1. Early & Medieval African States

2. Africa’s Climate (From North to South)
Mediterranean coast: fertile farmland
Sahara Desert
Dry steppes (grasslands)
Savannah (grassy plains)
Rain forests
Savannah
Dry steppes
Kalahari and Namib Deserts
Southern tip: fertile farmland

3. The Cradle of Life?
The oldest traces of human existence are in Africa’s Great Rift Valley
Human’s migrated west and north and started farming by 5500 BC
At this time, the Sahara was not a desert but was good, fertile farmland with many water sources
About 2500 BC, a climate change turned the Sahara into desert and the it continues to grow even today, forcing people south

4. “Lucy” Remains discovered in 1974 in Ethiopia c. 3 million years old
Homonid who walked fully upright
3.7 feet tall, about 65 pounds in weight
Named “Dinkenesh” in the local African dialect, meaning “You are beautiful”

5. Artist’s Reconstruction of Lucy

6. Outside Influences on North Africa
Carthage
Controlled much of North Africa until defeated by the Romans
The Romans
Controlled all of the Mediterranean coastline
Introduced Christianity
Arabian Muslims
600s AD, Arab conquerors introduce Islam, which largely replaced Christianity

7. Nubia or Kush South of Egypt along the Nile was the kingdom of Nubia
Fought and traded with the Egyptians, adopting many Egyptian practices (like building pyramids as tombs)
Around 750 BC, the Nubian king Piankhi even conquered Egypt
Capital was at Meroë, a major trading post on the Nile
Traded in gold, ivory, skins, perfumes, slaves, & iron.
Around 350 AD, destroyed by the rival kingdom of Axum

8. Kingdoms of West Africa
Nomadic peoples settled along the Niger and Senegal rivers and around Lake Chad
These people established trans-Saharan trading routes with the Mediterranean coast to trade gold for salt

9. Ghana (c. 800 – 1050 AD) Between the Niger and Senegal rivers
Capital was Kumbi Saleh, which was actually two separate walled cities – one for the royal court and one for trade and merchants.
Conquered first by Muslims from the north and then by the Kingdom of Mali

10. Mali (1235 – 1450 AD) Founded by legendary hero Sundiata
Mali literally means “where the king lives”
Controlled the gold-for-salt trade routes
Timbuktu became a major center of trade
Greatest king (or “mansa”) was Musa
By about 1450, however, Mali’s power had waned

11. Mansa Musa 1312-1337 (reign) pushed kingdom to its largest size
brought peace and order through Islamic justice
increased trade
made Timbuktu a center for learning, drawing some of the world’s best scholars there

12. Musa’s Hajj Musa went on pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324-5
Took 60,000 men (including 12,000 slaves) all dressed in expensive Chinese silk
100 camels carrying 300 lbs of gold each, plus each slave carried an average of 1/4 pound of gold
That totals 16 tons of gold!
The hajj exposed West Africa’s wealth to the world, later leading to European explorers invading Africa

13. Songhai (c. 1464 – 1586) Centered around the city of Gao
Conquered most of West Africa
King Askia Muhammad
converted the people to Islam
improved government
increased trade
built many mosques and schools
1586, Songhai fell into civil war over royal succession
King of Morocco invaded and conquered Songhai using gunpowder weapons

14. The Kingdom of Benin
centered in the rainforest
traded ivory, pepper, and slaves
the oba (or king) was both a political and religious leader
used elaborate bronze sculptures, had well-organized, planned cities
Later became one of the centers of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade

15. The Kingdom of Axum Mix of African farmers and Jewish traders
Controlled a major trade network between AD
Africa-India-Europe trade triangle
Africa: ivory, hides, gold
India: iron, spices, gems, cotton
Europe: linen, brass, copper, tools, wine, olive oil

16. Early Christianity in Axum
300s AD, royal family converted to Christianity
neighboring peoples not Christian, many of them became Muslim
Surrounded by Muslim neighbors, Axum’s trade network was cut off and the kingdom declined in power
The people of Axum (modern Ethiopia) remain predominantly Christian even today; some even continued to practice Judaism until the creation of modern Israel

17. East African City-states
Kilwa
Mogadishu
Sofala
All of these cities were ports which relied on trade with India & China

18. Great Zimbabwe (900-1500 AD) Located on the Lipopo River
Rather than raw materials, Zimbabwe traded in manufactured goods: cloth, jewelry, and tools
Little is known about how Zimbabwe was governed
Went into decline due to weakened trade routes and over-farmed soil

19. African Lifestyles Some people were nomadic hunter-gatherers
Some were nomadic cattle farmers, skilled at protecting their herds
Some were coastal fishermen
Some were settled farmers (grains, yams, bananas)

20. African Governments Some were independent villages
usually led by a council of elders
women held important leadership positions
Some were part of a larger kingdom

21. African Families
Some families were “nuclear” (father, mother, & children)
Some families were “extended” (even distant relatives lived together)
Some societies were patrilineal (wealth/power passed from father)
Some were matrilineal (wealth/power passed from mother)
Person’s age often dictated their role within the society

22. African Religion
Some people were polytheistic, worshipping naturalistic gods
Some believed that a single god ruled over people and a lower system of demi-gods
Many believed that one’s ancestors could be called on for help
Some adopted Christianity
Many adopted Islam
A few were Jewish

23. Christianity vs. Islam in Africa
Islam spread faster than Christianity because it was a better match with existing African cultural practices:
Allowed polygamy (multiple wives)
Focused on community rather than the individual
Clearly defined gender roles

24. African Arts Much art was either carved wood/ivory, or textiles
Art often had a purpose, usually religious or social in nature
Egypt, Nubia, Axum all had written literature
Strong oral tradition of storytelling, including through song and dance