KINGDOMS OF WEST AFRICA

AFRICAN REGIONAL RESOURCES  North Mediterranean: cloth, spices, and weapons  Desert: salt  Savanna: Agriculture (grain, cattle, donkeys, and cotton) and gold  Forest: gold and kola nuts EACH REGION IN AFRICA HAD DIFFERENT RESOURCRES

The Niger River – a river in West Africa that was a major artery of trade that flows through rain forest, savanna, and steppe

SAME LAND … DIFFERENT EMPIRES 800 – 1200s1200s – 1400s1400s – 1591 Ghana EmpireMali EmpireSonghai Empire What patterns do you notice???

FUN FACTS  Rich trade empires arose in West Africa between 800 and 1600 A.D.  Empires grew rich from taxing long-distance trade  Gold and salt were the heart of trade in West Africa  Long-distance trade spread Islam and other ideas throughout Africa

 In the 8 th century, trans-Saharan trade brought Muslim merchants and traders to West Africa  Islamic beliefs and customs affected many areas of life besides religious faith  Ethical values of Islam spread in West Africa  Developed Islamic forms of government and law  Muslims greatly value education.  They encouraged people to become educated.  They built many schools and centers of learning  The influence of Islam brought new styles of architecture to West Africa*  Traditionally, West Africans had built small shrines to the forces of nature. As they converted to Islam, they began to build mosques

GHANA RICH WESTERN AFRICAN EMPIRE #1  Ideal location – south of Sahara’s salt mines and just north of the goldfields  By 800 A.D. Ghana was major trading kingdom  Ghana’s decline was caused by attacking invaders, overgrazing, and the loss of trade.  Much of what we know about Ghana comes from Griots – story tellers who pass on traditions and knowledge of ancient Ghana through the generations.

 The kings of Ghana "taxed" all traders who traveled through their land.  Ghana grew rich from taxes received and gold in their gold mines.  The people of Ghana traded using the method of silent barter. The traders left slabs of salt on a riverbank. In exchange, gold miners left what they thought was a fair amount of gold. This method help trade stay peaceful, and it helped keep the location of gold mines secret.

Another Western Kingdom was Benin (now Nigeria). The Benin were famous for their bronze work and the famous neck coils worn by some women even today!

MALI RICH WESTERN AFRICAN EMPIRE #2  In 1100: there was a serious drought in Ghana Tribal fights had also left Ghana weak  1235: Mali was founded by Sundiata (Soon-de-ata), who made empire rich by farming and herding cattle  1312: Mansa Musa (Sundiata’s grandson) became ruler. During his 25-year rule, he expanded the empire and made Islam the official religion of Mali. Individuals still allowed to choose their own religion  Because Islam was important to Mansa Musa, he made a pilgrimage to Mecca. Brought back Arabs who built Muslim mosques and schools. Mali became a center of learning.

MALI  1324:Mansa Musa visited Cairo, Egypt. He handed out 24,000 pounds of gold in a parade  Mali weakened after Mansa Musa’s death, and was conquered Songhai (Sung-guy) in late 1400s

SONGHAI RICH WESTERN AFRICAN EMPIRE #3  Songhai kingdoms expanded by conquering other lands, gaining more trade routes and sources of gold and salt  Conquered the wealthy trade cities of Timbuktu and Jenné  1591: Morocco (in Northern Africa) used guns and cannons to defeat Songhai  Morocco could not handle the empire, and the great trading empires of West Africa ended

Bambuk- Bure Goldfields Akan Goldfields

A MOSQUE! The Great Mosque in Djenne (a city in the modern country of Mali) What is this???