Land and Resources of Africa
Q. 1. Name some important landforms of Africa?
Ans. The major physical regions of Africa are: The Sahara, the Sahel, the Ethiopian Highlands,
the savanna, the Swahili Coast, the rain forest, the African Great Lakes.
Geography of Africa
i .Africa is surrounded by two major oceans, the Indian Oceans on its east and the Atlantic
Ocean on its west.
ii. Along Africa’s north coast is the Mediterranean Sea.
iii. The Suez Canal was built in the late 19th century to allow ships to pass from the
Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea.
Activity 1.
River Name
Nearby City or Feature
1. Nile
Khartoum
2. Congo or Zaire
Muanda
3. Zambesi
Sioma
4. Orange
Botshabelo
5. Niger
Bamako
6. Senegal
Dagana
The Rift Valley
Q2. How has been the Rift valley formed?
Ans. Plate tectonics and movements of the earth over millions of years created the Rift Valley
of eastern Africa. It is caused by a split in the crust of the earth.
Q3. How long is the rift of the Rift Valley?
Ans. The Rift runs 7,000 km from country of Jordan and Red Sea in the North through East
Africa and down to central Mozambique.
Q5: Where does the Rift Valley start and end?
It begins in the Afar Triangle in Ethiopia and stretches down through Kenya, Tanzania, and
Mozambique.
Q6: How does the Rift Valley impact human activities?
The region is significant for agriculture, tourism, and is also rich in minerals. It's home to many
communities and indigenous cultures.
Q7: What are some major cities located in the Rift Valley?
Cities include Nairobi in Kenya, Addis Ababa in Ethiopia, and Arusha in Tanzania.
Activity 3
Q. List the countries that the Rift Valley runs through.
Activity 4: Concept Review
Circle the correct answer.
i . The Sahel is found in Central Africa.
ii. The Sahel is a grassland savannah that borders the desert area of the Sahara.
iii. The Rift Valley is known for the earliest signs of human habitation.
iv. The Blue Nile and the White Nile are two tributaries of the Nile River that join at Khartoum,
capital city of Sudan.
v. Dakar is the capital of Senegal.
vi. Lagos is the capital of Nigeria.
Ancient African Civilizations
Activity 1
Q. Do you know any of the names of ancient African civilizations? List as many as you can.
Ans. Ancient Aksum, Ancient Harar Jugol, the Kingdom of Zimbabwe and Ancient Ghana were
some of the ancient African civilizations.
Ancient Aksum
Q. i. Which country was the center of ancient kingdom of Aksum?
Ans. In ancient times, Ethiopia, a country located in the Horn of Africa, was called Abyssinia and
its most prominent kingdom was called Aksum.
Q. ii. State how old, strong and developed the Kingdom of Aksum was.
Ans. The Kingdom of Aksum was established in 400 BCE. As a powerful empire, Aksum served
as a major hub between the African, Arab, European, and Indian trade communities. The
people of Aksum had their own written language called Geez and printed their own coins to use
as currency. Obelisks (pillars), erected by Negus Ezana in ancient times, serve as a reminder to
the powerful and tolerant past that ancient Aksum enjoyed.
Ancient Harar Jugol
Q. What do you know about the ancient Harar Jugol?
Ans. A powerful kingdom from Ancient Abyssinia is called Harar Jugol. The city of Harar was
founded as early as the 10th century as the capital of the Harari Kingdom. The Harari kingdom
was an important trading society.
Q. How was the Ancient Harar city built?
Ans. The Ancient Harar city had five walled gates, which also divided the city into five separate
neighborhoods. There were main roads and walkways throughout the city.
Activity 2:
Q. List 5 facts from the text about Ancient Aksum and ancient Harar Jugol.
Ancient Aksum
Ancient Harar Jugol
Established in 400 BCE.
Founded as early as 10th century CE.
Written language, Geez
Harar city
Currency/ Coins
Five gated-&-walled city
Obelisks
Five separate intra-city neighborhoods
Negus Ezana
Main roads & walkways through city
Major hub for regional trade
Important trading society
Q. Explain how they (Aksum & Harar Jugol) were similar and different.
Ans. Similarities
a. Ancient African, Ethiopian or Abyssinian kingdoms
b. Both kingdoms enjoyed importance in trade
Differences
a. Both Kingdoms were from different time periods of history
b. Aksum had left behind obelisks, whereas the gated-&-walled city of Harar was left by
Harar Jugol
The Kingdom of Zimbabwe
Q. Where and by whom was the Kingdom of Zimbabwe established? What was its time period
in history?
Ans. Located in southern Africa, the Kingdom of Zimbabwe was established by the Kalanga
people of present day Zimbabwe, Botswana, and South Africa. Between 1000 CE and 1500 CE
the kingdom was the Great Zimbabwe. Present-day Zimbabwe took its name after
independence from the British in 1980.
Q. Why was the ancient Zimbabwe referred to as “Great Zimbabwe”? Give two examples.
Ans. The ancient kingdom of Zimbabwe was referred to as “Great Zimbabwe”, because the
kingdom rose to become an important regional power through trade with other kingdoms in
the region. Additionally, Great Zimbabwe established its own gold, copper, and iron mines for
production and trade.
Q. What was another kingdom that traded with “Great Zimbabwe”? Which products were
traded?
Ans. Another kingdom that traded with “Great Zimbabwe” was the kingdom of Mapungubwe,
located in the present-day Limpopo area of South Africa. Through this relationship, Great
Zimbabwe was able to control the ivory and gold trade that crossed from the interior of African
continent to its south eastern coasts.
Ancient Ghana
Activity 4
Q. Which present day countries made up the ancient Kingdom of Ghana?
Ans. The ancient kingdom of Ghana, a large and powerful kingdom, was located in the presentday Mauritania and Mali. Its influence spread throughout West African coast and Sahara desert.
Q. Which was a major product of Ghana, one that it was remembered for in history?
Ans. Since Ghana was known as the land of Gold, the gold mined within the kingdom was of
high importance. This made the kingdom very wealthy since both the king and his subjects had
access to tradable goods.
Q. What is Ajami? How was it important in recording the history of the Ancient Ghanaian
people?
Ans. The Ghanaian scholars and writers wrote in their native Wolof language, but used Arabic
script. This mixture of Wolof words in Arabic script was called Ajami, which refers to the use of
Arabic script to write in different languages. Ghanaian scholars would write their oral stories in
order to record history.
West African Islamic Civilizations
Q. When and how Islam had spread in Africa?
Ans. Islam spread to Egypt from 685 CE to 715 CE. Islam then spread across the Sahara to the
Sahel. Islam spread through the West African states and East Africa through merchant contacts.
Q. What is the history of Timbuktu?
Ans. Timbuktu was a prominent city by 15th and 16th centuries and the cultural center of Mali
and Sahel region. It had three great mosques. It also has a famous library of Arabic manuscripts
which shows that its cultural heritage was connected to the Arab Muslim world. Timbuktu
became wealthy from the gold trade of the 14th century.
Q. Who was Mansa Musa?
Ans. Mansa Musa (1312-1337) was a great ruler of the Great Songhai Empire of Mali. He was
the great nephew of Mari Jata, the legendary king who established the kingdom of Mali.
Q. What was Mansa Musa famous for?
Ans. Mansa Musa was famous for his long caravan expedition across the Sahara to Cairo, where
he took with him vast amount of gold from the rich gold fields of West Africa. In Cairo, he spent
so much gold that the value of gold fell throughout Egypt.
Activity 4
Fill in the blanks.
One of the most famous rulers of the Malian and Songhai Empire was Mansa Musa. He led a
Caravan across the Sahara to Cairo and to Mecca to make his pilgrimage or Hajj. The famous
city of Timbuktu in Mali, has a great library of manuscripts where Arabic books and Korans are
preserved for scholars to study. Education is a major achievement of Timbuktu. The city of
Djenne is located in the Niger River Delta and features many mosques made of traditional mud
architecture.
Activity 5
List five geographical features that Mansa Musa would have crossed during his journey for
pilgrimage to Mecca.
Ans. Niger Delta, plains and highlands of Mali, the Sahel, Sahara desert, the Nile valley and the
Arabian plateau were the geographical features that Mansa Musa must have been through on
his pilgrimage to Mecca.