Chapter 12 Kingdoms and Trading States of Africa

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Chapter 12 Kingdoms and Trading States of Africa
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Ge graphy of Africa
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Climate Zones of Africa

• Tropical rainforests cover less than 5 of the
  land. The rainforests have thick vegetation and a
  heavy amount of rain which makes it very moist.
• Africas largest and most populated climate zone
  is the savanna, or grassy plains. The savanna
  generally has good soil and enough rainfall to
  support farming.

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Climate Zones of Africa

• Another climate zone in Africa is the desert. The
  Sahara, in northern Africa, is the biggest desert
  in the world. The desert is very dry therefore,
  farming is almost impossible.
• Along the Mediterranean coast of Africa, and at
  the tip of southern Africa, there is fertile
  farmland called the Mediterranean Climate. Unlike
  the desert, the Mediterranean Climate is ideal
  for farming.

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African Civilization

• The ancient kingdom Nubia was formed on a wide
  band of fertile land along the Nile. Nubian
  rulers adopted many Egyptian traditions. They
  built palaces and pyramids modeled on Egyptian
  styles.

• Over thousands of years, migrations contributed
  to diversity of African people and their
  cultures. West African farmers and herders moved
  to the south and east between 500 and 1500 AD.
  They spoke a variety of languages that all came
  from the African root language, Bantu.

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Advancements of Africa

• The Romans built roads, dams, aqueducts, and
  cities across North Africa. From North Africa,
  they imported lions and other fierce animals to
  do battle with the gladiators. By 200 A.D.,
  camels had been brought to North Africa from
  Asia. The camels revolutionized trade across the
  Sahara because they can carry heavy loads for a
  long time with little or no water.

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The Gold-Salt Trade
West Africa
North Africa
SALT
GOLD
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Gold for Salt

• Two products, gold and salt, dominated the Sahara
  trade. Gold was plentiful in present day Ghana,
  Nigeria, and Senegal which is in West Africa.
  They would trade their gold for salt with South
  Africa. South Africa was in need of gold and West
  Africa was in need of salt. Salt was very
  important. People needed salt in their diet to
  prevent dehydration, especially in hot, tropical
  areas.

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Islam in Africa

• The most common religion in Africa was Islam.
  Islam spread slowly at first but in 1050, the
  Almoravids, who were Muslims of North Africa,
  launched a campaign to spread Islam.

• One of the greatest emperors , Mansa Musa,
  fulfilled one of the five pillars of Islam and
  made his pilgrimage to Mecca. Wherever he stopped
  on his way, he spread his generosity and gave the
  people there goods and gold.

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The Five Pillars of Islam

• The 5 pillars of Islam are what hold the Islamic
  religion together.
• 1 - Declaration of faith.
• 2 - Daily prayer.
• 3 - Giving charity to the poor.
• 4 - Fasting during Ramadan.
• 5 - Pilgrimage to Mecca.

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Trade Routes of East Africa
By 1000 A.D., port cities in Africa were thriving
from trade across the Indian ocean. Some of the
things that were produced in Africa that they
traded were ivory, rhinoceros horn, hides, and
gold. Some immediate affects from the trading
were that there was thriving commerce in
Mogadishu, Kilwa, and Sofala. There was also a
rise of strong East African city-states and a
rise of slave trade. There was also the
introduction of crops and animals from the Middle
East and Asia.
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The Stones of Great Zibabwe

• To the south and inland from the coastal
  city-states, massive stone ruins sprawl across
  rocky hilltops near the great bend in the Limpopo
  River. These ruins are known as Great Zimbabwe.
  The builders of Great Zimbabwe were a group of
  Bantu-speaking people who settled in the region
  between 900 and 1500.

• The newcomers brought improved farming methods.
  They produced enough food to support a growing
  population.

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Economy and Government

• Scholars have suggested that the ruler of Great
  Zimbabwe was a god-king who presided over a large
  court. A central bureaucracy ruled an inner ring
  of province, while appointed governors had
  authority in more distant villages.

Zimbabwe reached its height in about 1300. By
then, it tapped nearby gold resources and created
profitable commercial links with coastal cities
like Sofala.
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Adapting to the Land

• Bantu people migrated across Africa. Whenever
  they settled, they adapted to local environments.
  They had different groups serving different
  purposes in their villages. One of the groups
  included hunter and food gatherers. They would
  hunt animals and gather wild plants and roots.
  Another group was the herders and fishers. Their
  jobs were to trap fish in the rivers and to herd
  animals such as cattle. The last group is the
  farming societies. They farmed a variety of crops
  from grains to bananas. Most farmers used a
  method called slash-and-burn agriculture. They
  cleared forest and brush land with iron axes and
  then burned the remains, using the ash for
  fertilizer.

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African Arts

• African art was usually created in ivory, bronze,
  and wood. Jewelry and dyed cloth was used in
  African art often. Much art, though, served as
  social and religious purposes.

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Chapter 12Kingdoms and Trading States of
AfricaErika Demkowicz Christina Kabbadias