Ch. 8 Diverse

Societies in Africa

• Ch. 8 section 1 Objectives:

• 1. Identify the different geographic regions of Africa

• 2. Explain how early Africans adapted to their environments

• 3. Summarize the achievements of early West

Early Humans Adapt to Their

Environments• Nomadic Lifestyle• •Earliest people are nomadic hunter-gatherers• •Herders drive animals to find water, graze

pastures Transition to a Settled Lifestyle• •Agriculture probably develops by 6000 B.C.

• •As the Sahara dried up, farmers move to West Africa or Nile Valley

• •Agriculture allows permanent settlement, governments to develop, with a village chief or

council

Early Societies in Africa

• Societies Organized by Family Groups• •Extended families made up of several generations• •Families with common ancestors form groups known as clans

• Local Religions• •Early religions usually include elements of animism—belief in

spirits

• Keeping a History• •Few African societies have written languages• •History, literature, culture passed on by storytellers called griots• •Cultures in West Africa are advanced long before outsiders arrive

West African Iron Age• Learning About the Past• •Artifacts reveal how people lived in the past• •Evidence of sub-Saharan cultures producing iron around 500 B.C. The

Nok Culture

• Nok—West Africa’s earliest known culture—made smelted iron tools, weapons, and excelled

• Djenné-Djeno

• •From 600–200 B.C., cities begin to develop near rivers, oases

• •Djenné-Djeno—Africa’s oldest known city (250 B.C.), discovered in 1977

• •Bustling trade center; linked West African towns, camel trade routes

Achievements of Djenne-Djenno-1400

C.E.• *50,000 residents• *Built Mud Brick homes

-Fished, cultivated rice, herded cattle-Traded goods for copper, gold and salt

Section 2-The Kingdom of Aksum

• Objectives:• 1. Explain how maritime trade led to

Aksum’s growth• 2. Give examples of Aksum’s

achievements• 3. Explain the effects of the Muslim

invasion of Aksum

The Rise…• Aksum’s Geography• •Aksum—kingdom replaces Kush in East Africa; blend of

Africans, Arabs• •Located on Horn of Africa, modern day Ethiopia and Eritrea• •Trading kingdom linking Africa and Indian Ocean trade routes

• The Origins of Aksum• •Land first mentioned in Greek guidebook in A.D. 100 • •Rulers take control of areas around Blue Nile and Red Sea• •Dynasty of Aksum rules until 1975; ends with deathof Haile

Selassie

The Rise…cont.• Aksum Controls International Trade• •Aksum is hub for caravan routes to Egypt and Meroë• •Adulis, chief port, has access to Mediterranean Sea,

Indian Ocean

• A Strong Ruler Expands the Kingdom• •King Ezana—strong ruler of Aksum from A.D. 325 to360 • •He conquers part of Arabian peninsula, now Yemen• •In 350 conquers Kushites and burns Meroë to ground

International Culture…

• Aksum Culture• •Blended cultural traditions of Arab peoples and Kushites• •Adulis population: Egyptian, Arabian, Greek,Roman, Persian,

Indian • •Greek is international language

• Written language: Ge’ez

• Aksumite Religion• •Believe in one god, Mahrem, and that king descended from him• •Are animists—worship spirits of nature andancestors• •Exposed to Christianity by traders

International Culture…

• Aksum Becomes Christian• Young King Ezana educated by Christian man

from Syria• As ruler, Ezana declares Christianity as

kingdom’s official religion• Aksum, now part of Ethiopia, still home to

millions of Christians• Aksumite Innovations

• Written language, minted coins, irrigation canals and dams• Aksumites invent terrace farming due to hillylocation • Terraces—steplike ridges constructed on mountain slopes

The Fall…• Islam• Aksum kingdom lasts 800 years; witnesses rise of Islam religion• Followers of prophet Muhammad conquer all of Arabia by 632

Islamic Invaders• Between A.D. 632 and 710, Islamic invaders leave Aksum alone• In A.D. 710, they attack port city of Adulis, causing Aksum’s

decline Aksum Isolated• As Islam spreads, Aksum rulers move capital to northern

Ethiopia • Isolation, soil erosion, deforestation cause loss of remaining

power

Section 3• Objectives:

• 1.Summarize the causes and effects of Human Migration

• 2.Describe the Bantu migrations into the southern half of Africa

Migration of Bantu-speaking Peoples

• Causes of Migration• Push-pull factors—Conditions that push people out of an area

or pull them in

• Effects of Migration• Brings diverse cultures into contact; changes life in the new

land

• Tracing Migration Through Language• One way to trace migration is to study how languages spread • Africa has many complex language families

• Bantu-speaking Peoples• Bantu-speaking peoples—early Africans who spread culture and

language• Originally lived in savanna south of Sahara; now southeastern

Nigeria• The word Bantu means “the people”• Migration Begins• Bantu speakers migrate south and east starting about 3000 B.C.

• Live by slash-and-burn farming, nomadic herding• Share skills, learn new customs, adapt to environment

• Causes of Migration• Bantu speakers move to find farmland, flee growing Sahara• Need iron ore resources and hardwood forests for iron

smelting• Within 1,500 years they reach southern tip of Africa

• Effects of the Migration• Bantu speakers drive out some inhabitants; intermix with

others • Bantu migrations produce a great variety of cultures• Language helps unify the continent