1. Medieval Africa

2. Interaction with Geography
Mediterranean Climate in extreme northern coast
Interaction with Geography
Sahara Desert accessible via Nile River or oasis’
Sahel is southern Sahara ‘coast’
Bantu
West Africa is better for farming
Central Africa is tropical jungles
Eastern Africa gives access to the Indian Ocean
Southern Africa made up of great grasslands and deserts
Mostly subsistence farming and regional trade

3. Society Kinship Groups Extended family / clan Ruled by elders
Communal land
About 100 per village
Age Grades
Stateless societies
No elaborate hierarchies
Slavery thru war captives, debtors, and criminals

4. Political Ghana – 11th-13th centuries CE
1st African empire – “kingdom of gold”

5. Mali – 13th-15th centuries CE
Founded by Sundiata
Mansa Musa – ruled at height

6. Songhay – 15th-16th centuries CE
Kingdom of Axum
Christian

7. Capital at Great Zimbabwe
Kingdom of Kongo CE
Zimbabwe CE
Capital at Great Zimbabwe

8. Ghana, Mali, and Songhay all controlled gold / salt trade routes
Economy
Kingdom of Kongo traded interior goods
Zimbabwe controlled trade from interior to the Indian Ocean
Cattle as wealth
Swahili Coast port cities controlled African trade in the Indian Ocean
Kilwa, Mombasa, Malindi

9. The late 14th century Catalan Atlas showed the wealth of Mali & served as a catalyst for European exploration
Mansa Musa

10. Spread their language, farming techniques, and iron metallurgy
Bantu Migrations
Spread their language, farming techniques, and iron metallurgy
Farming villages replaced some nomadic lifestyles

11. The indigenous religion of Africa is animism
It is polytheistic & spirits occupy items in nature like animals & waterfalls
Shamans wear masks to represent different spirits
Departed ancestors could win favor with gods
Diviners mediated between humanity and the supernatural

12. Culture The spread of Islam began in the 7th-8th centuries
Islam & Christianity blends with native indigenous beliefs
Christianity exists in Axum
Culture

13. Camel saddles and caravans made trade across the Sahara possible
Innovations
Camel saddles and caravans made trade across the Sahara possible

14. Church of St. George in Ethiopia

15. Great Zimbabwe in southern Africa

16. Mosque at Jenne