1. Sub-Saharan Africa during the Post-Classical Age
Kingdoms, Diffusion, and Change

2. The Bantu
One of the few common threads shared by many – but not all – peoples of sub-Saharan Africa is descent from the Bantu tribes
Around 1000 B.C.E., the Bantu began to move out of their homelands in west central Africa
By 1000 C.E., descendants of the Bantu tribes had settled in almost all parts of the continent south of the Sahara
With the passage of time, however, each smaller group developed its own distinct language and cultural tradition

3. The Importance of a Desert
Not just physically, but also culturally and politically, Africa is divided by the Sahara desert
The Sahara is the world’s largest desert
During the Post-Classical age, almost of Saharan Africa and the northern continent had fallen into the orbit of the Islamic world
But the story of sub-Saharan Africa is much more complex
The Sahel is the semidesert southern fringe of the Sahara

4. Shape of Africa Bellwork
True or False: Animals and plants in Africa leant themselves to easy domestication
False
What two reasons did Diamond suggest for the development of major diseases in Africa?
Disease had longer to develop/adapt, disease could more easily jump from species

5. Objective
WWBAT: Discuss the common social and cultural characteristics of Sub-Saharan Africa cultures/tribes
WWBAT: Gather information about the West African Kingdoms of Mali, Ghana, and Songhai

6. Sub Saharan Background Common Social Characteristics
Art and Literature
Griots

7. Sub-Saharan Africa Background
In sub-Saharan Africa, the development of strong, sizable political units occurred later and more slowly than in many other parts of the world
Much of this was due to the tremendous varieties of ethnicity and language in sub- Saharan Africa
For example, more than 2,000 languages and dialects are spoken in the region

8. Sub-Saharan Africa Background
Another factor limiting the growth of major states was environmental
The fluctuating climate of sub- Saharan Africa and human susceptibility to various insect- and animal-borne diseases in sub- Saharan regions were both obstacles to increasing the size of local populations and the number of workers available to cultivate the land

9. Common societal characteristics
Most sub-Saharan communities were small
Social life revolved around the village
Food was provided by means of a combination of hunting, herding, and limited agriculture
It appears that most African societies gained the skill of metalworking on their own, rather than having it taught to them by outsiders, as was commonly thought until recently

10. Common societal characteristics
Women in sub-Saharan Africa tended to be treated as subservient to men
However, women were often valued for their labor as fieldworkers (while men tended cattle) and for producing heirs

11. Common societal characteristics
Basic social unit was the family
Usually an extended family
Social ties often expanded to the clan
Clans often descended from common ancestors
Animism was the type of religion commonly practiced
Religion in which spirits play an important role in daily life
Believe spirits are present in animals, plants, and other natural forces and also take the form of the souls of their dead ancestors

12. Common societal characteristics
Women were also respected for their storytelling abilities and their role in educating young people about moral values and religious beliefs
Interestingly, unlike in most other societies, in Africa, lineage was sometimes matrilinear, rather than patrilineal
Women often inherited property and the husband was required to move into his wife’s house

13. Art
African tribes possess a high degree of skill in carving and sculpture, especially in wood and ivory
Metal sculptures became more common over time
By the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, West African artists were creating masterpieces out of bronze and ivory
In Ife, in present-day Nigeria, metal workers formed bronze and iron statues by designing molds with melted wax

14. These sculptures may have influenced the work of metalworkers from the West African state of Benin
Such artists are famous for their sophisticated and detailed bronze, brass, and copper sculptures of heads, ornaments, animal figures, and reliefs depicting court life

15. Architecture
Architecture in Africa varied across regions due to diverse cultural influences
In sub-Saharan Africa, Greater Zimbabwe stood out for its impressive stone buildings and walls
The stones had been carefully cut and then set in place without mortar
In Mali, fourteenth-century builders used timber as skeletons in reinforcing mud mosques that still stand today

16. Literature
African literature of this period was preserved less by the written language than by oral tradition
In their narratives, professional storytellers chronicled history and social custom
They also acted as entertainers and served as advisers to kings
The most famous epic of sub-Saharan Africa from these years is Son-Jara (or Sundiata) from Mali

17. Griots A griot was a West African storyteller
A griot perpetuated the oral traditions of a family or village
The griot carries the cultural knowledge and identity of each people
The griot legacy stretches back for hundreds, and in some cases, thousands of years
The griot is a chronicler of history – keeping track of the history and developments of his people over time
The griot is also guardian of the knowledge of his people’s ancestry, or genealogy