1. Warm-up: Thursday
Read the information on the slip of paper you received.
Summarize what it says on your warm-up sheet.

2. Ch. 8: African Civilizations and the Spread of Islam
How did trade and migration affect early African civilizations?

3. Geography Where is: Desert? Rainforest? Savanna? Sahel?
Ifriqiya = Arabic term for eastern N. Africa

4. North Africa
Unlike majority of continent, North Africa was a key location in the classical period
Phoenicians -> Alexander the Great->Romans
North Africa and Spain conquered by Muslim armies in 7th century

5. Kush 1000 B.C. – A.D. 150
In 750 B.C., Kush conquered Egypt, but then pushed back to original lands In 663 B.C.,
Traded iron products, ivory, gold, ebony, slaves
Lost power to Axum

6. Axum A.D
Traded ivory, frankincense, myrrh, slaves

7. Axum King Ezana made Christianity the official religion of Axum
Isolated
Highlands
Fortified towns

9. Axum
Struggle between Christian state in Ethiopian Highlands and Muslim peoples in Somalia shaped the history of the region
Ethiopia = fiercely independent

10. These were major civilizations in Eastern Africa.
In western Africa, several successful trade empires came about…

11. Sudanic States Sahel: Arabic word meaning “sea coast, shore”
Grassland linked trade between the Northern desert and southern forests
Africa had 3 “coasts” of contact = Atlantic, Indian, Sahel

12. Sudanic States: Cultural Diffusion
The first people to make the trek across the desert were the nomadic Berbers of North Africa, who brought their strict Islamic faith across the Sahara.
The Berbers converted many of the merchants of West Africa to Islam.

13. Sudanic States: Trade Salt and gold trade made the region wealthy

14. Sudanic States: Trade
How did these goods cross the desert and reach the Mediterranean and beyond?
Berbers used camel caravans to transport goods

15. “Ship of the Desert”
In about 300 AD, the Arabian camel was brought to Africa and became the “ship of the desert.” The camel stores fat in its hump and water in its stomach, which allows it to travel up to ten days without fresh water—twice the distance of an ox or a horse. All of a sudden trade was much more dependable.
Cannot live in humid forests = Sahel became the point of exchange (ideas, trade, people)

16. Camel Caravans Did they have overnight delivery??
Typical camel caravan:
100 camels, loaded with goods and supplies
3 mph
40 to 60 days

17. Ghana A.D. 400 - 1200 Prospered because they had:
Iron. What could be made from iron ore?
tools and weapons
Gold.
10th century
Rulers converted to Islam
Height of Ghana’s power

18. Ghana
Gold from West Africa was exchanged for something the West Africans prized even more: salt.
What’s so special about salt?
Salt was used as a flavoring
a food preservative,
retaining body moisture.

19. Empires of Early Africa
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20. Mali A.D
Ghana flourished for several hundred years, but collapsed during the 1100s.
Mali rose up in its place
Built its wealth on the gold and salt trade
Timbuktu and Jenne = important trade cities

21. Mali A.D
Sundiata created the political and economic structures of Mali
Combined traditional and Islamic culture to unify the region and maintain power
Sundiata
Epic histories of Mali
“Lion Prince”

22. African Storytellers What types of stories do you hear as you grow up?
Griot (gree-oh) – professional oral historians (African storytellers)
Storytellers preserved African history with their tales because there was no written language.

24. Mali
Mansa Musa ( ) was a rich and powerful king of Mali (mansa means “king”)
He was a devout Muslim who encouraged the building of mosques and study of the Quran.

25. Mali Made pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324 Led to:
Attention from the Muslim world
Islamic architecture (Jenne Mosque)
Change and innovation

26. Songhai A.D
Took control of Timbuktu and Jenne = gave them control of the trading empire
Songhay dominated the region from the 14th to 17th century

27. Societies in East Africa: Bantu migrations
Bantu – farming peoples who spoke dialects of the Bantu language
Near what river did the Bantu originate?

28. Bantu Migrations
There is little or no evidence of ironworking in eastern and southern Africa before the arrival of the Bantu = suggests that the new technology was spread by the Bantu.
Bantu migrations spread ironworking technology and a common language
Why is iron important?

29. Cultural diffusion in East Africa: Swahili Coast
As time passed, a mixed African- Arabian culture formed called
Swahili
From sahel, meaning “coast” in Arabic = “people of the coast”
Combined Bantu and Arabic words
Today is the national language of Kenya and Tanzania
Coastal cities were ruled by Muslim families, but interior towns maintained traditional beliefs

30. Swahili Coast
Eastern cities engaged in trade with Arabia, Persia, India and China: Ivory, gold, iron, slaves, exotic animals; in exchange for silks and porcelain
1500: Portuguese arrive!

31. Interior kingdoms Yoruba and Benin: Established city- states
Artisans famed for lifelike statues made of terra-cotta and bronze
Kongo and Great Zimbabwe: large confederations divided into provinces and ruled by a king

32. African Society and Culture
Lineage group – an extended family unit that has combined into a larger community
(Extended family = parents, children, grandparents)
Basic building blocks of African society.
Members were expected to take care of eachother

33. Culture
Matrilineal – tracing lineage through the mother rather than the father
Patrilineal- tracing lineage through the father

37. Warm-up:
1. What cultural traits spread to the West African kingdoms through trade?
2. How did the kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai become prosperous?

38. Stateless societies: led by a council of families or the community
External pressures or engagement in trade led to state-building

39. Journal #3
You are the village Griot. You have realized that you have no one to follow in your footsteps. You have decided to record the history of your village . You may create a story, a rap, a poem.
Use your notes! Talk with the people around you!
You will earn extra credit if you perform for the class.

40. World Heritage City: Timbuktu
Timbuktu was a thriving center of scholarship instrumental to the spread of Islam in Africa.
Three notable mosques and one of the world’s great collections of ancient manuscripts.
The great teachings of Islam, from astronomy and mathematics to medicine and law, were collected and produced here in several hundred thousand manuscripts.
In the 16th century Moroccan invaders began to drive scholars out, and trade routes slowly shifted to the coasts. The city’s importance and prestige waned and scholars drifted elsewhere. French colonization at the close of the 19th century dealt another serious blow to the former glories of Timbuktu.

41. Timbuktu City of commercial exchange that flourished Sankore mosque
Library and university
Book = symbol of civilization (book trade most lucrative business)

42. Slavery Not much known about trans-Saharan slave trade
One scholar had estimated 4.8 million slaves transported
Slave trade increased – trade caravans transported slaves and gold