1. Mr. Ermer World History Miami Beach Senior High

2.  Second largest continent after Asia  Complex Geography:  Mountains along Mediterranean Sea  Sahara Desert south of the mountains/sea  Sahara=world’s largest desert  Western Hump, Eastern Horn mostly grasslands  Jungles near the coast  Great Rift Valley: snow-capped mts., lakes, plateaus  Congo River Basin: Tropical rain forest  Four Climate Zones: temperate, desert, rain forest, & savannas

4.  First African Civilizations: Egypt, Kush, & Axum  Kush (250 B.C.-A.D. 150):  1000 B.C.: Nubia freed from Egyptian control  Kushites learn Iron making from Assyrians  Capital city of Meroe rich in iron ore, on trade routes  Kush grows rich from trade w/ Romans, Arabs, Indians  Axum:  Founded by Arabs, mixed Arab and African cultures  King Ezana makes Christianity official religion, conquers Kush  Muslim traders from coast move in to take control of trade in slaves and ivory from Axum

6.  A.D. 500: Ghana is 1 st great W. African state  Located on upper Niger R., traded gold and iron  Known for skilled blacksmiths  1100 AD: Ghana declines from war, Mali rises  Sundiata defeats Ghana, est. Timbuktu, Mali  Mansa Musa= rich/powerful king of Mali  Famous for his pilgrimage to Mecca, gold  Mali declines from Civil War, Songhai rises  Sunni Ali establishes new trading kingdom  Songhai eventually conquered by sultan of Morocco

7.  Mali (Bilad al-sudan)  Founded by Africans who earlier converted to Islam  Mostly learned of Islam through trade, not force  Islam appealed to poor (alms) and leaders (military, admin)  Grew rich through Sub-Saharan trade/gold  Sundiata leads Malinke people to victory, founds Mali  Mansa Musa’s pilgrimage to Mecca, gold & edu.  Mansa Suleiman & Ibn-Battuta’s travels

9.  Early Christian communities established in N. Africa  c. 350: Kingdom of Axum converts to Christianity  Ethiopian kingdom, Bible translated  Solomonic dynasty claims ties to David and Solomon  Ethiopia remains Christian island, surrounded by Islam  Ethiopian Christianity takes on unique qualities

10.  West African Bantus move East  Not as army, but subsistence farming communities  Spread iron smelting technology around Africa  Est. trading city of Great Zimbabwe  Port Cities on Indian Ocean flourish  Bantus mix with Arab Muslims who settle on coast  Est. great trade cities: Mombasa, Mogadishu, Kilwa  Swahili: mix of Arab/African cultures

12.  On page 142, write and answer questions 1-9