Africa
Dec 18, 2015
Nubia / Kush (3000 BC – AD 350) • Southern part of the Nile River Valley• Interaction with Egypt
– Under Egyptian rule (c. 1500 BC – 1000 BC)– Cultural diffusion:
Egyptian gods found on Nubian gold• King Piankhi – 724 BC invaded & conquered Egypt• Pushed out of Egypt by Assyrians in 671 BC
(bronze v. iron weapons)• New capital at Meroë – successful trading center
(gold, ivory, animal skins, perfume, slaves & timber)• Nubian culture:
polytheistic, artistic & an undeciphered alphabet • Invaded by King Ezana of Axum AD 350
Axum (300 BC – AD 600) • Ethiopia to the Red Sea (Eritrea) • Unique culture (African & Middle Eastern)• Geez language• Adulis - major trading center that connected India,
Africa & the Mediterranean (from inland: ivory, animal hides & gold; by ship: iron, spices, precious stones, & Indian cotton)
• King Ezana – Converted to Christianity– AD 350 invaded & conquered Nubia
• Over time, as Islam spread & Axum didn’t convert, they became distanced from the growing trade and declined
Ethiopia (1200 - 1550)• King Lalibela (c. 1200) – ordered the building of at
least 11 rock churches that were carved from ground-level down into the solid rock
• Christian culture mixed with East African music• Church services still conducted in Geez
Ethiopia cont.• Falasha – group of Ethiopian Jews that claim descent
from the Queen of Sheba and the Israelite King Solomon (according to Ethiopian tradition, the Arc of the Covenant is said to be in this Ethiopian church – brought from Jerusalem by Sheba’s son, King Menelik)
East African Trade “Zanzibar, Dar es Salaam,
Comoros, Mombasa, Mogadishu, Bombay, Mangalore…” The names
of places strewn along the rim of the Indian Ocean tripped like a
melody off the old sailor’s tongue. “I visited them all and more. From here in Africa we sailed with ivory, mangrove, coconuts, tortoise and
cowrie shells. From Arabia we brought dates, whale oil, carpets,
and incense. From India pots, glassware, and cloth. Trade was our
life, you see.” - National Geographic
Swahili culture & language that emerged out of the E. African, Asian & Middle
Eastern trade
East AfricaCritical Thinking Questions
1. Did geography have a positive or negative impact on East Africa? Explain.
2. Which individual had the greatest impact on East African history?
3. How did cultural diffusion affect each of the East African Kingdoms?
4. How did the architecture of Ethiopia reflect its values?
Ghana (AD 300 – 1200)
• West Africa by the Niger & Senegal rivers
• ghana – king (acted as religious leader, chief judge & military commander)
• Trade – gold (from the forest area between the rivers) & salt (from the Sahara) – merchants met in the middle, under the watchful eye of the king’s tax collectors (also ensured accuracy of weights and provided security)
• c. 1000, Ghana converted to Islam (although some stayed with animistic beliefs) → literacy increased in order to study the Quran
• 1076 – conquered by Muslim Almoravids of North Africa
Mali (AD 1235 – 1400)
• Founded by Mande-speaking people south & east of Ghana
• Sundiata Keita (r. 1235 – 1255)– 1st mansa, or emperor– Took over the old kingdom of
Ghana– Reestablished the gold-salt
trade– Moved capital to Niani– Mali (“where the king lives”)
became the name of the empire
Mali (cont.)
• Mansa Musa (r. 1312-1332)– Expanded the empire to
2x the size of Ghana– Divided the empire into provinces w/ governors– Devout Muslim
• Went on hajj 1324-1325• Ordered the building new mosques at Timbuktu &
Gao → Timbuktu became a center of learning because of the reputation from the hajj, the mosque & the universities attracted Muslim judges, doctors, religious leaders & scholars
• Empire declined in the late 1300s due to a lack of strong leaders & the discovery of gold further east
Songhai (c. 1400s – 1591)
• Gao was the capital• Sunni Ali (r. 1464 – 1492)
– Cavalry & a fleet of war canoes– 1468 – captured Timbuktu
• Askia Muhammad (r. 1492 – 1527)– drove out Sunni Ali’s son because
he was not a devout Muslim– Set-up an efficient government– Empire thrived
• 1591 – conquered by Moroccan troops w/ gunpowder & cannons
West AfricaCritical Thinking Questions
1. Did geography have a positive or negative impact on West Africa? Explain.
2. Which individual had the greatest impact on West African history?
3. How did cultural diffusion affect each of the West African Kingdoms?
4. How did the architecture of Mali reflect its values?
Great Zimbabwe(cont.)
• Great Zimbabwe means “stone house”
• Largest ruins in Africa – covers 1,800 acres– Walls are 30 ft. high– No mortar between the stones
• In the center was the house of the Zimbabwe chief
• As many as 40,000 people lived at the complex
Critical Thinking Questions1. Which African kingdom did geography
have the greatest impact on?
2. Which individual had the greatest impact on African history?
3. Choose an African Kingdom & show how it’s art/architecture reflected the values of the kingdom.
4. How did the movement of goods & people affect the different areas of Africa (East, West & South)?