Transcript misscasselli.pbworks.com

Early Empires of West Africa
500 BC- AD 1650
The Big Idea…
⦿ Three
great trading empires shaped West
African History.
Essential Questions:
⦿ How
did salt and gold contribute to the rise
of the empire of Ghana?
⦿ How
did great leaders contribute to the rise
and fall of Mali and Songhai?
⦿ How
has the history and culture of West
Africa been preserved?
Which is worth more?
Empires of Northwest Africa grew
wealthy trading salt for gold.
Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bi9bJhRZtKA
Ghana
As you read…
⦿ Create
a timeline…
• Your timeline should include at least five
significant events that mark growth in the Ghana
Empire
• Be sure to include at least one important person in
your timeline.
Early Ghana
⦿ Around
300 BC, early farmers (Soninke)
banded together to fight off nomadic
herders who threatened to take their land.
⦿ These
bands of farmers became the
beginnings of the empire of Ghana.
Ghana grows…
⦿ The
people of Ghana learned how to work
with iron.
• They made iron tools for farming.
• They also made iron weapons which were far
superior to weapons made of bone or wood.
⦿ Their
ability to grow plenty of food and
their strong army helped Ghana grow
quickly.
Trade
⦿ Ghana
lay between the Sahara to the north
and the forests to the south. This location
made them a perfect location for trading the
region's two most important resources---salt
and gold
⦿ By
800 AD, Ghana controlled most of West
Africa’s trade routes.
⦿ By
1050 AD, Koumbi Saleh (West Africa’s
largest city) was a major trading center.
Silent Bartering
⦿ Much
of the trading was done through the
process of silent bartering, a process in
which people exchange goods without
ever contacting each other directly.
Salt is mined in huge slabs.
Then traded for gold.
Taxes and Tributes
⦿ Ghana’s
rulers collected taxes from the
traders for the goods they brought to
market.
⦿ People
who lived in Ghana also had to pay
taxes.
⦿ When
Ghana conquered neighboring
tribes, they too had to pay tributes.
Ghana’s Wealth
⦿ In
addition to the taxes it collected, Ghana grew
wealthy from the large amounts of gold it
produced.
⦿ All
gold produced in Ghana was officially the
property of the king, and he was the only one
allowed to own gold nuggets.
⦿ The
common people could only own gold dust,
which they used for money.
⦿ This
ensured that the king was always the
wealthiest man in the empire!
Tunka Manin
⦿ The
most powerful of Ghana’s rulers was
Tunka Manin.
⦿ He
ruled around 1068 AD and ruled a
court that was the wealthiest Ghana had
ever seen.
Ghana’s decline…
⦿ Three
major factors led to the decline of
Ghana:
• The Almoravids attacked Ghana in 1060 and
started a 14 year war which ended in the
destruction of Koumbi Saleh and significantly
weakened the empire.
• Herds of animal brought by the Almoravids
overgrazed the land, leaving it useless for farming.
Many farmers left for other lands.
• Around 1200, conquered tribes rebelled and within
a few years had completely taken over Ghana.
Overgrazing
Your timeline
⦿ What
significant events did you include in
your timeline?
300 BC
1200
AD
EQ Check In:
⦿ How
did salt and gold contribute to the rise
of the empire of Ghana?
Mali and Songhai
Essential Question
⦿ How
did great leaders contribute to the rise
and fall of Mali and Songhai?
As you read…
⦿ Record
details about the leaders of Mali
and Songhai in a chart like this:
Sundiata
Mansa Musa
Mahgan
Sunni Ali
Askia
Sundiata
⦿ Sundiata
and his army conquered Ghana
in the 1230s, taking over salt and gold
trade and improving agriculture.
⦿ He
introduced cotton as a crop which was
used to make clothing.
Mansa Musa
⦿ Mansa
Musa was Mali’s most famous ruler.
⦿ He
was a Muslim who brought Mali to the height of
its power and wealth in the 1300s.
⦿ During
his reign, Islam spread throughout West
Africa.
⦿ During
his reign, Timbuktu became an important
trading city.
⦿ He
encouraged education, including teaching his
people to read Arabic.
Mansa Musa song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TWOIkEygWM
Maghan
⦿ Maghan
was Mansa Musa’s son who took
the throne of Mali when Mansa Musa died.
⦿ He
was a weak ruler and was unable to
defend Mali against invaders.
⦿ In
1431, the Tuareg nomads seized
Timbuktu, and by 1500 nearly all of the
land owned by the Mali Empire was lost.
The Songhai
⦿ The
Songhai were former members of the
Mali Empire.
⦿ As
Mali weakened in the 1400s, the people
of Songhai rebelled and regained their
freedom.
⦿ Because
of their Islamic beliefs, the
Songhai were able to trade with the
Berbers in the north and grow richer.
Sunni Ali
⦿ Sunni
Ali became a ruler in 1464 and led
the expansion of the Songhai Empire.
⦿ He
unified, strengthened and enlarged the
empire.
⦿ He
encouraged everyone to work together
and promoted religious harmony by
combining Muslim and local religious
beliefs.
After Sunni Ali
⦿ Sunni
Ali died in 1492.
⦿ His
son, Sunni Baru, inherited the rule but
was not a Muslim.
⦿ The
people were afraid that they would
lose their trade with Muslim lands because
he was not a Muslim, so they rebelled
against the king.
Askia the Great
⦿ The
leader of the Songhai rebellion was
Muhammad Ture, who later took the title of
Askia (great military leader).
⦿ Askia
supported education and built a
great university (Sankore) in Timbuktu.
⦿ He
continued to encourage the growth of
Islam.
Askia the Great
⦿ Askia
divided Songhai into five provinces
and appointed governors for each.
⦿ He
also created a professional army.
The Fall of Songhai
⦿ In
1591, Morocco invaded Songhai to gain
control of the salt mines there.
⦿ Morocco’s
army and weapons were superior
to the Songhai, and Timbuktu was completely
destroyed.
⦿ Changes
in trade routes completed the fall of
the empire. Trading ports appeared on the
Atlantic coast, which were much easier for
European traders to reach.
EQ Check in:
⦿ How
did great leaders contribute to the rise
and fall of Mali and Songhai?
• Which leaders helped build the empires?
• Which leaders weakened the empires?
Crash Course
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvnU0v6hcUo
Traditions of West
Africa
Essential Question
⦿ How
has the history and culture of West
Africa been preserved?
Storytelling
⦿ Writing
was never common among the
early West African Empires.
⦿ The
only written language used by the
Ghana, Mali, and Songhai was Arabic.
⦿ Instead
of writing their stories, the stories
of West Africa have been preserved as
oral histories.
The Griots
⦿ Griots
were storytellers of West Africa.
• Griots were highly respected in their communities.
• They told stories about their ancestors, important
achievements, and other tales to explain things to their
people.
• Griots were entertaining as well as educational.
• In addition to stories, the Griots recited proverbs (short
sayings of wisdom or truth) and poems.
• They had to memorize hundreds of names and facts.
Anansi
⦿ The
most well-known tales from West
Africa are the stories of Anansi.
⦿ Anansi
was a spider, and his character
often demonstrated how the small or weak
could accomplish great things.
⦿ Watch
⦿ As
the video “A Story, A Story”
you watch, write down:
• What lessons (morals) do these stories teach?
• Why would they be important to pass down from
generation to generation?
Plan a Fable…
⦿
Next, you will plan your own fable.
⦿
First write down the following information:
• Characters: (You need at least three characters)
• Problem: (Choose one of the events/rulers of the empires we
have studied)
• Moral: (What lesson could be learned?)
⦿
Choose a problem and lesson that has universal
appeal (applies to all people in all places), similar to
the examples you have seen today.
Masks and Clothing
⦿ Many
artists carved
elaborate masks that
resembled animals or
important people.
⦿ These
masks were used to
act out the Griot’s stories.
Kente Cloth
⦿ Kente
cloth is the best-known craft of West
Africa.
⦿ It
is brightly colored cloth woven from narrow
strips of fabric.
The Colors of Kente
⦿ In
Kente, each color represents the following:
• •
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Blue – peace, togetherness, love and harmony
Black – maturity, mourning, funeral and passing rites
Gold/Yellow –richness, royalty, prosperity, wealth
Green – land, vegetation, harvest, growth, and renewal
Grey – Healing rituals; cleansing rituals;
Pink – feminine; mildness and feminine qualities
White – pureness, cleansing rites and festivals
Maroon – mother earth and healing
Red – death; funerals; mourning
Purple – feminine; worn by girls and women
Silver – peace and joy; referencing to the moon
Kente Patterns
⦿ Kente
patterns also have meaning.
⦿ Forgiveness
Conflict/Diversity
Family/Hard Work
Progress/Growth/Energy
Experience/Knowledge
Design your Kente
⦿ Next,
you will choose a design and color
your own Kente.
⦿ Choose
colors that you think represent you
well and tell YOUR story!
EQ Check in:
⦿ How
has the history and culture of West
Africa been preserved?