Chapter 3 Section 1

The Rise of African Civilizations

Physical geography plays a role in how civilizations develop. Africas geography influenced the rise of its civilizations. The growth of trade led to the exchange of goods and ideas.

Benue River Ghana Mali

Timbuktu Songhai Axum

Sundiata Keita
Mansa Musa Sunni Ali

plateau griot dhow

fee diminish prime

Africa contains one of the worlds largest areas of sand. This area covers about 2 million square miles of sand and contains the Kalahari Desert. Scientists flock to the Kalahari Desert because it contains plants that are important to research.

Egypt and Kush were Africas first great civilizations. In this section, you will learn about African civilizations that developed later.

Africa has a vast and varied landscape made up of shifting sand dunes, rain forests, sweeping savannas, large deserts, and coastal plains. (page 207) African empires grew rich from trading gold and salt. (page 209)

I. Africas Geography (pages 207208)

A. Africa is the second-largest continent in the world.

B. The African continent contains rain forests; savannas, which are tropical grasslands; and deserts.

C. The Sahara and Kalahari are deserts in Africa. The Sahara is the largest desert in the world.
D. A plateau is an area of high flat land. Almost all of Africa, except the coastal plains, rests on a plateau.

I. Africas Geography (pages 207208)

E. The Nile River is Africas longest river. The Niger River is important in West Africa.
The Great Rift Valley was formed when parts of the plateaus surface dropped. Some of the earliest human fossils have been found in the Great Rift Valley.

F.

I. Africas Geography (pages 207208)

I. Africas Geography (pages 207208)

I. Africas Geography (pages 207208)

How did the deserts affect travel in Africa?

The deserts were difficult to cross. People avoided the desert by traveling along the coastlines.

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

A. The Bantu people traveled through southern Africa, and had settled most of Africa by A.D. 400, spreading their culture as they traveled.

B. The Berbers traded with West Africa.

C. Berbers used horses and donkeys to cross the desert until the Romans brought camels from central Asia. Camels could travel for days without water, and they used stored fat in their humps for food. Trade prospered after the introduction of the camel, and rulers of cities began to build empires.

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

D. Ghana, the first large empire to rise from trading wealth, was located where trade routes came together. Ghanas rulers required traders to pay a tax to pass through Ghana. Traders paid the taxes because Ghana made iron weapons and had a huge army. Also, the traders wanted the trade goods at almost any price.

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

E. Ghana fell in the 1200s because of constant fighting between Ghana rulers and North African Muslims, the discovery of gold outside of Ghanas control, and exhausted soil that was too poor for farming.

F.

Ghana was replaced by the kingdom of Mali. Legend tells of a warrior-king named Sundiata Keita who seized Ghana and then won control of Timbuktu, a trading city.

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

G. Mansa Musa was the last strong ruler of Mali. He died in 1332. The kings who followed him were unable to stop the Berbers from overrunning the kingdom.

H. Sunni Ali, the leader of Songhai, drove the Berbers out of Timbuktu. His army took over the Berber salt mines. His empire became the largest in West Africa and lasted almost 100 years after his death in 1492.

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

Click the map to view a dynamic version.

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

I. In 1591, Arab soldiers from Morocco attacked the Songhai and ended their empire. People in the rain forests built their own empires, such as Kongo and Benin.

J.

K. King Ewuare founded the empire of Benin around 1440.

L.

The rain forests provided farmers with a climate and soil suitable for farming. The farmers could grow plenty of food in the rain forests. Food surpluses supported rulers and an artisan class. These empires traded surplus food to neighboring people in the savannas for copper, salt, and leather goods.

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

M. The country of Ethiopia today traces its origins to Queen Makeda, who became queen of an empire called Saba or Sheba in 1005 B.C.

N. Glory of Kings, Ethiopias oldest written history, recounts how Makeda visited with King Solomon of Israel. When she returned to Saba, she introduced ancient Israels religion to her empire.

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

O. Although Saba declined, the country of Ethiopia remained strong. Axum was a powerful citystate in Ethiopia. It was located on the Red Sea and became a powerful trading center.

P.

Axum fought with neighboring Kush to control trade routes. Around A.D. 300, King Ezana of Axum defeated Kush. King Ezana converted to Christianity and made it the official religion in A.D. 334.

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

Q. Arabs invented triangular sails and sailboats called dhows that helped them sail to Africa. Arab Muslim traders sailed to Africa to trade with East African city-states. Cities arose on the East African coast to support Arab-African trade.

R. Zimbabwe was a great trading city. During the 1400s, two kings, Mutota and his son, Matope, made Zimbabwe into a large empire. Great Zimbabwe was the capital.

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

II. African Trading Empires (pages 209214)

How were different religions introduced to Africa?

The Queen of Saba visited Israel and brought its religion back. King Ezana brought Christianity to the people of Axum, and Arab Muslims brought Islam to East Africa.

The continent of Africa has varied landscapes, including rain forests, grasslands, and deserts. Most Africans draw on a common ancestry through the Bantu.

Beginning in about A.D. 300, a succession of kingdoms, including Ghana, Mali, and Songhai, arose in West Africa. In addition, rain forest kingdoms, including Benin and Kongo, traded with the surrounding savanna kingdoms.

1. Describe Africas grasslands.

The African grasslands have high temperatures and uneven rain.

2. What items were traded in the kingdoms of West Africa?

Items traded were salt for cloth from the North Africa/Sahara. West Africa also traded gold and ivory.

(3) CA 7RC2.2

3. Organize Draw a chart like the one below. For each region, describe the role of trade that developed there.

Answers will vary.

(4) CA HI6.

4. Economics Connection How did the kingdom of Ghana use taxation to strengthen and increase the wealth of its empire?
They charged a fee from anyone trading or passing through.

(5) CA CS3.

5. The Big Idea How do you think the history of Africa and its kingdoms might have been different if Africas geography had been different?
Answers will vary but should be based on similarities and differences in the text.

(6) CA 7RC2.0

6. Compare and Contrast Which of the kingdoms discussed in this section developed away from the coast? How did the economies of these kingdoms compare to other African kingdoms?

Ghana, Songhai, Benin, Kongo, Kush, and Great Zimbabwe developed away from the coast. Their economies were based on control of trade routes, food surpluses, and goods from the interior.