The document discusses several aspects of religion, social structure, gender roles, slavery, and slave trade in pre-colonial sub-Saharan Africa. It notes that Islam spread along the East African coast and was adopted by rulers and elites without forced conversion. West African rulers also converted to Islam or Christianity. It describes traditional African religion as having a single creator god and lesser nature deities, with practices including ancestor worship, divination, and oracle reading. The document outlines the kinship-based social structure, gender roles with some women having power and opportunity, and the existence of age-grade social groups and slavery as an established institution within Africa and in the Indian Ocean trade network.

1. What’s the best way
to tell about history?

2. Is it best when it starts:
“Once Upon A Time...”
“Once Upon A Time...”

3. Should it be only facts?

4. Whose facts?
What are facts, anyway?

5. "Until the lions
have their
historians, tales
of the hunt shall
always glorify
the hunters."
Proverb
-African

6. So which is more
interesting...

7. Charlemagne
• Brought about centralized authority in
Western Europe.
• Lived from 768-814
• Had diplomatic contact with Abbasids and
Byzantine Empire, unified his empire
through warfare.
• Built a capital at Aachen
• Crowned Emperor by Pope Leo III in 800

8. OR

9. grandson of Charles, “The Hammer” Martel came to the throne. Though his father
was known as Pepin “the Short,” Charlemagne stood at 1.84 meters (about 6 feet)
which made him tall for his day. He is described as being heavily built, with lively
round eyes in a round head, white hair, and a short thick neck. He favored the color
blue, and preferred having swords with gold and silver handles. Otherwise, he
dressed like the ordinary people of his time. His favorite food was roasted meat.
Charlemagne was married 4 times and had 11 legitimate children and 9 illegitimate
children. He had two sets of twins. He also had 5 known concubines, who also
bore him 9 children. Though he inherited a kingdom, it was not at peace. He waged
war against the Saxons for 32 years before finally defeating them. He also defeated
the Bavarians, Slavs, Lombards, and Avars, and put down a rebellion in Rome, earning
the love of Pope Leo III, who crowned him Emperor of the Romans on December
25, 800. Despite being illiterate himself, Charlemagne valued education and set up
schools for law, literacy and Latin, and through his direct actions, preserved much of
the ancient world’s written work. Charlemagne died January 28, 814 at the age of
71 of Pleurisy, an inflammation of the lining around the lungs. This usually is caused
by repeated infections (like bronchitis and pneumonia). He was buried the same day
he died.
Charlemagne was married 4 times and had 11 legitimate children and 9 illegitimate
children. He had two sets of twins. He also had 5 known concubines, who also
bore him 9 children. Though he inherited a kingdom, it was not at peace. He waged
war against the Saxons for 32 years before finally defeating them. He also defeated
the Bavarians, Slavs, Lombards, and Avars, and put down a rebellion in Rome, earning
the love of Pope Leo III, who crowned him Emperor of the Romans on December
25, 800. Despite being illiterate himself, Charlemagne valued education and set up
schools for law, literacy and Latin, and through his direct actions, preserved much of

10. Shouldn’t history be
interesting?

11. African history comes
to us from the griots

12. “I am a griot . . . we are vessels of speech, we are the repositories which
harbor secrets many centuries old. The art of eloquence has no secrets
for us; without us the names of kings would vanish into oblivion, we are
the memory of mankind; by the spoken word we bring to life the deeds
and exploits of kings for younger generations . . . I teach kings the history
of their ancestors so that the lives of the ancients might serve them as an
example, for the world is old, but the future springs from the past” (D.T.
Niane, Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali, p. 1).

13. Take a look at page 490
for the story of
Sundiata, the first Lion
King.

15. Is this map accurate? Is it fair?
• Groups: Z, Kilwa, Kongo, Axum-how does
the text describe them? Modify the map
based on that description
• Add the presence of religion
• Add goods exported/imported
• expand the trade routes

16. Then, on your blog:
• Post answers to these questions:
• Why show an isolated Africa?
• Why not color code religions?
• Why not color code other kingdoms?
• Why not show goods and trade partners?
• What’s the overall impact on your image
of Africa that comes from these
omissions? What’s changed?

17. Religion in S.S. Africa
• Islam in East Africa (Swahili Coast)
• Rulers/Elites convert but don’t force others
to do so.
• Retain pagan practices at home, Islam in
public.
• Islam becomes a social “glue” for
merchants and political partnerships.

18. Religion in S.S. Africa cont.
• West African rulers/elites convert
• Kings of Ghana in 10th century
• Forms positive connections with North
Africa; syncretic versions arise
• Sundiata nominally Muslim, but doesn’t
force conversion
• Mansa Musa devout, encourages conversion

19. Religion in S.S. Africa cont.
• Christianity popular in Egypt & North
Africa, weak in S.S. Africa
• Axum is converted to Christian kingdom
• merchants bring it, elites convert
• Bible translated liberally into Ethiopian
• Isolated from the rest of Africa (Muslim)
and Euro-Christendom
• Syncretic with African traditions

20. Religion in S.S. Africa cont.
• Traditional African religion: Hugely diverse.
• Common element is a single male creator
god; lesser deities associated with nature
• Ancestor worship common
• Oracle reading, medicine men, magical
interventions, Diviners all common
• Stresses morality and balance, not theology

21. Social Structure
• Some kingdoms/empires/city-states have
defined social groups:
• Merchants, Ruling Elites, Peasants
• Most areas follow kinship group structure

22. Kinship Groups
• Extended families or clans
• Age is the factor that matters
• Little private property
• Land held communally, children raised
communally
• Harvest distributed by council of elders

23. Gender Roles
• Men work in specialized skill areas
• Tanning, iron working, heavy labor
• Both work equally in agriculture
• Women have opportunities in politics,
economics and military--not full equality,
but closest we see in the world
• Islamic and Christian norms slow to arrive.

24. Something unique
• Age grades
• Cross social class, family, and locale
• Like your school stratification

25. Slavery
• Practiced since Bantu migration
• POWs, suspected witches, criminals, rarely
debtors (little private property...)
• used in agriculture, mostly male
• Slaves become status symbols--labor is
wealth, not property.

26. Slave trade
• Vibrant and the norm within Africa
• Trans-Saharan and Indian Ocean trade tap
slave trade in 9th century--high demand
• shifts internal slave trade: large states raid
smaller kinship groups for slaves to sell
• 10,000-20,000 per year exported
• Swahili Coast the center for slave trade

27. Big revolt--Zanj
• Mesopotamia--slaves used to harvest sugar
cane and mine salt deposits
• 869, slave named Ali bin Muhammad leads a
revolt of 15,000 slaves
• Captures the city of Basra.
• Crushed by Abbasid military