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GEOGRAPHY OF AFRICA
DESERTS
MOUNTAINSRAIN
FORESTS
Africa’s geography is very diverse, containing mountain ranges, scorching deserts, rain forests,
river valleys, open plains, and jungles
GEOGRAPHY OF AFRICA
Africans lived differently based on their location in Africa’s diverse land
GEOGRAPHY OF AFRICA
The Sahara is the world’s largest desert
and acted as a barrier to separate North Africa
from sub-Saharan Africa
EARLY SOCIETIES OF AFRICA
By 750 CE, North Africans were part of the Islamic Empire, converted to Islam,
and also shared Arabic culture
Early societies of North Africa were
influenced by Mediterranean cultures such as the Phoenicians
and Romans
EARLY SOCIETIES OF AFRICA
However, African societies
south of the Sahara were isolated from the cultural
diffusion of the Classical Era
As a result, these sub-Saharan societies missed out on the great innovations of Greek, Hellenistic, and Roman cultures
How did early people in Sub-Saharan Africa live?
Characteristics of Sub-Saharan AfricaWhile the societies
of sub-Saharan Africa were
diverse, they shared some similarities
Most of the societies were
family-based clans that lived in
farming villages
Characteristics of Sub-Saharan AfricaFew of these societies had
written languages; histories were
shared orally by storytellers (griots)
One of their technological
advancements was making iron tools
Characteristics of Sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africans were polytheistic and worshipped many gods
Characteristics of Sub-Saharan Africa
They practiced Animism: a religion in which spirits exist in nature and play a role in daily life
THE BANTU MIGRATION Over the course of 4,000 years, Bantu peoples of central Africa migrated
south in search of farmland
These Bantu migrations helped spread new farming and ironworking techniques
What factors
shaped the culture of
East Africa?
EAST AFRICA
The societies of East Africa, unlike those of the sub-Sahara,
were shaped by cultural diffusion
(exchanging of ideas with other cultures)
The East Africans participated in the
trade network of the Indian Ocean
EAST AFRICA
The East African
kingdom of Aksum traded
with Persia, India, Arabia,
and Rome
Aksum became a kingdom based on Christianity
Aksum churches
EAST AFRICA
Arab merchants brought their
religion with them to East Africa
Islam was introduced to
the East African trade cities
EAST AFRICA The mix of African and Arab cultures led to the
development of a new language: Swahili
East African towns had mosques (Muslim places
of worship) and were ruled by Muslim sultans
However, many Africans chose to keep their
traditional Animistic beliefs
What factors shaped the culture of
West Africa?
WEST AFRICA: GOLD-SALT TRADE
The societies of West Africa were shaped by trade with North Africa
West Africa had large deposits of gold, but no salt North Africa had
large deposits of salt, but no gold
WEST AFRICA: GOLD-SALT TRADE
The lack of gold in the North and the lack of salt in the West resulted in the Trans-Saharan trade network
WEST AFRICA: GOLD-SALT TRADE
The lack of gold in the North and the lack of salt in the West resulted in the Trans-Saharan trade network
WEST AFRICA AND ISLAM
The gold-salt trade spread to the Northeast and
attracted Muslim merchants
Cultural diffusion between West Africans
and the Muslims resulted
WEST AFRICA AND ISLAM
Islam was introduced to West Africa and slowly
gained converts (people who switch their beliefs
to a new religion)
Many West Africans either blended Islam
with Animism or never converted
WEST AFRICA: GHANA The gold-salt trade led to increased wealth in
West Africa and the formation of empires
A West African kingdom, Ghana, amassed vast
wealth by taxing merchants
Ghana became an empire when it used that wealth to build a massive army and
conquer neighboring people
WEST AFRICA: GHANA
By the year 800 CE, Ghana was the most powerful
empire in Africa
Ghana’s kings were not merely rulers; they served
as judges, religious leaders, and generals
WEST AFRICA: MALI
A kingdom neighboring Ghana, Mali, eventually overthrew Ghana and
absorbed its territory into the new Mali Empire
Mali’s King Sundiata took over the Ghana Empire
and controlled the major trade cities of West Africa
WEST AFRICA: MALI
King Sundiata created an
efficient government
that controlled trade and promoted farming
WEST AFRICA: MALI
The kings of Mali who ruled after Sundiata converted to Islam
The most important of these Muslim kings of Mali
was Mansa Musa
WEST AFRICA: MALI
Mansa Musa built an army of 100,000
soldiers to control Mali’s gold trade and
secure his empire
To easier manage his territory, he divided the
Mali Empire into provinces, each controlled by a
governor he appointed
MANSA MUSA’S INFLUENCE
Mansa Musa was a devout Muslim and went on a hajj
to Mecca in 1324Mansa Musa passed out gold nuggets to the people
he met along the way of his long trip
This is a European map of Africa. Very little was known about Africa below the Sahara, but Mansa Musa is on the map.
Based on his image on the map, what did Europeans know about Mansa Musa?
When Mansa Musa returned from Mecca, he was filled with religious fervor
Djenne Mosque
He built many mosques throughout the Mali Empire, including one at Timbuktu
University in Timbuktu
Timbuktu became a trade city that attracted
scholars, religious leaders, and doctors
The city had a university and became an important center of learning in the world
WEST AFRICA: SONGHAI
After Mansa Musa’ reign was over, the Mali Empire
began to decline
Another neighboring kingdom, the Songhai, eventually took over Mali and formed the
Songhai Empire
WEST AFRICA: SONGHAI Songhai kings gained control of the major trade cities along the highly valuable gold-
salt trade routes
The fall of the Songhai Empire in 1591 CE ended a thousand year era of West African Empires
The Songhai grew into the largest of the West
African empires
CONCLUSIONS
African societies were transformed by two powerful forces:
Trade with outsiders
Introduction of Islam
Originally created by Brooks Baggett
Modified by Christopher Jaskowiak