Ancient Africa
5 Interesting Points We Should Know about This Vast Land
Teach students about the richest resource of minerals in the world: 5,000 Miles of Kingdoms, Vast Riches, and Enormous Resources
With multiple climates, mountains, valleys, rivers, oceans, deserts, vast agriculture, gold, diamonds, minerals, vegetation, and cultures... The opportunity to study how areas of Ancient Africa developed due to the export of these riches and how it affected the development of parts of this continent.
Opportunities to Teach Students about the Rise and Fall of Rich Kingdoms
Just like Asia and the Americas, Africa had kingdoms that were enormously wealthy due to unlimited riches of gold, minerals, spices, ivory, and iron. Some kingdoms were kept together with vast armies, others such as Mansa Musa, in the 13th century developed a sophisticated government. Religion played a key role in his government. But, students will learn that here as in other civilizations, they eventually would crumble.
Mansa Musa, a ruler who developed a central government
History teachers can effectively show how he ruled a large empire with a central government and had governors by region.
Ancient Egypt Art Depicts Trade With Africa
An example of how important trade was with Africa, this art is one of many depicting trade with wealthy rulers of Africa.
Islam Overtook Christianity in Africa
Teachers can use Ancient Africa to show how rulers replaced Christianity and other traditional religions with Islam, often in a violent way.
History Teachers Can Explore the Role of Clans and Their Impact on Africa Then and Now
Because Africa is so large, there were many areas of Ancient Africa that were ruled by small family groups or maybe small villages. There is not much written history, but even today, this history can be seen. There are parts of Africa that are ruled by elder people in a family or village group. The history of how these began, can teach us about things that we may think are bad or ignorant in parts of Africa today. There are areas of Africa today that still determine how important it is to be in a certain clan of people.
Religious History in Africa is Important to Understanding Christianity and Islam there Today
Many people in America do not understand the history of Christianity and of Islam in Africa and how it evolved. A history teacher could explore how the rulers rose to power and were toppled partially by these religions. The study of the empires is much like reading about many other religious empires around the world. History just repeats itself and Africa plays an important role.
History Teachers Can Teach How Africa's History has Impeded Its Development in Some Areas
Africa is very successful in areas like South Africa, but, there are many parts of Africa that still struggle with such poverty. How much ancient history impacts these areas? How much recent history impacts these areas? Ancient history of Africa may be over 1,000 years old, but, a history teacher can have a project asking a class to try to link today to a thousand years ago using a poor or impoverished area such as the Congo, to see just how parts of Ancient Africa still exist in the minds of some parts of this complex, diverse continent.