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(Nok, Ghana, Mali, Songhai, Forest Regions, Kingdom of Benin, Kongo and Angola, Society/Culture, Class, Religion, Art/Music)
Topography
(north) Sahara, Sahel, Savannah, Forests (south)
What happened during this time period 1,000 BCE to 200 CE
Animals were domesticated and grains were grown by the people in Savannah’s - sorghum, rice, millet
Nok culture
Existed from 900 BCE to 200 BCE in Nigeria. Disappeared mysteriously.
Terra-cotta statues
Still a mystery, statues have large eyes and elongated heads. They showed facial paralysis and elephantiasis, with human proportions. What do the statues represent, people of high statues or protective talismans against disease?
Iron objects and weapons
Started forging in 500 BC. Metal objects were used for trade and increased status of an individual. These objects were desired mainly because of their beauty.
Legal System of the Nok
Courts of differing levels, lower courts = family issues, higher courts = murder and theft. Crime brought curse on the family.
Culture of Ghana
First of the three Great West African empires, rulers were known for their wealth in Europe, the capital was Kumbi-Saleh
What value did gold equal
Salt
Slaves were from
War captives
Which part of Kumbi-Saleh was traditional and which one was muslim.
Indigenous - Muslim
When was writing introduced and by who
Arab traders in 900 A.D.
What led to Ghana’s collapse
Warfare
Who took over Ghana in the first loss
The Almorvids
Who was Ghana recaptured by after the first loss
The Soninke
Who took over Ghana in the second loss
The Sosso
What happened that was detrimental during the final loss of Ghana
The capital was destroyed.
What does the word Ghana mean
King
After the fall of Ghana the Sosso was defeated by
The Mandinka
Who was the first ruler of Mali
Sundiata
What does the word Mali mean
Where the emperor lives
What religion was Sundiata and religion did Mali follow
Muslim, and Islamic on the surface
What was a major city in Mali
Timbuktu
Mali had many learning buildings such as
Schools, libraries, and book dealers
Who is the most famous king from Mali
Mansa Musa
What famous things did Mansa Musa do
He haji to Mecca, and destabilized economies by giving out too much gold to anyone who greeted him along his haji.
What does Haji mean
Pilgrimage
What did the Mali empire fall too
The Songhai people
What great West African empire was Songhai
It was the last one and the largest
Who was the first ruler of Songhai
Sunni Ali
How did Sunni Ali die
He died by drowning
Who was Sunni Ali succeeded by
Askia Muhammad Toure
What religion did Asia Muhammad Toure spread through his empire
Islam, although it was more practiced in the cities not so much as the traditional rural areas.
What center of learning was the most important
The Sankore Mosque it was also internationally known.
Under what ruler did Songhai reach its peak
Askia Daoud
What changes in world affairs occurred during Songhai
Columbus sails to the new world, and the Portuguese establish trading routes along the coast of West Africa
Why did Songhai fall
Warfare with Morocco, since they had firearms aka. a better technological advantage.
When did people know that Songhai was defeated
When the capital of Gao fell
What does the forest region extend along and for how many miles
It extends along the West African coast for 2,000 miles
How many different cultures are in this region
Around 3, composed of the Senegambia, The Akan States, and the Kingdom of Benin.
What culture is Senegambia
Many people shared culture but were not united
What culture are the Akan States
They traded gold for guns this is how the Ashanti become powerful in this manner, slaves were traded with European.
Oba
King, or divine status
Benin shared cultural ties with which group of people
The Yoruba
What is the capital of Benin
Benin City
Important facts about Benin City to European visitors
The city was sophisticated, and there were no beggars on the streets
What did Benin trade for
Guns and gunpowder - Later on war captives were traded then as the kingdom began to fall their own people were also traded
Where were Igboland societies located in regard to Benin
To the east
What were Igboland societies like
They where stateless and elders provided guidance or leadership
Where was Angola located
In Central Africa
What was part of Angola culture
Villagers were composed of extended families, and rulers were semi divine
Mani Kongo means
King
Which country did the Kongo try to have open and fair relations with
The Portuguese
Why did the relations with the Portuguese not last
Corruption and unfair rules were created that favored the Portuguese over the Kongo. Soon enough the people in the Kongo were also traded as slaves
Matrilineal
Rank and status passes along the female line
Patrilineal
Rank and status passes along the male line
Nuclear Family
Husband, wife and children
Polygamous
Husband, wives, and children
Extended Family
Cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents.
Women were known as the property of men but also had rights such as
Owning property, serve in government positions, and could control the wealth of a family
Women in West Africa had more freedoms than
Women in European or Arab nations
What was special about Islamic women in West Africa
They did not veil themselves, and they had friendships with men other than their husbands.
Secret socities did what for boys and girls
They initiated them into adulthood, Poro - Boys, Sande - Girls
Who were the slaves in West Africa
War captives, that could gain their freedom through assimilation that could occur after a few years or 2 generations, so slavery wasn’t permanent.
What were the two types of religion
Islam and indigenous or traditional
What did the Indigenous religion believe in
They were animistic, polytheistic, believed there was a creator god above all, and ancestor spirits could influence everyday life. People also held ceremonies for their ancestors.
Animistic means
Belief in spirits
What worship linked the living and the dead
Ancestor Worship
How was art related to religion
Fetishes were created for ceremonies, they could represent spirits or creatures. Dancing was performed at religious ceremonies.
What were the instruments used for the ceremonies
Drums, xylophone, and ubensa
What was part of the oral tradition
Literature
What are griots
They are storytellers who traveled place to place telling tales
What was passed down generation to generation
Literature
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