1. Part I Becoming African Chapter 1 Africa

2. I. A Huge and Diverse Land  2nd largest continent in the world  From North to South several of climatic zones Desert, savannah, rain forest, mountain ranges

3. II. Birthplace of Humanity  Fossil and genetic evidence Out-of-Africa model  Modern humans emerged 200,000 years ago  Migrated to the rest of the world 100,000 years ago “Eve” model  All modern humans from a single African woman

4. III. Ancient Civilizations Race debate Black Egyptians colonized ancient Greece Became the originators of Western civilization Modern racial categories irrelevant to ancient Egypt  Egypt influenced Greek and Western civilization

5. Egyptian Civilization

6. Egyptian Society  Patrilineal/patriarchal Male dominated  Hierarchical Warriors, priests, merchants, artisans, peasants Comprehensive bureaucracy

7. Egyptian Society (cont.)  Women Owned property Managed household slaves Educated their children Held public office Served as priests Operated businesses

8. Egyptian Society (cont.)  Polytheistic religion Re (Ra): the sun god Osiris: god of the Nile  Immortality Personal and state combined in kings

9. Trade and Conquest  Nubia Egyptian colony ~ copper and gold deposits  Kush Nubian independent kingdom

10. Trade and Conquest  Meroe Africa’s first industrial center Iron deposits and geographic location  Axum First Christian state in sub- Saharan Africa  Influenced by Hebrew culture

11. IV. West Africa  Physically, ethnically, and culturally diverse Savannah and forest  Home to a variety of cultures and languages  Divided labor by gender  Lived in villages composed of extended families

12. West Africa  Accorded semi-divine status to their kings  Cultivated crops  Tended domesticated animals  Produced iron tools and weapons

13. West Africa Trade with North Africa  Essential part of the economy and kingdoms

14. Ghana  First known kingdom in the western Sudan Founded between 4 th and 8 th centuries CE Warfare and iron weapons created an empire

15. Ghana  Commerce Camel caravans Imported silk, cotton, glass beads, horses, mirrors, dates, and salt Exported pepper, slaves, and gold mined in another region and taxed passing through Commerce and religion destroyed Ghana in the 12th century

16. Empire of Mali, 1230-1468 Sundiata  Reigned 1210-1260  Led the Mandinka to victory over the Sosso in 1235

17. Empire of Mali, 1230-1468  Larger than Ghana Greater rainfall More crops Control of Wangara gold mines Population reached eight million

18. Empire of Mali (cont.)  Commerce, bureaucracy and scholarship Most merchants and rulers  Moslems by 1210s  Converted to gain stature among Arab states

19. Empire of Mali (cont.)  Timbuktu Major trading hub  Gold, slaves, and salt Center of Islamic learning ~13th century 150 Islamic schools Cosmopolitan community  Religious and ethnic toleration common

20. Empire of Mali (cont.)  Mansa Musa Reigned 1312-1337 Pilgrimage across Africa to Mecca in Arabia Empire declined with Musa’s death

21. Empire of Songhai, 1461-1591  The last and largest of the Sudanese empires Sunni Ali  Reigned 1464-1492  Conquered people paid tribute  Generally ran their own affairs

22. Empire of Songhai (cont.) -- Askia Muhammad Toure  Reigned 1492-1528  Devout Moslem

23. Empire of Songhai (cont.)  Expanded empire Centralized administration of the empire Substituted taxation for tribute

24. Empire of Songhai Established bureaucratic trade regulation Used his power to spread Islam within the empire

25. Empire of Songhai (cont.)  Askia Daud Reigned 1549-1582 Songhai failed to adapt to changing political atmosphere  Portuguese established trading centers along the Guinea coast

26. Empire of Songhai  Arab rulers of North Africa threatened with loss of trade  King of Morocco sent mercenaries to Songhai in 1591

27. Empire of Songhai  Defeated the Songhai army and empire fell apart  When Moroccans left the region  West Africa without a government powerful enough to stop the Portuguese

28. West African Forest Region  Cultural diversification Small powerful kingdoms  Benin City Little influenced by Islam or Christianity

29. West African Forest Region Trading center  Gold, peppers, ivory, and slaves  By 17th century dependent on slave trade

30. V. Kongo and Angola  Kongo-Angola region Trade with the interior of the continent Late 15th century rulers more welcoming of Portuguese  Nzinga Mbemba tried to convert kingdom to Christianity  Unrest, Portuguese greed, and slave trade destroy the kingdom

31. VI. West African Society and Culture  Most were farmers Villages and hamlets  Extended families and clans Some patrilineal, others matrilineal  Produced cotton for clothes  Variety of crops

32. Women  Served as government officials in ancient Ghana Enslaved women in the royal court of Dahomey also held official posts Increased sexual freedoms West African women could have male friends apart from relatives

33. Women (cont.) Sande: a secret society for women  Taught sex education to girls  Initiated into adulthood (Poro: male secret society)

34. Women (cont.)  Both societies established standards of Male and female conduct  Emphasized female virtue and male honor

35. Class and Slavery  Royalty Landed nobles, warriors, peasants and bureaucrats  Lower classes  Artisans and laborers: blacksmiths, butchers, tanners, and oral historians called griots

36. Class and Slavery  Slavery Common in West Africa  More so in the savannah region than in forest areas Variety of forms  Not necessarily a permanent condition

37. Class and Slavery (cont.) Islamic regions  Masters responsible for slaves’ religious well-being Non-Islamic regions’ children of slaves  Legal rights Not to be sold from the land they occupied

38. Class and Slavery (cont.) Slaves in royal courts or in the armies  Owned property and often held power over free people Agricultural slaves  Less fortunate Work and privilege for second and third generation offspring similar to free people

39. Religion  15th century West Africa Islam  Introduced by Arab traders More prevalent in cosmopolitan areas The religion of merchants and bureaucrats Fostered learning and building mosques in West African cities

40. Religion (cont.) Indigenous religions  Strongest in forest areas Polytheistic and animistic One creator God and a host of lesser gods

41. Religion (cont.) Saw the force of God in all things  Ancestor worship, magicians, and oracles  Ceremonies and animal sacrifices

42. Art and Music  Related to religious practices  Excelled in woodcarving and sculpture Wooden masks and terra-cotta figurines  Used in funerals, medical practices, and in coming-of-age ceremonies  Musical instruments Drums, xylophones, bells, flutes, and mbanzas

43. Literature  Oral histories, poetry, and tales Specially trained poets and musicians  Served kings and nobles Views of common people also represented

44. Literature  Prose tales Human characters  Tales about creation, success, romance  Animal characters “Trickster tales” Entertained and taught lessons

45. VII. Conclusion  The history of African Americans begins in West Africa.  Family organization, work habits, language, religious beliefs, legends, and more came to America and influenced the way African Americans and others lived in their new land.