1. Geography and Its
Influence on
African History

2. P A N G E
Millions of years ago, the continent of Africa separated from the Asian continent at the Gulf of
Suez and the Red Sea, which disconnected northeast Africa from the Arabian peninsula. This was the result of natural forces that shaped the earth. The outer layer, known as the crust, broke apart and created a deep valley, which stretches form the Red Sea into Ethiopia and down the east coast of Africa to Kenya and Tanzania in the south. This is Known as the Rift Valley.

3. The Plateau Continent Mt. Kilimanjaro
The largest landmass straddling the equator, Sub-Saharan Africa is vast in scale and its physical environment is remarkably beautiful.
CALLED THE PLATEAU CONTINENT, the African interior is dominated by extensive uplifted areas that resulted from the breakup of Gondwanaland, and ancient mega-continent the included Africa, South America , Antarctic, Australia, Madagascar, and Saudi Arabia.
Some 250 million years ago, it began to split apart through the forces of continental drift. As this process unfolded, the African landmass experienced a series of continental uplifts that left much of the area with vast elevated plateaus.
The highest areas are found on the eastern edge of the continent, where the Great Rift Valley forms a complex upland area of lakes, volcanoes, and deep valleys.
Mt. Kilimanjaro

4. Great Rift Valley

5. Location of Africa
Answer the following questions

6. 2. Which ocean borders Africa to the east?
Africa to the west?
2. Which ocean borders Africa to the east?
3. Which sea borders
Africa to the north?
For a long time, Africa remained somewhat isolated from the rest of the world due to oceans, deserts, and forests.
African is surrounded on all sides by the water---The Mediterranean to the north, the Atlantic to the wes, and the Indian Ocean and Red Sea to the East.

7. 4. Which continent is connected to Africa by a
landbridge?
5. What is the virtual line that divides the world into
Northern and Southern Hemispheres called?
6.Which continent (s) occupy space in all four
Hemispheres?

8. Based on global location as projected on the map above
Answer the following questions: 7.
a) do you think that Africa has a long history of active
contact, migration, exchange of ideas)with other regions of the
World?
Or………
b) do you think that until recently (the past 300 years)
Africa has been isolated from other regions of the world?
** Give as many reasons as you can for your answer
Students should be able to ascertain from the map of Africa’s central location particularly in relationship to Asia and Europe.
The geographic proximity to these two continents facilitated the movement of people, goods, services, and ideas between these three regions for a very long time.
Discuss the “sterotype” that Africa as a whole was isolated from other regions of the world and that this hindered Africa from having major developments in human civilization.
Note: Students may point out that the Sahara desert acted like a barrier that kept cultures apart.
If this comes up point out that there is archeological evidence of trans-Sahara routes that existed for nearly 3,000 years.

9. River systems acted like
highways moving people, goods,
and ideas.
The Nile River connected East Africa
and North Africa.
The first known African civilization,
namely the Egyptian civilization, began
along the Nile River.
The Nile River is the longest river in
the world.

10. Major Rivers where African civilizations and empires developed
Include the Senegal and Niger Rivers in West Africa, the Congo
River in Central Africa, and the Zambezi River in southeast Africa

11. 1 3 4 9 10 2 5 6 7 8 Nile 2. Volta River 3. Senegal River 2 5
Nile
2. Volta River
3. Senegal River
4. Niger River: part of number 4 is also the Benue River
5. Congo River
6. Zambezi River
7. Limpopo River
8. Orange River
White Nile
10. Blue Nile 6 7 8

13. Where is the Sahara Desert? 2. Can you find The Kalahari Desert?
3. Locate the Namib
Deserts.
4. What does this
word mean?
Al-Sahra
The Sahara Desert (al-Sahra in Arabic, means “desert) occupies the greater part of northern Africa.
It was a major barrier separating northern Africa and African territory separated south of the Sahara, which is known as sub-Saharan Africa. This separation affected the course of African history by keeping Islamic Civilization in the north largely separated from African civilizations to the south.

14. The Namib is the world's oldest desert, and the
only desert in Africa inhabited by elephant, rhino, giraffe and lion.

15. Africa is rich in natural resources, which include metal ores, precious minerals, and stones as well as ivory and gold.
Metal ores of iron and copper are found scattered throughout the continent.
Gold is abundant in West and Central Africa.
Diamonds are found throughout the southern regions of Africa.
Salt was and is an important product in North Africa.
*** These resources attracted Europeans to a great extent, resulting in the colonization of the continent in the early twentieth century.
African Resources

16. Animal life is also abundant in Africa
Animal life is also abundant in Africa. Many Africa’s regard animals with great respect. In the past , as well as in present times, they depended on the wildlife for their survival as a source of food and trade.
** Tourism
African resources

17. A F R I C N R E S O U C

18. Types of Vegetation in Africa
The physical landscape in Africa is diverse due in part to the different climates present.
There are four major types of vegetation in Africa desert, woodlands, grasslands, and forest.
The tropical rain forests is located around the equator along the south coast of West Africa and the Congo River basin.
North and south of the rain forest, the land changes to woodland and grassland, know as the Savannah.
20 degrees north and south of the equator lies the large deserts of Africa
A number of mountain ranges and highlands are scattered throughout North and East Africa. The Atlas Mountain in the north and the Drakensberg Range in the south.

19. Regions in Africa
Africa can be divided five regions: Morocco to Egypt, bordering the Mediterranean coast. This includes most of the Sahara Desert. The southern border lies roughly along the 20 degrees north latitude.
West Africa: consist of the coastal rain forest region from Cape Verde to Nigeria.
Central Africa lies north of the Kalahari Desert and Zambezi River and east of the Great Rift Valley.
East Africa stretches from Ethiopia along the Great Rift Valley to the Zambezi River.
South Africa: is the area south of the Zambezi to the Cape of Good Hope and includes the Kalahari and Namib Deserts.