What African political and social
institutions predate the arrival of Islam?
P.172 -192 chapter 8 Review on Monday

There were linguistic, mutually intelligible ties via Bantu.

Diverse economies…sedentary agriculture, nomadic
pastoralism, trading, ironworking. . .

Animistic religion, usually carried out by diviners.
• Tradition of oral history, maintained by Griots
Animistic religion,
Sierra Leone
What African political and social institutions predate the arrival of
Islam?
P.172 -192 chapter 8 Review on Monday
There were a variety of forms, including centralized, hierarchical,
decentralized, and stateless societies. These various political forms
often existed side-by-side.
There were linguistic, mutually intelligible
ties via Bantu
Animistic religion, usually carried out by
diviners
Tradition of oral history, maintained by
Griots
Sierra Leone
How did the arrival of Islam affect African
societies?

brought the notion of equality under Allah

provided a legal system (sharia)

strengthened local rulers

connected Africa to a larger
What were the Sudanic States
and how were they organized?
Over time, these included Ghana, Mali, Songhay, Hausa. P.178
Organization:
• Generally led by a patriarch or council of elders from a family or
lineage, who were considered sacred and separate from their subjects.
• Based on an ethnic core and supplemented by conquered peoples of
neighboring regions.
• Leaders used Islam to consolidate and solidify power.
What are the geographic boundaries of the
West Sudanic empires? Sahara, Niger R., Senegal R.
Jenne Mosque in Mali
What city and river are shared by many of
these civilizations? Timbuktu, Niger
Why do you think the Sahel states did not
push southward toward the ocean?
Rainforests. They had good river systems
around them. Trade was coming from the north.
How did Islam and the beliefs of indigenous
societies fuse among African peoples?
Africans wouldn’t give up traditional beliefs
altogether (many never converted), but
conquerors were not pushing full conversion
and were therefore tolerant of leaders who
partially assimilated. Thus, and as an
example, African gender roles, including
matrilineal traditions and open interaction
between males/females in public, persisted.
What was the connection between East
Africa and Islam?
Trade led to Islamization, but Islam heightened
trade due to enhanced trust amongst
merchants of an expansive Muslim world.
Swahili language is a good example of this
symbiotic relationship.
East Africa
What elements of
geography and
climate would
confine the Swahili
civilization to the
coasts of the Indian
Ocean?
Highlands, lack of navigable
rivers, best trade is on the
monsoon routes
Lalibela Church in Ethiopia
East Africa
With what other
Indian Ocean
cultures did the
Swahili trade?
India
Arabia
Persia
SE Asia