Diverse Societies in Africa
Chapter 8 Vocab
Sahara
• A vast desert of northern Africa extending east
from the Atlantic coast to the Nile Valley and
south from the Atlas Mountains to the region
of the Sudan.
Savannas
• An area of land characterized by coarse
grasses and scattered tree growth, especially
on the edges of the tropics where the rainfall
is seasonal, as in eastern Africa.
Animism
• The belief that natural objects, natural
phenomena, and the universe itself possess
souls.
Griot
• A member of a class of traveling poets,
musicians, and storytellers who maintain a
tradition of oral history in parts of West Africa.
Terraces
• A flat area created on the side of a hill and
used especially for growing crops.