Trading States of Africa

Trading States and Kingdoms of Africa – 20 Questions1. Define Mosque & city-state2. What time of day did most trade

across the Sahara take place?3. Why was salt trade so important

to people on the savannas?4. What was the most important

resource on the savanna?5. What was the first kingdom on

the open plains?6. What does ghana mean?7. What was the strength of the

Ghana empire?8. Why did Ghana fall as an

empire?9. Which group in the plains rose to

power after Ghana?10. What was the strength of the Mali

empire?

1. How did Islam influence Mali?2. Why did Mali fall from power?3. What was the strength of

Songhai?4. Why did Songhai fall from

power?5. What was the strength of the

Forest Kingdom of Benin?6. Why did Benin fall from power?7. Why did city-states in East

Africa rise to power?8. Why did city-states in East

Africa fall from power?9. What does Zimbabwe mean?10.Why did Zimbabwe rise to

power and fall from power?

Patterns of Life & The Slave Trade1. How were traditional African

families set up?2. How did lineage and the clan

effect the development of African culture?

3. How has the consensus created a sense of government in Africa?

4. What are subsistence farmers?5. What problems developed in

Africa because of subsistence farming?

6. How were women treated in African culture? (3 examples)

7. Describe the difference between matrilineal and patrilineal

8. What is the age grade system?9. What are characteristics of

traditional African Religions?10. How have Judaism, Christianity,

and Islam changed African culture?

1. Did Europeans create slavery?2. What was the first European nation

to explore the coasts of Africa?3. When did the demand for slaves

increase for European nations?4. How did slavery exist in African

society before European contact?5. Describe the Middle Passage6. Who supplied Europeans with

slaves?7. When did abolition begin?8. How did slavery effect life in

Africa? (5 examples)9. According to the charts on pg. 96,

where did most slaves go in the 1800s?

10.How was the development of Sierra Leone and Liberia unique in African society?

Ghana – gold 500-1076 West Side

• 1st powerful kingdom in West Africa (Senegal and Niger Rivers); ghana – war chief

• Soninke people started the kingdom in 500 A.D.; an emperor ruled the kingdom

• The Emperor controlled the gold trade; he ruled all the gold mines and created an army with his wealth

• His army was better equipped than neighboring• Trade routes brought salt, cloth, and horses to

Ghana; all traders had to pay a tax before entering Ghana

• Ghana’s power ended when other groups began controlling trade in the north

Mali – salt 1300-1500 West• A group from within Ghana’s empire gained

control of gold and salt trade• Mansa Musa became the emperor of Mali• He used his power to keep peace and order in

his empire• An Islamic Empire: Mansa Musa converted to

Islam, so did the people• Muslim traditions and architecture became

important to the Mali empire• After Mansa Musa, power declined as a series

of weak rulers failed to keep the kingdom united

Songhai – trade routes 1450-1600 West

• The empire began in the same region as Ghana and Mali

• The trading city Gao became the center of the empire

• Songhai leader, Sunni Ali, used his army to conquer neighboring trade cities

• Islamic traditions united the people in Songhai• Timbuktu became a center of Islamic learning

in West Africa

Benin – trade routes Central

• The forest kingdom developed on the Niger River Delta; location helped them control trade routes

• A strong central government helped the empire thrive

• The Benin people were great artisans creating woven goods, brass, wood, and ivory objects. They also used mastered the use of bronze

East African City States – trade routes 1200-1500 East Side

• Trade routes existed in East Africa since ancient times• Instead of large kingdoms in East Africa, city-states

emerged• City-State – a large town that has its own government

and usually controls the surrounding countryside• City states used the seasonal trade winds to travel to

India• Islam reached East Africa because of diffusion• The power of city-states ended when European nations

(Portugal) began exploring looking for routes towards the riches of Asia

Zimbabwe – gold 1300-1500s South Side

• Control of gold mines created wealth and power in Zimbabwe

• Zimbabwe means “great stone wall”• Remains of the great kingdom can still be seen

today• Expert builders created stone structures that

have withstood the weather and time• Archeological discoveries show that Zimbabwe

traders traded with India and China centuries before Europeans ever did

Homework

• Which kingdom or kingdoms would archaeologists have the best time finding artifacts? Hint: Use the map of Africa to find out what kingdoms are in what climate zones.

Ashanti People

Northern Tanzania Southern Kenya

Lineage

• Groups of families often traced their family tree to a common ancestor

• Families linked to each other by common ancestors formed clans

• Kinship encouraged cooperation and a sense of community

African Religions

• Religious differences are as great as language differences in Africa

• Religion unified groups of people

• People sought to find the origins of life and answers to basic moral questions

The Age-Grade System

• A system used bring children through to adulthood

• All people born in the same calendar year are part of the same Age-Grade

• They go through maturation rites together

• As they grow up, they join older Age-Grade groups

Patterns of Life

Africa

Family Ties

• Development of families in Africa is similar to the Middle East

• Hunting and Gathering – Nuclear families

• Farming and herding – Extended Families– Families shared work in farming communities– The eldest male led the families

• Families linked to each other by common ancestors formed clans

Government

• Most of Africa was tribal and not ruled as a large empire

• Village leaders discussed ideas openly to solve problems

• The village elders would make the final decisions reaching a consensus

The Economy

• Farmers and herders in river valleys and savannas produced enough to survive (subsistence farming)

• The type of farming you did depended on where you lived– Jungles – slash and burn, rotate fields– Savanna – success depended on precipitation

• Cattle herds determined wealth

Lives of Women

• Women played a prominent role in farming societies– Planting, weeding, harvesting, education

• Some tribes gave women great power– Women owned land and ruled home– Women determined the success of the

harvest• Many tribes gave women little power

– Women were property of their husband after marriage

Inheritance and Descent

• Matrilineal – family history traced through mother

– Ashanti Tribe – West Africa – Ghana

– Boys more connected to uncle than father

• Patrilineal – family history traced through father

– Property passed on to eldest son

Traditional Beliefs

• Like language, Africa has many religions

• Most religions were monotheistic and believed in the Supreme Being

• The Supreme Being was distant from their lives

• Lesser gods and spirits guided daily African beliefs

– Health, rain, harvest

Traditional Beliefs

• Ancestral beliefs

– Ancestors could help or hurt the tribes

– Ceremonies were performed to please the ancestors• Voodoo -

http://www.unitedstreaming.com/search/assetDetail.cfm?guidAssetID=87AA53D7-8CB3-48CA-85F9-76026110CB3

• Every object has a spirit– Hunters prayed

Diviners and Healers

• They explained the misfortunes in daily lives

• Answers were found in relationships b/w family members

• Herbal Medicine – researched today for modern cures

Christianity and Judaism

• Both reached Africa in ancient times• Christianity established strong roots in

Axum and Kush (Nile River & Red Sea)

• Jewish settlers created a home in Ethiopia, but have moved back to Israel

• Imperialism & Missionaries spread Christianity throughout the continent

Islam

• In Africa around the year 800 A.D.

• Strong Islamic states exist across the savanna region

Homework

• Page 92

• 2, 3, 5

• How does subsistence farming relate to trade and the development of cities?

Video Clip

• Madagascar– www.unitedstreaming.com/search/assetDetail.

cfm?guidAssetID=95FD9973-3633-491F-A9F8-B0420BE96961

• Ghana– http://www.unitedstreaming.com/search/asset

Detail.cfm?guidAssetID=73BF8D54-15FA-4013-AD1D-F180A9CBB783

The Slave Trade

European Exploration

• Europeans explored Africa as early as the 1400s

• The Atlantic Slave trade began as early as the 1500s

Slavery

• Slavery existed in Africa, and throughout the world since ancient times

• African tribes which lost wars became enslaved to the victors

• Some people sold themselves into slavery during famine

The height of Atlantic Slave Trade – look at chart on page 96

• 1700s – 60,000 Africans a year to the Americas

• Middle Passage – crammed ships hull where slaves were packed in as cargo

• Many slaves did not survive in Middle Passage

• Europeans relied on local African leaders to supply slaves; slaves for guns

End of Slave Trade

• Abolition – movement to end slavery

• Nations across Europe, Africa, and Americas ended slavery at different times

• First efforts were in 1500s

• 1807 Britain ended slave trade

• 1833 Britain ended slavery

• 1865 US ended slavery

Effects of Slavery

• African Diaspora

• Disruption of life within Africa– Family Life– Economic Life– Government– Etc

• Movement of African culture throughout the world

Free African Nations

• Sierra Leone and Liberia became first free states in Africa

• Sierra Leone – set up by freed British Slaves

• Liberia – Freemen from United States

The Scramble for Africa

What does the title mean?

European Imperialism: 3 Motives

•Religious

•Economic

•Political

How did Europe justify

imperialism?

“…to civilize the

uncivilized”

Religious

Christianity Civilization

•Bring superior religious beliefs to Africa

•Example of Ethnocentrism

True reason for

imperialism in Africa?

Economic

The Industrial Revolution ended the slave trade.

Why?

•From farms to factories•Slave labor became unprofitable

•Raw materials = Profits

Other Reasons for European Success

• New innovations of the Industrial Revolution

–Medical – treatment for malaria, yellow fever

–Military – Machine gun

The Industrial Revolution> the

need for raw materials and new

markets> Imperialism

If Africans are left in Africa

they will:

•Provide the raw materials for Europe’s factories

•European’s used Africans as cheap labor in their own countries

And buy the products the

factories produce (Market)

Why would they want European products?

Westernization

•If the Africans are westernized they will need the products of western factories.

•PoliticalEuropean nations

began competing with each other to claim and

conquer territory.

The competition was leading to war in Europe.

1884 Berlin Conference 14 nations in Europe meet to divide Africa between them.

Africans were never seriously

consulted.

Government, Goods, Money

The Effects of European Rule

What did European

competition mean for sub-Saharan

Africa?

Sub-Saharan African Culture

became a mix of traditional African,

Islamic, and Western culture.

• “If you woke up one morning and found that somebody had come to your house, and had declared that the house belonged to him, you would naturally be surprised, and you like to know by what arrangement”Jomo Kenyatta~Kenya

New Governments

• Europeans brought their form of government to Africa

• European laws impersonal; African laws based on discussion and consensus

• Europeans based law on right and wrong to exploit the Africans

• Direct Rule – Europeans lead • Indirect Rule – Africans lead under Euro

law

New Economy

• Europeans exploited mineral resources

• Raw materials went to Europe for finishing

• Subsistence farms and bartering became obsolete

• Africans had to borrow money to buy products and pay taxes

New Economy

• African men sold their labor to earn family income– Farming, mining

• Family structure crumbled with men gone

• Cash crop economies made Africa dependant on the industrial world

• Cash crop development discouraged growing food; food less profitable

New Goods & Services

• Roads, railroads, & telegraph

• Travel became easier for Europeans; Africans became the builders

• Railroads made migration of workers quicker (cut family ties)

• Telegraph made communication better; squash rebellions

New Goods and Services

• Medicine and schools improved

• The educated became elite citizens

• Education divided Africans– Those who believed in Traditional life– Those who believed in Western life

• On the brink of conflict

Homework

• Page – 104

•2-5