Name _______________________________________________________
Period # ____
Map of Kingdoms of East and West Africa
West African
Kingdoms
7. _________________
___________
___________
___________
5. _____________
Central Africa
Eastern City-States
1. ___________
2. ___________
3. ___________
4. _________________
a. ______________
b. ______________
c. ______________
d. ______________
e. ______________
f. ______________
g. ______________
h. ______________
Name ________________________________________ Period # _____
West African Empires
Between 500 and 1500 A.D. three powerful Empires flourished in the Sahel south of the Sahara in
west Africa: Ghana, Mali, and Songhai. The wealth of these kingdoms was based on the taxes on trade
goods moving through their territory. By controlling the trans-Sahara trade routes between sub-Saharan
Africa and Arab North Africa, their kings became very wealthy and powerful.
On the Map:
1. Label Sahara Desert
2. Under “West African Kingdoms” list the three kingdoms in the reading from oldest to most
recent. Also identify the dates of their rule in West Africa.
Ghana was the first of the three powerful trading Kingdoms to rise in the area. The people were
largely farmers, but with the discovery of goldfields to the south, they became an important trading
location. Arab-Muslim traders of North Africa sought to take advantage of this discovery and sent trade
caravans made up of camels across the desert carrying salt, copper, clothing, and tools. Arab traders
received gold, slaves, ivory and leather goods from West Africa. The two most important trade goods
were salt from mines located in the Sahara to the North of Ghana, and the gold mined in the equatorial
rain forests to the south of Ghana. These items were exchanged pound for pound. The kings of Ghana,
Mali, and Songhai became wealthy by taxing these products as trade caravans from the North and South
met in their territories to make the exchange.
3. The wealth and power of these kingdoms was largely based on the exchange of two products
on line #7 write the name of the two most important trade products in these kingdoms.
4. Arab Muslims had a large influence on West Africa. On the Arrow coming from North
Africa across the Sahara write “Arab traders come to West Africa” and also list products
they brought to trade.
The Empire of Ghana enjoyed its greatest period of power between 800 and 1000 A.D., because of its
efficient government and army to guard the trade routes. Muslims of North Africa eventually declared
a Holy war against non-Muslim Ghana which weakened Ghana. About 1100 a new Kingdom, Mali,
rose to take control of the trans-Sahara trade routes. This empire reached it peak of power under
Mansa Musa who ruled Mali in the 1300’s. Mansa Musa had such wealth that it is reported that he
controlled 2/3 of the world’s gold. When he made his pilgrimage to Mecca, he gave away so much
gold he caused the value of gold to drop worldwide. Unlike Ghana, the emperors of Mali became
Muslim, and the culture of the kingdom was a mixture of African and Muslim culture. Eventually
civil war broke out in Mali and a new kingdom, Songhai took control of the region in the 1400’s1500’s. Their prosperity was also dependent on control of the trans-Sahara trade routes, and the
discovery of new gold fields to the east. Though its rulers were practicing Muslims, in 1591, an ArabMuslim army from Morocco in North Africa conquered Songhai bringing it to an end.
5. On the dotted line across the Sahara write: Mansa Musa makes a Pilgrimage to Mecca.
6. On the cannon pointing toward the West African Kingdoms, identify the people who
eventually destroyed the Empires of Ghana and Songhai.
Trading Cities of East Africa
By 1100 A.D. waves of Bantu-speaking people had migrated to the east coast of Africa. There they
established farming and fishing villages. Here they produced a variety of crops like bananas, rice, fruit, and
sugarcane, and also raised cattle. From the sea, inhabitants harvested fish, tortoise shells, and pearls. At the same
time, traders took advantage of the monsoons to make their way across the Indian Ocean to East Africa. By 1300,
existing coastal villages grew into about 35 cities centered around bustling seaports that grew wealthy by
controlling incoming and outgoing trade between East African merchants and traders from Arabia, Persia, and
India. The seaports became centers of trade where things from Africa’s interior were exchanged for products from
Asia.
On the map of Africa:
1. Label the Indian, Ocean, India, Arabian Peninsula.
2. East Africa was dominated by trading cities, who’s location made them important trading ports
between the Interior Africa and Asia. Next to numbers (1)(2)(3) label these East African trading
cities: 1: Malindi 2:Mombasa 3: Kilwa
3. East Africa produced a number of agricultural and fishing products. On the line labeled #4 write:
“Products of East Africa”. Then below it list the products identified in the reading.
Muslim traders moved south from North Africa and established markets. They brought Asian manufactured
goods to Africa, which included porcelain bowls from China and jewels and cotton cloth from India. From interior
Africa, Arab traders bought leopard skins, rhinoceros horns, and elephant ivory all from the savanna Central Africa.
They also bought gold from southern and western Africa and a variety of agricultural and fishing products of the
Swahili Coastal region. Most rulers, government officials, and merchants were Muslim, however, the vast majority
of people living along the coast held on to their traditional religious beliefs.
4. Traders on the coast got a number of products from Central and Western Africa. On the arrow
from West Africa list the items traded to East African
merchants. On the arrow from Central Africa list the items traded to East
African Merchants.
Islam became an important influence in the region, a new language, Swahili, took shape combining Bantu
and Arabic and spread throughout the region. Along with luxury goods, Arab merchants also became involved in
the slave trade, exporting enslaved person from the east coast of Africa to Arabia, Persia, India, China and Iraq.
In 1497, Portuguese ships began appearing in east African ports, desiring to trade with the East Africans for
Asian goods such as silks, spices, and perfumes. When they saw the wealth that could be made from trade in East
Africa, they used their heavy cannons to conquer the major trading cities, and remained a presence in East Africa
for the next two hundred years.
5. Many Arab traders from the Arabian peninsula settled in East Africa. They
brought their faith with them and Islam became the dominant religion in the region, and Arabic
mixed with native Bantu to produce a new language. On the arrow from the Arabian Peninsula
write: “Arab merchants, and Islam come to East Africa.” Also write the work “Swahili” next to #5.
6. East African trading merchants sent ships across the Indian Ocean trading a variety of African
goods to ports in Asia for Asian goods. On the arrow pointing westward from the Indian Ocean
print those Asian societies that traded with East Africa, identified in the reading.
7. On the cannon in East Africa label which Europeans conquered the East African cities and when.