Warm Up Talk with your table about similarities

Warm Up Talk with your table about similarities and differences between – Ancient Egypt – Western Kingdoms

African Kingdoms • Axum: 100 -940 C. E. • Ghana: 350 -1235 • Mali: 1230 -1610 • Songhay: 1464 -1612 • Great Zimbabwe: 1220 -1450

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Ghana, Mali & Songhai,

African Kingdoms. Ghana, Mali, Songhai, Axum & Great Zimbabwwe • All major African kingdoms controlled important trade routes and were very advanced long…. . before European contact.

Ghana, Mali, & Songhai • All existed at different times. • All three civilizations prospered due to the Gold and salt trade. • All developed in West Africa • All had artwork which included gold, bronze, and clay sculptures.

Gold and Salt Gold Salt • Gold came from the south, from mines near the Gulf of Guinea and along the Niger. • Salt came from the Sahara in the north. People needed salt to survive. • People wanted gold for its beauty. • It could preserve food, and made bland food tasty.

Empire of Ghana c 800 -c 1100 • Began 700 A. D. by the Soninke people • This was the first trading empire. • Eventually converted to Islam. • Conquered by Almoravids in the 11 th century

• The use of iron to make tools and weapons was important because these helped Ghana expand its control over neighboring people. • The use of the horse and camel were also important factors in how rulers were able to incorporate small farmers and herders into the empire. http: //es. encarta. msn. com/media_461532998_761558787_-1_1/Caravana_de_camellos. html news. nationalgeographic. com/. . . /salt/photo 6. html

Trading • The exchange of gold and salt sometimes followed a silent barter process in which people exchange goods without ever contacting each other directly. – Helped ensure traders did business peacefully – Kept exact location of gold mines a secret from salt traders • As trade increased, Ghana’s rulers gained power. – Their military strength grew as well. – Began to take control of trade routes – Rulers of Ghana became wealthy. • Additional sources of wealth and trade included wheat, sheep, cattle, honey, leather, cloth, and tassels made from golden thread.

Ghana’s rulers made money by forcing traders to pay taxes. The people of Ghana also had to pay taxes, and conquered neighboring tribes had to pay tribute. Ghana’s mines produced huge amounts of gold, which was officially the property of the king. The rulers banned anyone else in Ghana from owning gold nuggets. Common people could own only gold dust. 900 s-Muslims came south to conquer Ghana and convert the people to Islam brought literacy, learning, a strict code of laws, currency, use of credit, and a common religion.

Main Idea 3: Attacking invaders, overgrazing, and the loss of trade caused Ghana’s decline. Invasion Overgrazing • The Muslim Almoravids attacked Ghana in the 1060 s. • The Almoravids brought herds of animals with them. • Destroyed the city of Koumbi Saleh • The animals overgrazed, leaving the soil to blow away. • They cut off trade routes and formed new partnerships with Muslim leaders. • Without trade, Ghana could no longer support its empire. • Unable to grow crops, many farmers had to leave. Internal Rebellion • In about 1200 the people of one of the areas Ghana had conquered rose up in rebellion. • Within a few years the rebels had taken over Ghana. • Weakened, Ghana was defeated by one of its neighbors.

Mali and Songhai The Big Idea Between 1000 and 1500 the empires of Mali and Songhai developed in West Africa. Main Ideas • The empire of Mali reached its height under the ruler Mansa Musa, but the empire fell to invaders in the 1400 s. • The Songhai built a new Islamic empire in West Africa, conquering many of the lands that were once part of Mali.

Main Idea 1: Mali and the Niger River. Mali lay along the upper Niger River. The area had fertile soil and trade on the river. What are the similarities between this and Ancient Egypt?

MALI • By 1235 the kingdom of Mali had emerged. • Islamic Kingdom • Mali’s wealth was also built on gold. • Greatest leader was Mansa Musa • He expanded the empire to nearly twice the size of Ghana. • Profited from slave trade • Timbuktu became a very prominent “LEARNING CENTER”

Mansa Musa • Mali’s most famous ruler was a Muslim named Mansa Musa who ruled from 1312 to 1337. • Mali reached the height of its wealth, power, and fame in the 1300 s, and Islam spread through a large part of West Africa. • During his reign Mali added many important trade cities to its empire, including Timbuktu. • In 1324 Mansa Musa made a pilgrimage to Mecca, spreading Mali’s fame far and wide-Hajj. • He supported education, stressed the importance of learning to read Arabic, and hired Muslim architects to build mosques. A mosque is a building for Muslim prayer.

Timbuktu • Muslim scholars came from all over the world to study religion, math, music, law, & literature. • Center of learning and art Increased Islamic influence in West Africa • Use of credit • Written contracts • Education for many classes

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Mansa Musa Hajj to Mecca

The Songhai Main Idea 2: built a new Islamic empire in West Africa, conquering many of the lands that were once part of Mali. From their capital at Gao, the Songhai kingdom participated in the same trade that had made Ghana and Mali rich. Islamic Kingdom

Songhai • The largest of the 3 major West African kingdoms • Took control of Timbuktu • Expanded trade to Europe and Asia – Time of great cultural diffusion • Askia Muhammad sets up high functioning bureaucracy – 5 provinces each with • A governor • Tax collector • Judges (Like Mansa Musa, had laws based on Qur’an) • Trade inspectors

Songhai Falls to Morocco • Morocco wanted control of Songhai’s salt mines. • The Moroccan army attacked in 1591, carrying advanced weapons, including the arquebus. • The invaders destroyed Timbuktu and Gao. • Overland trade declined as port cities on the Atlantic coast became more important. • Africans south of Songhai and Europeans both preferred trading at Atlantic ports to dealing with Muslim traders.

Historical and Artistic Traditions The Big Idea West African culture has been passed down through oral history, writings by other people, and the arts. Main Ideas • West Africans have preserved their history through storytelling and the written accounts of visitors. • Through art, music, and dance, West Africans have expressed their creativity and kept alive their cultural traditions.

Main Idea 1: West Africans have preserved their history through storytelling and the written accounts of visitors. Early West Africans did not have a native written language. They passed along information through oral histories. An oral history is a spoken record of past events. The task of remembering and telling their history was entrusted to the griots, the storytellers of early West Africa. In addition to stories, the griots recited proverbs, or short sayings of wisdom or truth. Some of the griot poems are epics, long poems about kingdoms and heroes. Many of these are collected in the Dausi and the Sundiata.

Empire of Axum 100 -940 C. E • Blended Arab and African cultures • Present day Ethiopia • Became a Christian Kingdom in 324 AD • Located along major trade routes.

Axum • • • Religions Christianity made the official religion after shipwrecked Syrians introduced it However… – Both Axumites & Egyptians viewed Jesus differently than Rome • Jesus was completely divine. Not human; 100% godly • Started a new Christian Church THE COPTIC CHURCH

Axum • Religions Muslim merchants brought trade and Islam • Christian and Muslim merchants fought over control of trade routes In order to ensure Islam did not spread into Axum • Government reorganized to extend into outlying areas • Monasteries built to teach the Coptic Christian faith • Built churches – More churches per square mile in Ethiopia than any other country in the world today

Axum

The East African Kingdoms: Great Zimbabwe

The Great Zimbabwe • Built by Bantu Shona • Great Zimbabwe, or "house of stone", is the name given to hundreds of great stone ruins spread out over a 500 km² (200 sq mile) area within the modern day country of Zimbabwe, which itself is named after the ruins • It is found in the area of the Zambezi and the Limpopo Rivers • The largest stone structure in Africa south of the pyramids • There were 18, 000 people living in this city at its height

The Shona of Great Zimbabwe • The Great Enclosure – Massive wall 4 stories high and 15 feet thick – Protected the king – Stonework so precise that no mortar was needed

Great Zimbabwe-Decline • Ecological crisis caused from overgrazing and the destruction of forests may have led to their decline. • Other theory is that they had to move to benefit from gold trade • Abandoned in 1500

Salt: Video

Salt What did you find surprising about the facts introduced in this book? How is Salt significant to the this week’s discussion about Ancient Egypt The Western Kingdoms of Africa