the cultural geography of africa, south of the sahara
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The Cultural Geography of Africa, South of the Sahara. Mr. Marston Dominion Christian High School Fall 2009. Rapid Population Growth. 711 million people 11% of the world’s population Highest birthrate Highest death rate Highest infant mortality rate Shortest life expectancy. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
The Cultural Geography of Africa, South of the Sahara
Mr. MarstonDominion Christian High
SchoolFall 2009
Rapid Population Growth
• 711 million people• 11% of the world’s population• Highest birthrate • Highest death rate• Highest infant mortality rate• Shortest life expectancy
Population Density and Distribution
• Overall: not densePopulation density is unevenRwanda: 817 per square mileNamibia: 6 people per square mile
Explanations for uneven population distribution
Land Climate
Population and Food Production
• People live in the coastal belt of West Africa and the eastern coast of Southern Africa
Government actionsEffects of climateCash crop economies=Africa can’t produce enough food. Must
export
Population and Health Care
Poor Health Carea.Famineb.Poor nutritionc.Impure waterd.Inadequate sanitation: disposal of
waste productse.Diseases are widespread: (malaria,
AIDS)
A Diverse Population
• 3,000 ethnic groups• Europeans• South Asians• Arabs• Varying religious groups• Borders are fluid: don’t contain
peoples or cultures
Growing cities
• Urbanization: movement of people from rural areas to cities
30% of population lives in citiesMove to cities a.Better job opportunitiesb.Better health carec.Better public services
Growth of service centers: convenient business locations for rural dwellers.
History and Government
• 2000 B.C., people south of the Sahara began to domesticate (tame) animals.
• NE Africa: Egyptian civilization 3000 B.C. to 1000 B.C.
• Kush: capital at Meroe. South of Egypt• Axum: Ethiopian trading empire
Empires in the West
• Ghana: traded gold for salt• Mali: capital of Timbuktu• Songhai
Bantu Settlements
• Established settlements by 800 A.D.150 million Bantu speakers todayTanzaniaMalawiZambiaZimbabwe
European Colonization
• Europeans traded with African kingdoms by the 1200’s.
• Slaves• Gold• weapons
Slave Trade in Africa
• Africans were transported to the New World for work on plantations in S. America, Caribbean, and N. America (sugar, cotton, indigo, rice, and tobacco)
• Greatly impacted certain ethnic groups within Africa
Independence
• Mid 1960’s most African countries were independent
• Dependent economically on western countries: “Neo-colonialism”
Nigeria
• Different ethnic groups• Islam and Christianity• Civil war in Biafra
South Africa• Apartheid: separation of races. Official
policy of white minority government rule.• Blacks denied political rights and
equality with whites in education, jobs, and housing.
• Nelson Mandela: jailed leader of the ANC was released in the early 1990s
• First free election in 1994• Universal suffrage: voting rights for all
adult citizens.
Europe Divides and Rules
• Imperialism: European search for empire in the 18th and 19th centuries.
• Areas set up without regard to local identities or cultures
• Plantation economies replaced local agriculture.
• Christian missionaries