A Look into the Past… Ancient Africa

Geography Africa, the second largest continent in the world, includes many different environments, some of them largely uninhabitable. Most Africans live on the savannas, which cover about three-fifths of the continent and support substantial agriculture. Most Civilizations started on the Nile River. (Ex. Egypt) The Sahara Desert is the largest.

Ancient Civilizations (West)The Nok people lived in the area of present-day Nigeria between 500 B.C. and A.D Their name came from the village where the first artifacts from their culture were discovered. (East)The most familiar group was the Egyptians. Large amounts of wealth & power contributed to their success. This civilization continues to prosper.

Aksum Aksum’s location on the Red Sea linked it to the trading networks of Asia and the Mediterranean. As the kingdom grew into a center of trade, it attracted people from all over the ancient world, who brought with them new ideas and traditions. In 710 Islamic invaders destroyed the great port city of Adulis. The conquest cut Aksum off from the major ports along both the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, ending Aksum’s prominence in international trade.

Language Experts can trace the movement of people through history by studying the spread of languages. Migration has many causes, including environmental changes, technological advances, economic pressure, and political upheaval, and continues to shape the modern world. Thousands of languages in Africa. (Ex. Swahili)