EARLY CIVILIZATIONS
OF AFRICAEast and West
EAST AFRICA Trade in East Africa mixture of cultures Kingdom of Axum
In modern-day EthiopiaMonsoon winds Axum trading ships
crossed Indian Ocean
From Africa To Africa
ivoryslavesspices
clothwineolive oil
EAST AFRICA: ZIMBABWE Settled by Bantu-speakers Zimbabwe = “great stone houses”
Used bricks & stones w/o mortar (cement) Had feudal system In 1620s, defeated by Portuguese, who
wanted gold
EAST AFRICA: TRADING CITY-STATES Persian, Arab, Indonesian, & Indian
traders settled in East AfricaArab merchants most powerful
Grew rich by exporting iron ore, ivory, slaves, & gold from Africa
African & Arab cultures mixed Many Africans & Arabs married Many Africans converted to Islam Swahili, meaning “people of the coast” in Arabic,
is now most spoken language in East Africa
Portuguese, determined to take over control of trade, fought Arab city-states in East Africa for 300 years
WEST AFRICA 500-1500 CE: 3 kingdoms
ran on trans-Saharan tradeTrade b/w West Africa, the
Mediterranean region, & the Arabian Peninsula
Muslim merchants took control of the trade They sold goods to Berbers, camel-
riding desert nomadsShipped north
Shipped south
goldivoryslavesleather goodscattlesheepjewelry
saltclothwheatdried fruithorsesmetal goods
WEST AFRICA: GHANA Ghana exported gold &
imported salt Ghana known as “land of gold” Kings became rich taxing the
gold & the salt Invading Islamic armies &
merchants spread Islam Scholars, who taught about
Islam, came too Ghana’s city dwellers
(including the kings’ advisers) converted to Islam, but farmers didn’t
Ghana became weak from North African Islamic armies, but Mali finally conquered in 1240
WEST AFRICA: MALI After Mali conquered Ghana in 1240, it
spread from the Atlantic Ocean to 1/3rd of the way east into Africa
Mali’s kings also become rich from taxes on gold and salt, in addition to taxes on their people
Mali’s kings became Muslims
WEST AFRICA: MANSA MUSA
Mansa Musa (1312-1337), king of Mali, made a huge pilgrimage to Mecca 60,000 people, 12,000
slaves, >2,400 lbs of gold Price of gold fell sharply
Timbuktu, Mali’s capital became West Africa’s Islamic center of learning Mansa Musa brought back
architects & scholars from Mecca to build mosques, palaces, & schools
In 1359, Timbuktu and Gao (another city) split upTimbuktu mosque
Mansa Musa
WEST AFRICA: SONGHAI The city of Gao became the trading
center of the Songhai Kingdom King Askia Muhammad, like Mansa
Musa, made big pilgrimages to MeccaHe tried to convert everyone in Songhai to
Islam Islamic principles became the basis of the
court system & of social reforms Morocco eventually took down Songhai
by 1600
IMPACT OF ISLAM
Look through your notes for info on Islam.
Then, in your notes, write a paragraph explaining Islam’s impact on the early civilizations of Africa.