1. Kingdoms and empires of sub-Saharan Africa: AD 800-AD 1500

2. African states: AD 1500-1650

3. Sub-Saharan African political Organization Before CE 1000, kin-based (stateless) societies were the norm.

4. Sub-Saharan Kingdoms Axum Became a kingdom in present-day Ethiopia in the 1 st C. CE. Adopted Christianity in the 4 th C. CE. Their merchants traded in the areas of the Mediterranean Sea and Indian Ocean.

6. Lalibela

8. Bete Medhane Alem: largest monolithic church in the world.

9. Ghana google.com Emerged as a state perhaps as early as the 5 th C. CE. Became the most important commercial site in West Africa.

10. Provided gold, ivory, and slaves for traders from North Africa. In exchange, the kingdom received salt, horses, manufactured goods, and cloth. Islam spread to Ghana in the 10 th C. CE.

11. Mali kidspast.com CE 1230-late 1400s. Founded by Sundiata (lion prince) who reigned from CE 1230 to 1255. Controlled and taxed almost all trade passing through West Africa.

13. Mansa Musa (CE 1312- 337) became Mali’s most prominent ruler. He supported the spread of Islam throughout the empire. Went on the hajj.

15. Mansa Musa

16. Ibn Battuta, a Moroccan, visited Mali in 1351 and present-day Somalia in 1331. His writings provide impressions of the trade and customs of those areas.

17. ZimbabwePowerful kingdom in southeastern Africa from approximately CE 900 to 1600. Great Zimbabwe was a large stone complex.

18. Great Zimbabwe

20. KongoCongo River vicinity. From approximately CE 1200 to 1650 it was a centralized government with effective organization.

22. Kingdoms and empires of sub-Saharan Africa: AD 800-AD 1500

23. African states: AD 1500-1650

24. Indigenous (native) religions mythencyclopedia.com Honored many gods and believed in a supreme God. The spirits of departed ancestors were especially important. A “diviner” was trained in the magic art of communication with spirits.

26. Oral history plaza.ufl.edu Most African societies had no writing systems. Griots: Specially trained people who were the record keepers—they memorized great deeds of past kings, family histories, and important events.

27. African slave Trade Emerged in 1 st century BC. Many buyers were from the Middle East. It is estimated that 10 million Africans were taken during Islamic trading between AD 750 to AD 1500. In the 9 th century, the Zanj Slave revolt in Mesopotamia, led by Ali ibn Muhammad, lasted for ten years until it was defeated.

28. Swahili language kiswahili.jpg Mixture of African and Arabian (first millennium AD) languages. It is the the national language of Tanzania and Kenya.

29. Song of the Griot