Africa

• Africa is mostly a huge plateau

• Africa has the world’s longest river

• Africa has the world’s largest desert

• For our purposes, Africa has five regions: North, West, East, Central, and South

Africa

• The sub-Saharan regions have some similar social characteristics

• The Bantus migrated throughout Africa which spread their language

• Many African languages have Bantu roots

Africa• Africa was a continent of

different tribes – none powerful enough to stand up to European invaders

• Africa was slowly taken over by Europe. By 1900 only two countries escaped colonization: Ethiopia and Liberia

• The Europeans even had a meeting – the Berlin Conference – to set rules for dividing up Africa

Africa

• The Europeans divided up Africa based on their goals and did not take into account tribal differences

• These differences later caused problems when African countries gained their independence and tribes fought against tribes

Africa

• The European powers exploited Africa for its natural resources

• In some places, like Kenya and South Africa, Europeans moved in in large numbers and established farms and cities using the native people for labor

• Lands where whites came to live permanently were called “Settler Colonies”

Africa

• Agriculture changed as Europeans planted cash crops

• These cash crops are still relied upon by African countries for revenue

• Why is reliance on one cash crop risky?

North Africa• North Africa consists

of Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, and Sudan

• The oldest African civilizations were in North Africa such as Egypt, Carthage, and Axum

• North Africa today is mostly Muslim and is considered part of the Arab world

North Africa• North Africa was the

breadbasket of the Roman Empire and later was colonized by the Europeans

• The Europeans built the Suez Canal in Egypt in the 1800’s – it was vital to Britain and its empire

• North Africa gained its independence from Europe after WWII

North Africa• Oil has helped the

economies of Libya, Algeria, and Tunisia in the 20th century but most high-paying jobs went to better educated foreigners

• Right now all of North Africa except Morocco is experiencing political and social turmoil as Islamic fundamentalism spreads

• What is the “Arab Spring”?

East Africa

• East Africa includes Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Seychelles

• Today, Somalia has become a failed state and different parts are under the control of different groups

• Most of the pirates that operate off the African coast are Somalian

East Africa

• Most scientists believe that human life began in East Africa

• Homo Habilis – “handy man”

• Homo Erectus – “erect man”

East Africa

• East Africa has always been an important part of the Indian Ocean trade network

• This made East Africa a cultural crossroads

• Example: Swahili is a language found in East Arica that has Bantu and Arabic roots

East Africa

• Tensions between tribes in Rwanda caused a genocide

• Tutsis and Hutus • Presidents of Rwanda

& Burundi killed• Hutus massacred

800,000+ Tutsis using clubs and machetes

East Africa

• The MasaiHerders and farmers Live in Kenya and

Tanzania

• The Kikuyu Largest tribe in KenyaOrganized the Mau Mau

against British rule which eventually resulted in independence

East Africa

• Biggest health problem in East Africa is HIV / AIDS

• Ignorance over transmission and treatment

• Numbers growing• US providing

medicine

West Africa

West Africa

• Land of three successive great trading empires of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai

• Trade based on gold for Salt

West Africa

West Africa

• Stateless Societies – society is ruled through family and not government

• Families cooperate and share power

West Africa

• Many countries like Ghana had difficult times after independence

• Civil War helped cause issues like blood diamonds

Central Africa

Democratic Republic

Of The Congo

Central Africa

• Although millions of Africans were sold into slavery from West Africa, the slave trade began in Central Africa

• Most slaves were sold to the Portuguese by Africans

Central Africa

• ColonialismThe “Scramble for

Africa”King Leopold II of

Belgium brutally controlled Congo

Colonialism often destroyed stateless societies and drew borders regardless of ethnic concerns

Southern Africa

Southern Africa

• White Clash for South AfricaDutch settled South

Africa around CapeBritish won territory

causing Dutch (Boers) to move inland

Dutch discovered gold and diamonds in new home

Southern AfricaBritish fought two wars

to conquer Dutch South Africa became

British colony but run by Dutch

Dutch began policy of Apartheid (segregation)

Blacks (ANC) fought back in guerrilla war

Nelson MandelaContinued poverty

African National Congress

Southern Africa

• British and Dutch came into contact with powerful Zulu tribe during 1800’s

• British fought two wars to subdue Zulus

• Zulus now a powerful political force in South Africa

Southern Africa

• Zimbabwe Formerly RhodesiaWhite settler colony In 1970’s blacks won ruleMugabe became

presidentMugabe forced whites

off farms Farms went to ruin and

Zimbabwe became failed state