1. Aim: How much did geography influence ancient African civilizations?
Do Now: Which of these two pictures do you think is the most accurate portrayal of Africa today? Explain.
NY State Standards 2, 3
Common Core R.S. 2, 7

3. I Traditional African Culture
A) “African” culture does not actually exist, as there are 1000s of different ethnic groups, cultures, and languages in Africa today. However, we can make some generalizations about common traditions found in Africa before European colonization: B) Prior to the introduction of monotheistic religions, Africans practiced animism (belief in spirits in nature). Shamans acted as spiritual leaders and healers. C) History was passed down orally by storytellers and/or musicians.

4. II Ancient African Migrations
A) By 5500 BCE Neolithic farmers cultivated the Nile River Valley. Farming spread throughout northern Africa, which was much wetter than it is today. B) 2500 BCE desertification dried out northern Africa, creating the Sahara Desert.
An ancient Egyptian carving of a hippo. Do hippos live in desserts?

5. The Sahara Today… Many Africans Still Lack Access to Clean Water
“More people [worldwide] have a mobile phone than a toilet.” – World Health Organization, 2012
Women collect water from a well in Niger.
Child carrying water in Cameroon.

6. Ancient African Migrations Continued…
C) Between 1000 BCE and 1000 CE, millions of central African farmers migrated to the south and east. This is one of the largest periods of human migration in history! D) How do we know this if there are few written records? Linguists have traced many modern African languages back to a common root language; Bantu. E) Today there are approximately 500 spoken languages that are descended from the original Bantu language, including Swahili.
Why did these early Bantu speakers migrate? Possible reasons may be desertification and/or tribal conflict.

8. III The Empire of Nubia/Kush 3000 BCE – 300s CE
Nubia/Kush was an ancient African empire that grew along the upper Nile river valley. It’s northern neighbor was Egypt, which led to a lot of cultural diffusion.
By 1500 BCE, Egypt had conquered Nubia. However, in 730 BCE Nubia was able to conquer Egypt (for 60 years).
In the 4th century CE, King Ezana of Aksum conquered Nubia
"Having traversed this part in forty days as I have said, you take a boat again and so travel for twelve days until you come to a great city called Meroë, which is said to be the capital of all Ethiopia." - Herodotus
A Nubian Pharaoh

11. The Empire of Nubia/Kush Continued…
D) While the Nubians had many things in common with the Egyptians, there were some differences.
Ancient Egyptians
Nubians
Polytheistic
Polytheistic but not all of their gods were the same as the Egyptian ones
System of writing: hieroglyphics on papyrus
System of writing: developed an alphabet much later
Built pyramids to house their mummified pharaohs. 81 Egyptian pyramids have been found.
Built pyramids, but smaller than those of Egypt. 228 Nubian pyramids have been found.

12. Egyptian Hieroglyphics vs. the Nubian Alphabet

13. The Egyptian Pyramids at Giza vs. Nubian Pyramids
Are the Nubian pyramids more alike or different from the Egyptian pyramids?

14. IV Aksum 300 – 700 CE
A) Aksum controlled trade along the Red Sea and the Horn of Africa (modern day Ethiopia and Somalia). B) In 330 CE King Ezana converted to Christianity and made it the official religion of Aksum. C) Aksum was conquered by the early 8th century CE by Muslim invaders.
Many Ethiopians believe that the sacred Ark of the Covenant is in Ethiopia! It is believed to be kept safe in the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion, the oldest church in Ethiopia.
King Ezana’s Obelisk

16. V Outside influences in North Africa
A) Recall that the Phoenicians built an Empire based in Carthage 800 BCE – 146 BCE.
B) Alexander the Great conquered Egypt in 332 BCE.
C) The Romans defeated the Phoenicians in the Punic Wars (ended 149 BCE), and then Cleopatra and Marc Antony in 31 BCE. This added northern Africa to their growing empire.
Temple of Isis, Libya, 1st Century CE, Roman

17. Outside influences in North Africa Continued…
C) Arab Muslims conquered northern Africa by the 7th century CE.

18. VI Arab Influence in Eastern Africa
When Aksum was declining (by 600 CE), many commercial city-states arose on the East African coast.
Mogadishu
Mombasa
Kilwa
Nubia was conquered by Aksum. Aksum lasted from the 4th century CE to 700 CE.
East African trading states arose.
Nubia lasted from 3000 BCE to the 300s CE

19. Arab Influence in East Africa Continued…
B) By the 7th century East African sailors took advantage of India’s monsoons to help carry their trading ships.
Goods from Africa
Goods from India
Ivory
Leopard skins
Iron
Copper
Gold
Cloth
Silk
Spices
Porcelain
Glassware
Swords

21. Arab Influence in East Africa Continued…
C) Arab influence in East Africa led to cultural diffusion: 1. A new language, Swahili “of the coast” developed (combination of Bantu & Arabic) 2. Architecture blended East African and Arabic designs
What features in the wall on the left are Arabic? What features are African?

22. US Marines with Somali pirates, 2013
East Africa Today
Mogadishu, Somalia
Mombasa, Kenya
US Marines with Somali pirates, 2013

23. VI Great Zimbabwe (900 – 1500 CE)
A) Bantu settled by the Limpopo river.
B) They built stone enclosures to protect their livestock.
C) By 1300 Zimbabwe “Stone House” was a city-state that traded with India and China.
D) Zimbabwe’s decline by 1500 is unknown. It may have been due to invading Europeans.
In 1871, archaeologist Cark Mauch began to excavate the site at Great Zimbabwe. He was so impressed with what he found, that unfortunately due to his racist beliefs, he concluded that a "civilized [white] nation must once have lived there.” Thankfully today, the Bantu [African] builders have been given their due credit.

24. VII Western African Civilizations

25. Western African Civilizations Continued…
A) Ghana
800 – 1050 CE
B) Mali
1200 – 1450 CE
C) Songhai
1460 – 1600 CE
Ghana developed by the Niger and Senegal rivers
King Sundiata conquered Ghana and began the Kingdom of Mali. He kept control of the gold-salt trade.
Sonni Ali conquered the weakened Mali Empire, and began the Kingdom of Songhai. He kept control of the gold-salt trade.
Capital at Kumbi Saleh
Mansa Musa was the most famous King of Mali (he ruled 1312 – 1337 CE).
As a Muslim, he went on his hajj to Mecca in His caravan included 60,000 travelers, and 80 camels, each loaded with 300 lbs of gold!
Timbuktu flourished as great centers of trade and learning. Islam spread.
Ghana became wealthy by controlling the gold – salt trade.
By establishing ties across the Muslim world, Mansa Musa was able to make his city, Timbuktu, into a great center of trade and learning.
The Kingdom of Songhai was conquered by Muslim Berbers (nomads of the Sahara Desert) from the north.

26. Western African Civilizations Continued…
People from North Africa desired gold, and people from West Africa needed salt. Salt was mined northeast of Ghana in the Sahara Desert. Tribes close to Ghana in West Africa had access to gold mines (the locations were kept secret). Anyone who wished to trade gold for salt had to travel through Ghana and pay a tax. The trade was done by silent barter; the traders would leave their goods in a guarded location, and never meet the people they were trading with face to face!

27. Sahara Salt “Farm”

28. The Djenna Mosque at Timbuktu
Unfortunately Islamic terrorists from the modern nation of Mali have recently been destroying many of Timbuktu’s sacred places, including burning ancient texts.

29. Western African Civilizations Continued… Mansa Musa Primary Source
The following description of the visit to Cairo in 1324 by the King of Mali, Mansa Musa, was written by Al-Umari, who visited Cairo several years after the Mansa Musa’s visit.
“From the beginning of my coming to stay in Egypt I heard talk of the arrival of … Musa on his Pilgrimage and found the [people of Cairo, Egypt] eager to recount what they had seem of [Musa’s wasteful] spending. [ Musa] forwarded to the royal treasury many loads of unworked native gold and other valuables… He left no court emir nor holder of a royal office without the gift of a load of gold….They exchanged gold until they depressed its value in Egypt and caused its price to fall.” …

30. Mansa Musa Tops the 10 Wealthiest People in Human History
Mansa Musa Tops the 10 Wealthiest People in Human History! – Celebrity Net Worth’s List, 2012
1. Mansa Musa I, (Ruler of Malian Empire, ) $400 billion 2. Rothschild Family (banking dynasty, ) $350 billion 3. John D Rockefeller (industrialist, ) $340 billion 4. Andrew Carnegie (industrialist, ) $310 billion 5. Tsar Nicholas II of Russia (last Emperor of Russia, ) $300 billion 6. Osman Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VII (last ruler of Hyderabad, ) $236 billion 7. William the Conqueror (King of England, ) $229.5 billion 8. Muammar Gaddafi (former Libyan leader, ) $200 billion 9. Henry Ford (Ford Motor Company founder, ) $199 billion 10. Cornelius Vanderbilt (industrialist, ) $185 billion

31. Western African Civilizations Continued…
D) Kingdom of Benin (1300 – 1897)
Located on the Niger river
Skilled in the art of making figurines from bronze, copper, and ivory

33. Summary Questions
What were the main achievements of the East African civilizations (Nubia, Aksum, Swahili Trading States)?
Explain the gold-salt trade in your own words and how it benefitted the West African kingdoms of Ghana, Mali and Songhai.
What were the main achievements of the West African civilizations (Ghana, Mali, Songhai, Benin)?
How should Mansa Musa be remembered? *Give at least 2 specific pieces of evidence to support your answer.
Why do you think many modern African nations are so poor when Africa has many natural resources?

34. Key Vocabulary Aksum Mansa Musa Animism Monsoons Bantu Migrations
Nubia
Benin
Oral History
Desertification
Phoenicians
Ghana
Sahara Desert
Great Zimbabwe
Shaman
King Ezana
Songhai
King Sundiata
Swahili
Kush
Timbuktu
Mali