SOCIETIES AND EMPIRES
OF AFRICA
NORTH & CENTRAL AFRICA
3 TYPES OF SOCIETY DEVELOP…
1. Hunting- Gathering
Societies: seminomadic, lived by
gathering foods and
hunting animals.
NORTH & CENTRAL AFRICA
3 TYPES OF SOCIETY DEVELOP…
2. Stateless Societies:
no centralized power,
authority balanced
among lineages
NORTH & CENTRAL AFRICA
3 TYPES OF SOCIETY DEVELOP…
3. Muslim States: God’s
law higher authority
than any human law
- Almoravid and
Almohad
WEST AFRICAN CIVILIZATIONS:
• By AD 200 trade across
GHANA
Sahara existed for centuries
• By AD 700, Empire of
Ghana had formed and
begun to tax this transSaharan trade
• Gold and Salt
• Ruler acted as religious
leader, chief judge, and
military commander
• 1076, Muslims had
completed their conquest
of Ghana
WEST AFRICAN CIVILIZATION: MALI
• By 1235, Mali emerged
• Sundiata – Mali’s 1st great
mansa (emperor)
• Took over Ghana
• Great leader
• Promoted agriculture
• Reestablished gold/salt
trade
WEST AFRICAN CIVILIZATION: MALI
• Mansa Musa ruled 1312-1332
• Skilled military leader
• royal control over gold/salt
trade
• 100,000 man army
• Doubled size of empire
• Went on his hajj to Mecca
from 1324-1325
• Ordered new mosques build
• Timbuktu became very
important city, wide
attractions
• Successors weak leaders
WEST AFRICAN CIVILIZATION:
SONGHAI
• As Mali lost power, Songhai
emerged
• Gained control of the trade
routes
• Despite wealth and power,
lacked modern weapons
• Collapse of Songhai empire
ended a 1000 year period
of strong African empires.
WEST AFRICAN CIVILIZATIONS
• City States developed in
other parts of West Africa
• Muslim traditions influenced
some of these, while others
held their traditional African
beliefs.
• Hausa
• Yoruba
• Benin
EAST COAST TRADE CITIES
• Important trade cities
• Swahili language
• Grew wealthy by controlling
all incoming and outgoing
trade
• In 1448, the Portuguese took
control of many port cities
on the coast and kept them
for two centuries
SOUTHERN AFRICA: GREAT
ZIMBABWE
• Area good for farming
and cattle raising
• After 1000, gained
control of important
trade routes
• Abandoned by 1450, no
one knows why