, helped spread Christianity in the area
Christianity became a unifying force in Ethiopia because the area was surrounded by Muslms
Christianity in Ethiopia incorporated many African religious traditions as well
The Solomonid Dynasty Second dynasty of Christian
kings, the rulers claimed to be descendents of King Solomon, ruled for 700 years
The first kings fought many religious wars, especially against Jews who lived in the area
While they couldn’t make the Jews leave their land, the Solomonid leaders heavily persecuted them
Muslim kingdoms formed around Ethiopia and tried to take them over, but Ethiopia was strong enough to remain independent
Rise of the City-States City-states developed along
Africa’s east coast partially due to monsoon winds
The winds made trade with India and Asia much easier and a strong trade network developed
The city-states linked the coast with traders from Africa’s interior
Merchants in the city-states would trade Asian luxury items for African raw resources (porcelain, silk, and cotton was traded for ivory, gold, and SLAVES)
Kilwa became the most powerful city-state because of its location
Swahili
Many Arabs migrated to the coastal city-states and began to blend African and Muslim traditions
Some Bantu-speaking kingdoms began to adopt Arabic words and phrases
The new language that developed was called Swahili and quickly spread along the coast
Great Zimbabwe
Developed between the Limpopo and Zambezi rivers, in the eastern interior if Africa
Great Zimbabwe was built on a major trade route linking interior gold mines with the eastern city-states
The Great Enclosure Zimbabwe means “stone
houses” – the biggest structure is known as the G.E.
We don’t know exactly what it was used for – display of rulers’ power, observatory, something else
Great Zimbabwe was abandoned, possibly because the land was overgrazed
The Mutapa Empire
When Great Zimbabwe fell apart, one of the empire’s former residents moved north and founded Mutapa
The empire grew wealthy by controlling all trade in the region and by exporting gold
Kingdoms of West Africa
Ghana Land had many resources, but
it had no sea access and was blocked by the Sahara, it took centuries before they formed a trade route across the desert
Once trade routes were built, the area became a trading powerhouse and kings became rich by taxing trade goods – except gold
Ghana did not have a permanent army, but the kings would call up the military when needed to protect the region
The military conquered other groups in the area, and captives were sold into slavery
Ghana’s Decline When kings tried to
expand their empire to the north, they encountered a Muslim empire and war broke out
The Muslims won and briefly took over Ghana, but they did not stay
When the Muslims left, the people of Ghana began to rebel against their king and the empire fell apart
The Mali Empire Formed about 150 years after
Ghana collapsed – controlled the same territory but also expanded out to the Pacific coast
Sundiata – a Mali king who made his kingdom powerful by conquering his neighbors
Mansa Musa – helped expand Mali and made it very wealthy through taxation on trade, he kept the area peaceful by building a large army to protect trade routes
Mali’s population grew to about 40 million under Mansa Musa
Decline of Mali Mansa Musa was a devout
Muslim and had schools, mosques, libraries, and other public structures built to help his people – Timbuktu became the cultural center of West Africa
Unfortunately, rulers after Mansa Musa were very weak and people began to break away form the empire – at the same time, the empire was attacked by foreigners
Songhai A small kingdom that existed next to Ghana and Mali
– paid them money and remained independent Sunni Ali – a Songhai military leader who took over
Timbuktu and conquered many Songhai neighbors After conquering other groups, he replaced their
leaders with his own loyal followers Askia Muhammad – Songhai’s first Muslim ruler who
ruled during its Golden Age, reformed the government and expanded its territory
Askia was overthrown by his son – the son was a weak ruler and the empire soon lost power and was conquered
Other West African States Hausa City-States:
independent city-states that cooperated and traded with each other, used slave labor to increase trade and wealth
Yoruba Kingdoms: built many small but strong kingdoms, were great and respected artists
Benin: made a living by trading with Europeans – at first they traded slaves but later switched to trading art and natural resources – helped make Portugal major world power