History: The Mali Empire, Saharan Trade, and the Spread of Islam

Vocabulary flashcards covering the study of history, primary and secondary sources, the Trans-Saharan trade route, camel caravans, the Mali Empire, and the spread of Islam to West Africa.

History

The study of how the world has changed, how people lived long ago, and what they did to make a difference to how we live today.

Archaeology

The study of old objects and buildings that reveal what life was like long ago.

Material sources

A category of historical sources consisting of objects that are made.

Written sources

A category of historical sources consisting of books that have been written.

Visual sources

A category of historical sources consisting of photographs, maps, and drawings.

Oral sources

Historical sources consisting of stories that people tell, such as those passed down by Griots.

Primary sources

Original records from the past, such as diaries, letters, works of fiction, autobiographies, art objects, research articles written by those who performed the research, manuscripts, artefacts, data, interviews, blog posts, email messages, and newspaper articles written by eyewitness reporters.

Secondary sources

Information sources created about other people's work, including textbooks, book reviews, biographies, articles, television, newspapers, cell phones, and radio.

Sahara Desert

The world's largest hot desert, covering most of North Africa, where early cross-desert trade was conducted mainly in salt and gold.

Mali Kingdom

A kingdom in the western part of Africa, south of the Sahara Desert, stretching to the Atlantic Ocean; it reached the height of its power in the 14th century (1300–1399).

Niger River

A river over 4000km long that flowed through the Mali Empire, along which gold was mined.

Camel caravan

A procession of camels travelling together in single file.

Navigate

To find the way safely, such as using the position of the sun during the day and the stars at night to cross the desert.

"Ship of the desert"

A phrase referring to the camel, reflecting the great skill required to navigate the desert as if at sea, as well as the animal's suitability for desert transport.

Taghaza

A salt-rich village from which salt was transported to Mali.

Islam

A religion that began in the Middle East in the 7th century and was brought to West Africa from the 9th century by Arab Muslim traders.

Muslims

Followers of the Islamic religion.

Mansa

A title meaning the king or emperor of Mali.

Mansa Musa

A ruler of the Kingdom of Mali who established Islam as the state religion while continuing to allow religious freedom.