1. African Trading Empires
The Kingdoms of
Ghana, Mali, and the Songhai

2. Do Now: What impact can trade have on a society?
What goods would you want to trade? Why?

3. This is a 14th century Italian map of NW Africa
Based on the map, how do you think Europeans viewed the continent of Africa and its people and resources?
Map from Catalan Atlas – written in 1375
Created by Cresques (Jewish cartographer)

4. Musa Keita  Musa I of Mali  Mansa Musa
(Mansa translates to “king of kings” or “emperor”)

5. Primary Source Reading
Read the primary source on the city of Timbuktu and answer the two questions at the bottom.

6. West African Trading Kingdoms
Western Africa was a land of riches, yet today it contains some of the poorest areas in the world.
You will investigate the role trade plays in advancing societies and…
The reasons for the rise of power and wealth in this region and the reasons for the decline of the kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai

7. Essential Question: Inquiry Question:
Is global trade a necessary foundation for cultural advancement?
Inquiry Question:
Was trade a necessary foundation for the growth of the kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai?
What kinds of questions do we need to ask and investigate in order to successfully answer these questions?

8. African Geography
In order to understand trade, we need to look at the geography of a location:
Natural Geographic Features:
Rivers, lakes, seas, deserts
Natural Resources:
What resources do they have?
What resources do they need/want?
Surrounding Cultures:
Desired goods?
Diffusion of ideas and beliefs

15. A Note on Slave Trade
Slavery and the slave trade has existed for many years in many forms
Examples?
Different types of slavery:
Chattel Slavery – slaves are considered property and can be traded as such
Debt Bondage: an individual is compelled to work in order to repay a debt
Forced Labor: individuals are forced to work based on the threat of violence against the laborer, contracted for a period of time and then unable to escape servitude
Note: Slavery has existed throughout human history, all throughout the world. Slavery was originally not based around race and any person regardless of religion, race, age, or gender could potentially be a slave. People most commonly entered slavery by being captured in war. The “modern” slave trade emerged around the 800s C.E. with the trading of people to Muslim merchants for desired goods  this continues to develop on a greater scale with the arrival of the Portuguese in West Africa and the exploration of the Americans. During the Middle Ages Europe bans slavery in their countries (serfdom being the exception since it was “civilized”) while other regions continue to trade slaves.

16. Cultural Achievements
Let’s look at our questions again:
Is global trade a necessary foundation for cultural advancement?
Was trade a necessary foundation for the growth of the kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai?
What about non-material aspects of cultural advancement? What impact can these have on the advancement of a society?
Influence of religion, education, weapons, ideas, etc.