Warm Up March 2 What was the first of the great trading states to emerge in the area south of the Sahara in West Africa? Ghana Axum Sierra Leone Nubia

Bantu Migrations Originally lived in savanna south of Sahara Bantu means “the people”

Bantu Migrations Started migrating south & east around 3,000 B.C. Lived by slash-and-burn farming & nomadic herding Slash-and-burn farming causes soil to lose its fertility quickly, forcing them to look for new locations every few years Shared skills, learned new customs, adapted to environment Subsistence Farmers

Causes of Bantu Migrations Bantu speakers moved to find farmland As agriculture developed, this led to specialization and permanent villages in many areas To flee the growing Sahara Desert Needed iron ore resources & hardwood forests for iron smelting Within 1500 years, they reached the southern tip of Africa

Effects of Bantu Migrations Bantu speakers drove out some inhabitants, intermixed with others Bantu migrations produced a great variety of cultures Language helped unify the continent Technology of ironworking Forged tools & weapons from bronze, copper & iron Ideas about social & political organization

Background: African Societies (800-1500) Hunter-Gatherers Semi-nomadic; lived by gathering wild foods & hunting animals The Efe were hunter-gatherers who traded with farming villages The San (aka Bushmen) lived in southern Africa and part of East Africa

Background: African Societies (800-1500) Stateless Societies No centralized power Power balanced among lineage groups, usually within villages Tiv had no formal gov’t Igbo resolved disputes by having elders from different lineages meet Nuer organized over 250,000 people without an official ruler

Background: African Societies (800-1500) Muslim States Two Groups: Almoravid Empire In 11th century, they controlled Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, and part of Spain Almohad Empire Beginning in the mid-1100s, they controlled Morocco, much of Maghrib, and part of Spain

Key to Trade: CAMELS Causes: Effects: Berbers began using camels because they could cover greater distances than pack animals (60 miles per day) Could travel more than 10 days without water (twice as long as most pack animals) Effects: Using camels, Berber nomads created new routes across the Sahara – trade increased

West Africa: Ghana Grew from Kumba tribe around A.D. 200 Used iron weapons to conquer neighbors Very wealthy due to surplus of gold and from taxing goods traders carried through their territory Ghana’s king was able to keep the price of gold high by limiting its supply Traded gold for salt (for meat preservation) Islam brought by traders; attacked by Muslim Almoravids in 1076 This disrupted the gold-salt trade that Ghana had controlled. Ghana never regained power.

West Africa: Mali Reached its peak from 1230-1337 How? Gold was discovered farther east, causing a shift eastward in trade routes The people of Mali, who lived in the region of the new trade routes, were able to seize power. Larger & richer than Ghana Capital: Timbuktu Mali = “where the king lives”

West Africa: Mali Sundiata Keita 1st great leader of Mali Took title of “mansa” – emperor Took over Ghana & a few trading cities – period of peace & prosperity followed Accomplishments: Put able administrators in charge of Mali’s finances, defense, & foreign affairs Promoted agriculture Re-established the gold-salt trade Died in 1255

West Africa: Mali Mansa Musa (1312-1332) Grandnephew of Sundiata, became a Muslim Expanded size of the empire Divided it into provinces & appointed governors Built mosques in Timbuktu & Gao Went on a pilgrimage (Hajj) to Mecca in 1324 Gave away gold and jewels along the way to show Mali’s strength and wealth

West Africa: Songhai Began to grow as Mali declined Mali declined because: most of Mansa Musa’s successors did not govern well New gold deposits were developed and trade shifted eastward again Took over the trade routes from the Atlantic Ocean to Gao (capital)

West Africa: Songhai Sunni Ali Became leader of Songhai in 1464 Ruled for 30 years Expanded empire through his skill as a military commander and his aggressive leadership Conquered Timbuktu in 1468 Died in 1492

West Africa: Songhai Askia Muhammad Led revolt against the son of Sunni Ali and took over Ruled for 37 years Set up tax system and an efficient government He was overthrown in 1591 by the army from Morocco who had advanced technology (Guns and cannons)

Trade: Gold, Salt, & Slaves Gold-Salt Trade Gold  from West African forest region south of savanna between Niger & Senegal rivers Salt  from Sahara desert Merchants brought each back and forth between trading cities where they exchanged the goods

Trade: Gold, Salt, & Slaves Slave Trade Arab Muslim traders exported enslaved persons from East African coast to places like India, China, Iraq, Persia, & Arabia Numbers traded remained small (perhaps 1,000 a year) Did not increase dramatically until 1700s when Europeans started to buy captured Africans for their colonial plantations An Arab slave market in Yemen, A.D. 1237

What is religious syncretism? Religious Syncretism - The blending of old beliefs with new ones Example: Blending Animism (traditional African belief) with Islam and Christianity