The following is an outline of African history, followed by a list of articles about the history of particular places in Africa. World map showing location of Africa A satellite composite image of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest continent in both area and population, after Eurasia. ... History is a term for information about the past. ...

Paleolithic

Evolution of hominids and Homo sapiens in Africa

Main article: Human evolution Human evolution is a multidisciplinary scientific inquiry which seeks to understand and describe the origin and development of humanity. ...

Africa was the birthplace of both the hominin subfamily and the genus Homo, including eight species of which only Homo sapiens remains. Genera Gorilla Pan (chimpanzees) Homo (humans) Paranthropus (extinct) Australopithecus (extinct) Sahelanthropus (extinct) Ardipithecus (extinct) Kenyanthropus (extinct) Homininae is a subfamily of Hominidae, including Homo sapiens and some extinct relatives, as well as the gorillas and the chimpanzees. ... Species Homo erectus (extinct) Homo ergaster (extinct) Homo floresiensis (extinct) Homo habilis (extinct) Homo heidelbergensis (extinct) Homo neanderthalensis (extinct) Homo rudolfensis (extinct) Homo sapiens Homo is the genus that includes humans and their close relatives. ... Human beings are defined variously in biological, spiritual, and cultural terms, or in combinations thereof. ...

According to the latest paleontological and archaeological evidence, hominids were already in existence at least five million years ago. These animals were still very much like their close cousins, the great African apes, but had adopted a bipedal form of locomotion, giving them a crucial advantage in the struggle for survival, as this enabled them to live in both forested areas and on the open savanna, at a time when Africa was drying up, with savannah encroaching on forested areas. A paleontologist carefully chips rock from a column of dinosaur vertebrae. ... Archaeology or sometimes in American English archeology (from the Greek words αρχαίος = ancient and λόγος = word/speech) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains, including architecture, artefacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... A biped is an animal that travels across surfaces supported by two legs. ... Savanna is a grassland dotted with trees, and occurs in several types of biomes. ...

By 3 million years ago several australopithecine hominid species had developed throughout southern, eastern and central Africa. Species A. afarensis (Lucy) Formerly Australopithecus, now Paranthropus Australopithecines (genus Australopithecus) are a group of extinct Hominids that are closely related to humans. ... Categories: Africa geography stubs | Southern Africa ... Categories: Africa geography stubs | Eastern Africa ... Categories: Africa geography stubs | Central Africa ...

The next major evolutionary step occurred approximately 2 million years, with the advent of Homo habilis, the first species of hominid capable of making tools. This enabled H. habilis to begin eating meat, using his stone tools to scavenge kills made by other predators, and harvest cadavers for their bones and marrow. In hunting, H. habilis was probably not capable of competing with large predators, and was still more prey than hunter, although he probably did steal eggs from nests, and may have been able to catch small game, and weakened larger prey (cubs and older animals). Binomial name Homo habilis Leakey et al. ... Game is any animal hunted for food. ...

Around one million years ago Homo erectus had evolved. With his relatively large brain (1,000 cc), he mastered the African plains, fabricating a variety of stone tools that enabled him to become a hunter equal to the top predators. In addition Homo erectus mastered the art of making fire, and was the first hominid to leave Africa, colonizing the entire Old World, and later giving rise to Homo floresiensis. Binomial name Homo erectus Dubois, 1894 Homo erectus (upright man) is a hominid species that is believed to be an ancestor of modern humans. ... A cubic centimetre (cm3) is an SI derived unit of volume, equal to the volume of a cube with side length of 1 centi metre. ... Ancient stone tools A stone tool is, in the most general sense, any tool made of stone. ... FIRE can stand for Foundation for Individual Rights in Education Fully Integrated Robotised Engine, an engine from Fiat. ... The Old World consists of those parts of Earth known to Europeans before the voyages of Christopher Columbus: Europe, Asia, and Africa. ... Binomial name Homo floresiensis P. Brown , 2004 Homo floresiensis (Man of Flores) is a newly described species in the genus Homo, remarkable for its small body, small brain, and recent survival. ...

The fossil record shows Homo sapiens living in southern and eastern Africa between 100,000-150,000 years ago. The earliest human exodus out of Africa and within the continent is indicated by linguistic and cultural evidence, and increasingly by computer-analyzed genetic evidence (see also Cavalli-Sforza). In paleoanthropology, the single-origin hypothesis (or Out-of-Africa model) is one of two accounts of the origin of anatomically modern humans, Homo sapiens. ... Genetics (from the Greek genno γεννώ= give birth) is the science of genes, heredity, and the variation of organisms. ... Categories: People stubs | 1922 births | Italian people | Population geneticists ...

Neolithic prehistoric cultures

North Africa

Main article: History of the Sahara The Sahara is the worlds second largest desert (second to Antarctica), over 9,000,000 km² (3,500,000 mi²), located in northern Africa and is 2. ...

Neolithic rock engravings, or 'petroglyphs' and the megaliths in the Sahara desert of Libya attest to early hunter-gatherer culture in the dry grasslands of North Africa during the glacial age. The region of the present Sahara was an early site for the practice of agriculture (Wavy-line ceramics). However, after the desertification of the Sahara, settlement in North Africa became concentrated in the valley of the Nile, where the pre-literate Nomes of Egypt laid a base for the culture of ancient Egypt, . Archeological findings show that primitive tribes lived along the Nile long before the dynastic history of the pharaohs began. By 6000 B.C., organized agriculture had appeared. The Neolithic, (Greek neos=new, lithos=stone, or New Stone Age) is traditionally the last part of the stone age. ... Petroglyphs on a Bishop Tuff tableland Petroglyph on Petroglyph Point Petroglyphs on Petroglyph Point Petroglyphs on Petroglyph Point Petroglyphs on Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument Petroglyphs from Scandinavia (Häljesta, Västmanland in Sweden). ... Megalithic tomb, Mane Braz, Brittany A megalith is a large stone which has been used to construct a structure or monument either alone or with other stones. ... The Sahara is the worlds second largest desert (second to Antarctica), over 9,000,000 km² (3,500,000 mi²), located in northern Africa and is 2. ... This article is about Libya, the country in North Africa. ... The Sahara is the worlds second largest desert (second to Antarctica), over 9,000,000 km² (3,500,000 mi²), located in northern Africa and is 2. ... Farming, ploughing rice paddy, in Indonesia Agriculture is the process of producing food, feed, fiber and other desired products by cultivation of certain plants and the raising of domesticated animals ( livestock). ... Desertification is the degradation of land in arid, semi arid and dry sub-humid areas into desert, resulting from various factors including climatic variations and human activities. ... There is also Nile, a death metal band from South Carolina, USA. The Nile in Egypt Length 6 695 km Elevation of the source 1 134 m Average discharge 2 830 m³/s Area watershed 3 400 000 km² Origin Africa Mouth the Mediterranean Basin countries Uganda - Sudan - Egypt The... The nomes of Ancient Egypt A nome (Greek: district) is a subnational administrative division of Ancient Egypt. ... Map of Ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt was the civilization of the Nile Valley between about 3000 BC and the conquest of Egypt by Alexander the Great in 332 BC. As a civilization based on irrigation it is the quintessential example of an hydraulic empire. ... There is also Nile, a death metal band from South Carolina, USA. The Nile in Egypt Length 6 695 km Elevation of the source 1 134 m Average discharge 2 830 m³/s Area watershed 3 400 000 km² Origin Africa Mouth the Mediterranean Basin countries Uganda - Sudan - Egypt The...

Sub-Saharan Africa

Linguistic evidence suggests the Bantu people (e.g. Xhosa and Zulu) have emigrated southwestward into former Khoisan ranges and displaced them. Bantu populations used a distinct suite of crops suited to tropical Africa, including cassava and yams. This farming culture is able to support more persons per unit area than hunter-gatherers. The traditional Bantu range goes from the northern deserts right down to the temperate regions of the south, in which the Bantu crop suite fails from frost. Their primary weapons historically were bows and stabbing spears with shields. The Bantu refer to over 400 different ethnic groups in Africa, from Cameroon to South Africa, united by a common language family, the Bantu languages, and in many cases common customs. ... The Xhosa people live in South Africa. ... This article is about the African ethnic group. ... This article is about the Khoisan ethnic group. ... Binomial name Manihot esculenta Crantz Cassava or manioc (Manihot esculenta; also yuca in Spanish, and mandioca, aipim, or macaxera in Portuguese) is a woody perennial shrub of the spurge family, that is extensively cultivated as an annual crop for its edible starchy tuberous root. ... For the Levantine god of the untamed sea, see Yaw. ... A bow is a weapon that shoots arrows powered by the elasticity of the bow and/or its string. ... A spear is an ancient weapon, used for hunting and war. ... This article is about the handheld defensive device. ...

Ethiopia had a distinct, ancient culture with an intermittent history of contact with Eurasia after the diaspora of hominids out of Africa. It preserved a unique language, culture and crop system. The crop system is adapted to the dry northern highlands and does not partake of any other area's crops. The most famous member of this crop system is coffee, but one of the more useful plants is sorghum, a dry-land grain. This article needs cleanup. ... African-Eurasian aspect of Earth Eurasia is the combined land mass of Europe and Asia. ... Coffee beans and a cup of coffee Coffee as a drink, usually served hot, is prepared from the roasted seeds (beans) of the coffee plant. ... Species Sorghum × almum Sorghum almum Sorghum bicolor Sorghum caudatum Sorghum × drummondii Sorghum halepense Sorghum propinquum References ITIS 42106 2002-09-22 Sorghum (Sorghum vulgare or Sorghum bicolor) is a grass (Family Poaceae), whose seeds are used to make a flour and as cattle feed. ...

Ancient cultures also existed all along the Nile, and in modern-day Ghana . There is also Nile, a death metal band from South Carolina, USA. The Nile in Egypt Length 6 695 km Elevation of the source 1 134 m Average discharge 2 830 m³/s Area watershed 3 400 000 km² Origin Africa Mouth the Mediterranean Basin countries Uganda - Sudan - Egypt The... The Republic of Ghana is a nation of Africa, specifically West Africa within Sub-Saharan Africa. ...

History of North Africa (3500 B.C. - 1500 A.D.)

Ancient Egypt

Main articles: History of Ancient Egypt, Kush Ancient Egypt appeared as a unified state sometime around 3300 BC. It survived as an independent state until about 1300 BC. Archeological evidence indicates that a developed Egyptian society has existed for much longer. ... For the son of Rama and Sita from Indian epic of Ramayana, go to Kush (hindu). ...

Written history originated in Ancient Egypt, and the Egyptian calendar is still used as the standard for dating bronze age and iron age cultures throughout the region Map of Ancient Egypt Ancient Egypt was the civilization of the Nile Valley between about 3000 BC and the conquest of Egypt by Alexander the Great in 332 BC. As a civilization based on irrigation it is the quintessential example of an hydraulic empire. ... The ancient Egyptian civil calendar had a year that was 365 days long, consisting of 12 months of 30 days each, plus 5 extra days at the end of the year. ... The Bronze Age is a period in a civilizations development when the most advanced metalworking has developed the techniques of smelting copper from natural outcroppings and alloys it to cast bronze. ... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ...

In about 3100 B.C., Egypt was united under a ruler known as Mena, or Menes, who inaugurated the first of the 30 dynasties into which Egypt's ancient history is divided: the Old, Middle Kingdoms and the New Kingdom. The pyramids at Giza (near Cairo), which were built in the Fourth dynasty, testify to the power of the pharaonic religion and state. The Great Pyramid, the tomb of Pharaoh Khufu (also known as Cheops), is the only surviving monument of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Ancient Egypt reached the peak of its power, wealth, and territorial extent in the period called the New Empire (1567-1085 B.C.). The Arab Republic of Egypt, commonly known as Egypt, (in Arabic: مصر, romanized Mişr or Maşr, in Egyptian dialect) is a republic mostly located in northeastern Africa. ... Menes was an Egyptian pharaoh of the First dynasty of Egypt, to some authors the founder of this dynasty, to others the second. ... The Old Kingdom is the name commonly given to that period in the 3rd millennium BC when Egypt attained its first continuous peak of civilization complexity and achievement - this was the first of three so-called Kingdom periods which mark the high points of civilisation in the Nile Valley (the... The Middle Kingdom is a period in the history of ancient Egypt stretching from the establishment of the Eleventh dynasty to the end of the Fourteenth dynasty, roughly between 1986 BC and 1633 BC. The Beginning The Middle Kingdom is usually dated to when Pharaoh Mentuhotep II from Thebes defeated... The New Kingdom period of Egyptian history is the period between the 16th century BC and the 11th century BC, covering the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth dynasty of Egypt. ... Giza (Arabic, الجيزة, transliterated al-ǧīzah; pronounced in Egyptian Arabic dialect of Cairo al-Gīza; also sometimes rendered in English as Gizeh, Ghizeh, or Geezeh) is a town in Egypt on the left bank of the Nile river, across from the old city of Cairo, and now part of the... View of the modern citys skyline. ... The Fourth dynasty of Egypt was the second of the four dynasties considered forming the Old Kingdom. ... The Great Pyramid of Giza, (sometimes spelled Gizeh) is the oldest and last remaining of the Seven Wonders of the World and the most famous pyramid in the world. ... This article refers to the historical Pharaoh. ... The name Khufu can refer to: Khufu (pharaoh), an Egyptian pharaoh Khufu (cipher), a block cipher. ... The seven wonders of the world are usually taken to be the seven wonders of the ancient world, the name of a list of the most impressive achievements of ancient civilizations in the east of the Mediterranean world. ...

The Egyptians reached Crete around 2000 BC and were invaded by Indo-Europeans and Hyksos Semites. They defeated the invaders around 1570 BC and expanded into the Aegean, Sudan, Libya, and much of southwest Asia, as far as the Euphrates. Crete, sometimes spelled Krete (Greek Κρήτη / Kriti) is the largest of the Greek islands and the fifth largest in the Mediterranean Sea. ... Proto-Indo-European Indo-European studies Indo-European is originally a linguistic term, referring to the Indo-European language family. ... The Hyksos were an ethnically mixed group of Western Asiatic people who appeared in the eastern Nile Delta during the Second Intermediate Period, and formed the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Dynasties (ca. ... Greece and the Aegean Sea The Aegean sea in Greece as seen from the island of Greek: Αιγαίον Πέλαγος, Aigaion Pelagos; Turkish: Ege denizi) is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, located between the Greek peninsula and Anatolia (Asia Minor, now part of Turkey). ... Foreign relations Main article: Foreign relations of Sudan Sudan has a territorial dispute with Egypt over the Halaib Triangle. ... This article is about Libya, the country in North Africa. ... World map showing location of Asia A satellite composite image of Asia Asia is the central and eastern part of the continent of Eurasia, defined by subtracting the European peninsula from Eurasia. ... The Euphrates (the traditional Greek name for the river, which is in Old Persian Ufrat, Aramaic Prâth/Frot, in Arabic الفرات, in Turkish Fırat and in ancient Assyrian language Pu-rat-tu) is the westernmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia (Bethnahrin in Aramaic), the other being the...

Egyptian culture had considerable contact with Ethiopia and the upper Nile valley, south of the cataracts of the Nile: This article needs cleanup. ... There is also Nile, a death metal band from South Carolina, USA. The Nile in Egypt Length 6 695 km Elevation of the source 1 134 m Average discharge 2 830 m³/s Area watershed 3 400 000 km² Origin Africa Mouth the Mediterranean Basin countries Uganda - Sudan - Egypt The...

Phoenician, Greek and Roman colonization

Separated by the 'sea of sand', the Sahara, North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa have had largely separate histories, linked by fluctuating trans-Saharan trade routes. Phoenician, Greek and Roman history of North Africa can be followed in entries for the Roman Empire and for its individual provinces in the Maghreb, such as Mauretania, Africa, Tripolitania, Cyrenaica, Aegyptus etc. Categories: Africa geography stubs | North Africa ... Sub-Saharan Africa, Africa south of the Sahara Desert, is the term used to describe those countries of Africa that are not part of North Africa. ... The Roman Empire is not the Holy Roman Empire (843-1806). ... (see also North Africa, Tamazgha, Arab Maghreb Union, Mashreq) The Maghreb (or Moghreb), meaning west in Arabic, is the region of the continent of Africa north of the Sahara desert and west of the Nile - specifically, the modern countries of Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and to a lesser extent Libya and... For the ships of this name, see RMS Mauretania. ... Categories: Historical stubs | Ancient Roman provinces ... Tripolitania is a historic region of western Libya, centered around the coastal city of Tripoli. ... Roman province of Cyrenaica, 120 AD Cyrenaica was a Roman province on the northern coast of Africa between Egypt and Numidia; it had been formerly Greek. ... Categories: Ancient Roman provinces | Egyptian history | Africa geography stubs ...

In Northern Africa Ethiopia has been the only state which throughout historic times has (except for a brief period during World War II) maintained its independence. Countries bordering the Mediterranean were colonised and settled by the Phoenicians before 1000 BC. Carthage, founded about 814 BC, speedily grew into a city without rival in the Mediterranean. The Phoenicians subdued the Berber tribes who, then as now, formed the bulk of the population, and became masters of all the habitable region of North Africa west of the Great Syrtis, and found in commerce a source of immense prosperity. Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km (60,000 ft) into the air. ... -1... Phoenicia was an ancient civilization in the north of ancient Canaan, with its heartland along the coastal plain of what is now Lebanon and Syria. ... A map of the central Mediterranean Sea, showing the location of Carthage (near modern Tunis). ... Centuries: 10th century BC - 9th century BC - 8th century BC Decades: 860s BC 850s BC 840s BC 830s BC 820s BC - 810s BC - 800s BC 790s BC 780s BC 770s BC 760s BC Events and Trends 817 BC - Pedubastis I declares himself king of Egypt, founding the Twenty-third Dynasty. ... The Berbers (also called Imazighen, free men, singular Amazigh) are a predominantly Muslim ethnic group indigenous to the Maghreb, speaking the Berber languages of the Afroasiatic family. ...

Greeks founded the city of Cyrene in Libya around 631 BC Cyrenaica became a flourishing colony, though being hemmed in on all sides by absolute desert it had little or no influence on inner Africa. The Greeks, however, exerted a powerful influence in Egypt. To Alexander the Great the city of Alexandria owes its foundation (332 BC), and under the Hellenistic dynasty of the Ptolemies attempts were made to penetrate southward, and in this way was obtained some knowledge of Ethiopia. Cyrene, the ancient Greek city (in present-day Libya) was the oldest and most important of the five Greek cities in the region and gave eastern Libya the classical name Cyrenaica that it has retained to modern times. ... Centuries: 8th century BC - 7th century BC - 6th century BC Decades: 680s BC 670s BC 660s BC 650s BC 640s BC - 630s BC - 620s BC 610s BC 600s BC 590s BC 580s BC Events and Trends 637 BC - Josiah becomes king of Judah. ... Roman province of Cyrenaica, 120 AD Cyrenaica was a Roman province on the northern coast of Africa between Egypt and Numidia; it had been formerly Greek. ... Bust of Alexander III in the British Museum. ... Antiquity and modernity stand cheek-by-jowl in Egypts chief Mediterranean seaport Located on the Mediterranean Sea coast, Alexandria (in Arabic, الإسكندرية — al-Iskandariyah) is the chief seaport in Egypt, and that countrys second largest city, and the capital of the Al Iskandariyah governate. ... Centuries: 5th century BC - 4th century BC - 3rd century BC Decades: 380s BC 370s BC 360s BC 350s BC 340s BC - 330s BC - 320s BC 310s BC 300s BC 290s BC 280s BC 337 BC 336 BC 335 BC 334 BC 333 BC - 332 BC - 331 BC 329 BC 328... Ptolemy, one of Alexander the Greats generals, was appointed satrap of Egypt after Alexanders death in 323 BC. In 305 BC he declared himself King Ptolemy I, later known as Soter (saviour). ...

The three powers of Cyrenaica, Egypt and Carthage were eventually supplanted by the Romans. After centuries of rivalry with Rome, Carthage finally fell in 146 BC. Within little more than a century Egypt and Cyrene had become incorporated in the Roman empire. Under Rome the settled portions of the country were very prosperous, and a Latin strain was introduced into the land. Though Fezzan was occupied by them, the Romans elsewhere found the Sahara an impassable barrier. Nubia and Ethiopia were reached, but an expedition sent by the emperor Nero to discover the source of the Nile ended in failure. The utmost extent of mediterranean geographical knowledge of the continent is shown in the writings of Ptolemy (2nd century), who knew of or guessed the existence of the great lake reservoirs of the Nile, of trading posts along the shores of the Indian Ocean as far south as Rhapta in modern Tanzania, and had heard of the river Niger. Centuries: 3rd century BC - 2nd century BC - 1st century BC Decades: 190s BC 180s BC 170s BC 160s BC 150s BC - 140s BC - 130s BC 120s BC 110s BC 100s BC 90s BC Years: 151 BC 150 BC 149 BC 148 BC 147 BC - 146 BC - 145 BC 144 BC... For the Star Wars planet, see Nubia (Star Wars). ... This article deals with the Roman emperor Nero. ... This article is about the geographer and astronomer Ptolemy. ... (1st century - 2nd century - 3rd century - other centuries) Events Roman Empire governed by the Five Good Emperors (96–180) – Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius. ... The Indian Ocean is the third-largest body of water in the world, covering about 20% of the Earths water surface. ... The United Republic of Tanzania (Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania in Swahili) is a country on the east coast of central Africa. ... Niger (Pronounced Nījer) is a landlocked sub-Saharan country in Western Africa situated north of Nigeria and south of Algeria and Libya, named after the Niger river. ...

Interaction between Asia, Europe and North Africa during this period was significant, major effects include the spread of classical culture around the shores of the Mediterranean; the continual struggle between Rome and the Berber tribes; the introduction of Christianity throughout the region, and the cultural effects of the churches in Tunisia, Egypt and Ethiopia.

Dark Age

The classical era drew to a close with the invasion and conquest of Rome's African provinces by the Vandals in the 5th century; although power passed back briefly in the following century to the Byzantine Empire. All of these topics are expounded upon in their respective articles. The Vandals were an East Germanic tribe that entered the late Roman Empire, and created a state in North Africa, centered on the city of Carthage. ... The Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered at its capital in Constantinople. ...

Islamisation

In the 7th century occurred an event destined to have a permanent influence on the whole continent. Beginning with an invasion of Egypt, a host of Arabs, believers in the new faith of Islam, conquered the whole of North Africa from the Red Sea to the Atlantic and continued into Spain. Throughout North Africa Christianity nearly disappeared, save in Egypt (where the Coptic Church was allowed to continue), and Upper Nubia and Ethiopia, which were not subdued by the Muslims. ( 6th century - 7th century - 8th century - other centuries) Events Islam starts in Arabia, the Quran is written, and Arabs subjugate Syria, Iraq, Persia, Egypt, North Africa and Central Asia to Islam. ... Islam ( Arabic al-islām الإسلام,  listen?) the submission to God is a monotheistic faith and the worlds second-largest religion. ... The Atlantic Ocean is Earths second-largest ocean, covering approximately one-fifth of its surface. ... The Kingdom of Spain or Spain ( Spanish: Reino de España or España; Catalan: Regne dEspanya; Basque: Espainiako Erresuma; Galician: Reino da España) is a country located in the southwest of Europe. ... Christ - Coptic Art Coptic Orthodox Christianity is the indigenous form of Christianity that, according to tradition, the apostle Mark established in Egypt in the middle of the 1st century AD (approximately AD 60). ...

In the 8th, 9th and 10th centuries the Arabs in Africa were numerically weak, holding the countries they had conquered only by military superiority; but in the 11th century there was a great Arab immigration, resulting in a large absorption of Berber culture. Even before this the Berbers had very generally adopted the speech and religion of their conquerors. Arab influence and the Islamic religion thus became indelibly stamped on northern Africa. Together they spread southward across the Sahara. They also became firmly established along the eastern seaboard, where Arabs, Persians and Indians planted flourishing colonies, such as Mombasa, Malindi and Sofala, playing a role, maritime and commercial, analogous to that filled in earlier centuries by the Carthaginians on the northern seaboard. Until the 14th century, Europe and the Arabs of North Africa were both ignorant of these eastern cities and states. The Berbers (also called Imazighen, free men, singular Amazigh) are a predominantly Muslim ethnic group indigenous to the Maghreb, speaking the Berber languages of the Afroasiatic family. ... Iran ( Persia: ایران) is a Middle Eastern country located in southwestern Asia that until 1935 was referred to in the West as Persia. ... The Republic of India is the second most populous country in the world, with a population of more than one billion, and is the seventh largest country by geographical area. ... Mombasa is the second largest city in Kenya. ...

The first Arab invaders had recognized the authority of the caliphs of Baghdad, and the Aghlabite dynasty—founded by Aghlab, one of Haroun al-Raschid's generals, at the close of the 8th century—ruled as vassals of the caliphate. However, early in the 10th century the Fatimid dynasty established itself in Egypt, where Cairo had been founded AD 968, and from there ruled as far west as the Atlantic. Later still arose other dynasties such as the Almoravides and Almohades. Eventually the Turks, who had conquered Constantinople in 1453, and had seized Egypt in 1517, established the regencies of Algeria, Tunisia and Tripoli (between 1519 and 1551), Morocco remaining an independent Arabized Berber state under the Sharifan dynasty, which had its beginnings at the end of the 13th century. An Anglicized/Latinized version of the Arabic word خليفة or Khalīfah, Caliph (  listen?) is the term or title for the Islamic leader of the Ummah, or community of Islam. ... A street map of Baghdad Average temperature (red) and precipitations (blue) in Baghdad Baghdad (بغداد) is the capital of Iraq and the Baghdad Province. ... The Aghlabid dynasty of emirs ruled Ifriqiya (northern Africa), nominally on behalf of the Abbasid Caliph, for about a century, until overthrown by the new power of the Fatimids. ... Harun al-Rashid (Arabic هارون الرشيد also spelled Harun ar-Rashid, Haroun al-Rashid or Haroon al Rasheed; English: Aaron the Upright; ca. ... The Fatimid Empire or Fatimid Caliphate ruled North Africa from A.D. 909 to 1171. ... View of the modern citys skyline. ... Events Births Emperor Kazan of Japan Ethelred II of England Romanus Argyrus, later Romanus III of the Eastern Roman Empire. ... Almoravides (From Arabic المرابطون sing. ... The Almohad Dynasty (From Arabic الموحدون al-Muwahhidun, i. ... The Republic of Turkey is a country located in Southwest Asia with a small part of its territory (3%) in southeastern Europe. ... Map of Constantinople. ... Events January 22 - Battle of Ridanieh. ... The People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, or Algeria, is a nation in north Africa, and the second largest country on the African continent. ... Tripolitania is a historic region of western Libya, centered around the coastal city of Tripoli. ... The Kingdom of Morocco is a country in northwest Africa. ...

Under the earlier dynasties Arabian or Moorish culture had attained a high degree of excellence, while the spirit of adventure and the proselytizing zeal of the followers of Islam led to a considerable extension of the knowledge of the continent. This was rendered more easy by their use of the camel (first introduced into Africa by the Persian conquerors of Egypt), which enabled the Arabs to traverse the desert. In this way Senegambia and the middle Niger regions fell under the influence of the Arabs and Berbers, but it was not until 1591 that Timbuktu—a city founded in the 11th century—became Muslim. That city had been reached in 1352 by the great Arab traveller Ibn Battuta, whose journey to Mombasa and Quiloa (Kilwa) provided the first accurate knowledge of those flourishing Muslim cities on the east African seaboards. Except along this seaboard, which was colonized directly from Asia, Arab progress southward was stopped by the broad belt of dense forest, stretching almost across the continent somewhat south of 10° North latitude, which barred their advance much as the Sahara had proved an obstacle to their predecessors. The rainforest cut them off from knowledge of the Guinea coast and of all Africa beyond. One of the regions which was the last to come under Arab rule was that of Nubia, which had been controlled by Christians up to the 14th century. For the terrain type see Moor Moors is used in this article to describe the medieval Muslim inhabitants of al-Andalus and the Maghreb, whose culture is often called Moorish. For other meanings look at Moors (Meaning) or Blackamoors. ... For other uses, see Camel (disambiguation). ... Senegambia was a loose confederation between the small West African country of Senegal and its smaller neighbor The Gambia (which is surrounded by Senegal, except for an outlet to the sea), which existed from February 1, 1982 to September 30, 1989 following an agreement between the two countries signed on... See also Timbuktu (novel) for the book by Paul Auster. ... Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn Battuta (February 24, 1304 - 1377) was a Moroccan Berber traveller and explorer. ...

For a time the Muslim conquests in South Europe had virtually made of the Mediterranean an Arab lake, but the expulsion in the 11th century of the Saracens from Sicily and southern Italy by the Normans was followed by descents of the conquerors on Tunisia and Tripoli. Somewhat later a busy trade with the African coastlands, and especially with Egypt, was developed by Venice, Pisa, Genoa and other cities of North Italy. By the end of the 15th century Spain had completely removed the Muslims, but even while the Moors were still in Granada, Portugal was strong enough to carry the war into Africa. In 1415 a Portuguese force captured the citadel of Ceuta on the Moorish coast. From that time onward Portugal repeatedly interfered in the affairs of Morocco, while Spain acquired many ports in Algeria and Tunisia. For the rugby club Saracens see Saracens (rugby club) The term Saracen comes from Greek sarakenoi. ... Sicily (Sicilia in Italian) is an autonomous region of Italy and the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, with an area of 25,700 sq. ... The Italian Republic or Italy ( Italian: Repubblica Italiana or Italia) is a country in southern Europe. ... This article talks about the Norman people. ... Venice is known for its waterways and gondolas Gondola. ... Pisas coat of arms. ... Alternate uses, see Genoa (disambiguation). ... The City of Granada Alhambra, Courtyard of the Lions Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in Andalusia, Spain (Andalucía, España). ... The Republic of Portugal (República Portuguesa), or Portugal, is a democratic republic located on the west and southwest parts of the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe; it is the westernmost country in continental Europe. ... Ceuta is a Spanish exclave in North Africa, located on the northernmost tip of Maghreb, on the Mediterranean coast near the Straits of Gibraltar. ...

Portugal, however, suffered a crushing defeat in 1578 at al Kasr al Kebir, the Moors being led by Abd el Malek I of the then recently established Sharifan dynasty. By that time the Spaniards had lost almost all their African possessions. The Barbary states, primarily from the example of the Moors expelled from Spain, degenerated into mere communities of pirates, and under Turkish influence civilization and commerce declined. The story of these states from the beginning of the 16th century to the third decade of the 19th century is largely made up of piratical exploits on the one hand and of ineffectual reprisals on the other. In Algiers, Tunis and other cities were thousands of Christian slaves. The Battle of Alcacer Quibir took place on August 4, 1578 by Alcazarquivir in Portuguese army and the troops of the Moorish Sultan. ... The states along the Barbary Coast, Algiers, Morocco, Tripoli, and Tunis, were collectively known as the Barbary States. ... This article is about sea pirates. ... For other uses, see Algiers (disambiguation). ... Tunis is the capital of Tunisia. ...

History of Sub-Saharan Africa until 1500 A.D.

Medieval empires

There were many great empires in Sub-saharan africa over the past few millennia. These were mostly concentrated in West Africa where important trade routes and good agricultural land allowed extensive states to develop. These included the Mali, Oba of Benin, the Kanem-Bornu Empire, the Fulani Empire, the Dahomey, the Ashanti Empire, and the Songhay. Malians express great pride in their ancestry. ... The Oba of Benin, whose person was sacred, controlled the Kingdom of Benin, an empire surrounding the West African city of Benin (now in Nigeria), from the 15th century until 1897. ... The Kanem-Bornu Empire existed in Africa, established around 1200 and lasting, in a changed form, until the 1840s. ... This article is in need of attention. ... Dahomey was an African kingdom situated in what is now Benin. ... A shrunken Ashanti Confederacy near the end of its existence in 1896 The Ashanti Confederacy was a powerful state in West Africa in the years prior to European colonization. ... The Songhai are an ethnic group living in western Africa. ...

Also common in this region were loose federations of city states such as those of the Yoruba and Hausa. A city-state is a region controlled exclusively by a city. ... The Yorùbá are the largest ethnic group in Nigeria, comprising approximately 26 percent of that countrys total population, and numbering about close to 100 million individuals throughout the region of West Africa. ... The Hausa are a people of northern Nigeria and south-eastern Niger. ...

Further south empires were less common, but there were exceptions, most notably Great Zimbabwe. One region that did see considerable state formation due to its high population and agricultural surplus was the Great Lakes region where states such as Rwanda, Burundi, and Buganda became strongly centralized. Great Zimbabwe is the name given to the remains of a Southern African ancient city, located in present-day Zimbabwe which was once the centre of a vast empire known as the Munhumutapa Empire (also called Monomotapa Empire) covering the modern states of Zimbabwe (which got its name from this... The Great Lakes of Africa are a series of lakes in and around the Great Rift Valley. ... Rwanda is a country in central Africa. ... The Republika yu Burundi (formerly Urundi) is a small landlocked nation in the Great Lakes region of Africa. ... Buganda is the kingdom of the Baganda people, the largest of the four traditional kingdoms in present-day Uganda. ...

Ethiopia, closely linked with North Africa and the Middle East also had centralized rule for many millennia and the Axumite Kingdom which developed there has created a powerful regional trading empire (with trade routes going as far as India). This article needs cleanup. ... The Axumite Kingdom, also known as the Aksum Kingdom, was an important trading nation in northeastern Africa, growing from circa the 5th century BC to become an important trading nation by the 1st century AD. It converted to Christianity in 325 or 328 (various sources). ... The Republic of India is the second most populous country in the world, with a population of more than one billion, and is the seventh largest country by geographical area. ...

European exploration and conquest

Portuguese

With the Battle of Ceuta Africa had ceased to belong solely to the Mediterranean world. Among those who fought there was one, Prince Henry "the Navigator," son of King John I, who was fired with the ambition to acquire for Portugal the unknown parts of Africa. Under his inspiration and direction was begun that series of voyages of exploration which resulted in the circumnavigation of Africa and the establishment of Portuguese sovereignty over large areas of the coastlands. The Battle of Ceuta (August 14, 1415) and the subsequent conquest of the North African city of Ceuta by the Portuguese had its roots in the earliest years of the Aviz dynasty of Portugal. ... Infante Dom Henrique (4 March 1394 - 13 November 1460) was a prince of Portugal, often regarded as the most important figure in the early days of European colonial expansion. ... João I, king of Portugal (in English, John I) (the Good or sometimes, the Great), was born at Lisbon in April 11, 1357 and died in the same city in August 14, 1433. ...

Portuguese ships rounded Cape Bojador in 1434, Cape Verde in 1445, and by 1480 the whole Guinea coast was known. In 1482 Diogo Cão discovered the mouth of the Congo, the Cape of Good Hope was rounded by Bartolomeu Dias in 1488, and in 1498 Vasco da Gama, after having rounded the Cape, sailed up the east coast, touched at Sofala and Malindi, and went thence to India. Over all the countries discovered by their navigators Portugal claimed sovereign rights, but these were not exercised in the extreme south of the continent. Cape Bojador is a headland on the northern coast of Moroccos Western Sahara province, just below latitude 27° North. ... Events May 30, Battle of Lipany in the Hussite Wars Jan van Eyck painted the wedding of Giovanni Arnoflini The Honorable Passing of Arms at the bridge of Obrigo The Portuguese reach Cape Bojador in Western Sahara. ... Cape Verde ( Portuguese: Cabo Verde) is a republic located on an archipelago of the North Atlantic Ocean, off the western coast of Africa. ... Events Discovery of Senegal and Cape Verde by Dinas Diaz Births March 1 - Sandro Botticelli, Italian painter of the Florentine school during the Early Renaissance (d. ... Events Great standing on the Ugra river - Muscovy becomes independent from the Golden Horde. ... Events Portuguese fortify Fort Elmina on the Gold Coast Tizoc rules the Aztecs Diogo Cão, a Portuguese navigator, becomes the first European to sail up the Congo. ... The pillar bearing the arms of Portugal erected by Cão at Cape St. ... Image of Kinshasa and Brazzaville, taken by NASA; the Congo River is visible in the center of the photograph Length 4,380 km Elevation of the source m Average discharge 41,800 m /s Area watershed 3,680,000 km Origin Mouth Atlantic Ocean Basin countries Dem. ... The Cape of Good Hope headland seen from the north 1888 Map of the Cape of Good Hope Triangular Postage Stamp The Cape of Good Hope is a headland in South Africa, near Cape Town, traditionally — and incorrectly — regarded as marking the turning point between the Atlantic Ocean and the... Bartolomeu Dias (Anglicized: Bartholomew Diaz) (c. ... Events February 3 - Portugal lands in Mossel Bay after rounding the Cape of Good Hope, at the tip of Africa becoming the first known European to travel this far south. ... Events Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama visits Quelimane and Moçambique in southeastern Africa. ... See Clube de Regatas Vasco da Gama for the football club. ...

The Guinea coast, as the first discovered and the nearest to Europe, was first exploited. Numerous forts and trading stations were established, the earliest being Sao Jorge da Mina (Elmina), begun in 1482. The chief commodities dealt in were slaves, gold, ivory and spices. The discovery of America (1492) was followed by a great development of the slave trade, which, before the Portuguese era, had been an overland trade almost exclusively confined to Muslim Africa. The lucrative nature of this trade and the large quantities of alluvial gold obtained by the Portuguese drew other nations to the Guinea coast. English mariners went there as early as 1553, and they were followed by Spaniards, Dutch, French, Danish and other adventurers. Much of Senegambia was made known as a result of quests during the 16th century for the "hills of gold" in Bambuk and the fabled wealth of Timbuktu, but the middle Niger was not reached. The supremacy along the coast passed in the 17th century from Portugal to the Netherlands and from the Dutch in the 18th and 19th centuries to France and Britain. The whole coast from Senegal to Lagos was dotted with forts and "factories" of rival powers, and this international patchwork persisted into the 20th century though all the hinterland had become either French or British territory. General Name, Symbol, Number Gold, Au, 79 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11 (IB), 6, d Density, Hardness 19300 kg/m3, 2. ... Ivory is a hard, white, opaque substance that is the bulk of the teeth and tusks of animals such as the elephant, hippopotamus, walrus, mammoth, etc. ... External links Wikibooks Cookbook has more about this subject: Spice Food Bacteria-Spice Survey Shows Why Some Cultures Like It Hot Citat: ...Garlic, onion, allspice and oregano, for example, were found to be the best all-around bacteria killers (they kill everything). ... The Americas (sometimes referred to as America) is the area including the land mass located between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean, generally divided into North America and South America. ... An alluvial deposit is an accumulation of alluvium (sediment), sometimes containing valuable ore and gemstones, or simply consisting of gravel, sand, or clay, in the bed or former bed of a river. ... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Official language None; English is de facto Capital London Capitals coordinates 51° 30 N, 0° 10 W Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831... The Netherlands ( Dutch: Nederland) is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands ( Dutch: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden). ... France - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins/monobook/IE50Fixes. ... Denmark (disambiguation). ... The Republic of Senegal is a country south of the Senegal River in West Africa. ... Alternate uses: Lagos (disambiguation) Lagos is the largest city in Nigeria and, with its population of 13. ...

Southward from the mouth of the Congo to the inhospitable region of Damaraland (in what is present-day Namibia), the Portuguese, from 1491 onward, acquired influence over the Bantu inhabitants, and in the early part of the 16th century through their efforts Christianity was largely adopted in the Kongo Empire. An incursion of cannibalistic tribes from the interior later in the same century broke the power of this semi-Christian state, and Portuguese activity was transferred to a great extent farther south, Sao Paulo de Loanda (present-day Luanda) being founded in 1576. Before Angolan independence, the sovereignty of Portugal over this coast region, except for the mouth of the Congo, had been once only challenged by a European power, and that was in 1640-1648, when the Dutch held the seaports. The Republic of Namibia is a country in southwest Africa, on the Atlantic coast. ... The Kongo Empire was an African kingdom located in southwest Africa in what are now northern Angola, Cabinda, Republic of the Congo, and the western portion of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. ... Luanda (formerly called Loanda) is the largest city and capital of Angola. ... Events May 5 - Peace of Beaulieu or Peace of Monsieur (after Monsieur, the Duc dAnjou, brother of the King, who negotiated it). ... Angola is a country in southwestern Africa bordering Namibia, Congo-Kinshasa, and Zambia, and with a west coast along the Atlantic Ocean. ...

Neglecting the comparatively poor and thinly inhabited regions of South Africa, the Portuguese no sooner discovered than they coveted the flourishing cities held by Arabized peoples between Sofala and Cape Guardafui. By 1520 all these Muslim sultanates had been seized by Portugal, Moçambique being chosen as the chief city of her East African possessions. Nor was Portuguese activity confined to the coastlands. The lower and middle Zambezi valley was explored (16th and 17th centuries), and here the Portuguese found semi-assimilated Bantu tribes, who had been for many years in contact with the coast Arabs. Strenuous efforts were made to obtain possession of the country (modern Zimbabwe) known to them as the kingdom or empire of Monomotapa, where gold had been worked by the natives from about the 12th century AD, and whence the Arabs, whom the Portuguese dispossessed, were still obtaining supplies in the 16th century. Several expeditions were despatched inland from 1569 onward and considerable quantities of gold were obtained. Portugal's hold on the interior, never very effective, weakened during the 17th century, and in the middle of the 18th century ceased with the abandonment of the forts in the Manica district. The Republic of South Africa (pronunciation) is a large republic in Southern Africa. ... Categories: Africa geography stubs | Headlands ... A sultan (Arabic: سلطان) is an Islamic monarch ruling under the terms of shariah. ... Moçambique (or Mozambique) is a city in Mozambique with a population of 42,207 (1997). ... Zambezi River in North Western Zambia The Zambezi (also spelled Zambesi) is a river in Southern Africa. ... The Republic of Zimbabwe is a country located in the southern part of the continent of Africa, between the Victoria Falls, Zambezi river, Kariba Dam and Limpopo river. ... Mhunhumutapa or Monomotapa Empire was a medieval kingdom (reaching a peak around the 1440s) located in Southern Africa covering mainly the modern states of Zimbabwe and Mozambique. ...

At the period of her greatest power Portugal exercised a strong influence in Ethiopia also. In the ruler of Ethiopia (to whose dominions a Portuguese traveller had penetrated before Vasco da Gama's memorable voyage) the Portuguese imagined they had found the legendary Christian king, Prester John, and when the complete overthrow of the native dynasty and the Christian religion was imminent by the victories of the sultan Ahmad ibn Ibrihim al-Ghazi, the exploits of a band of 400 Portuguese under Christopher da Gama during 1541-1543 turned the scale in favor of Ethiopia and had thus an enduring result on the future of North-East Africa. After da Gama's time Portuguese Jesuits travelled to Ethiopia. While they failed in their efforts to convert the Ethiopians to Roman Catholicism they acquired an extensive knowledge of the country. Pedro Paez in 1615, and, ten years later, Jeronimo Lobo, both visited the sources of the Blue Nile. In 1663 the Portuguese, who had outstayed their welcome, were expelled from the Ethiopian dominions. At this time Portuguese influence on the Zanzibar coast faded before the power of the Arabs of Muscat, and by 1730 no point on the east coast north of Cape Delgado was held by Portugal. Prester John (also Presbyter John) was a legendary Christian ruler in Asia (some say his kingdom was in Northern Africa), combining the roles of patriarch and king. ... Ahmad ibn Ibrihim al-Ghazi (c. ... The Society of Jesus (Latin: Societas Iesu), commonly known as the Jesuits, is a Roman Catholic religious order. ... This article considers Catholicism in the broadest ecclesiastical sense. ... Pedro Páez was a Jesuit missionary in Africa. ... Jeronimo Lobo (1593-1678) was a Portuguese Jesuit missionary. ... The Blue Nile is a river rising from Ethiopia. ... Events July 8 - Charles II of England grants John Clarke a Royal Charter to Rhode Island. ... Map of Zanzibars main island Zanzibar, Tanzania, comprises a pair of islands off the east coast of Africa called Zanzibar (Unguja) (1994 est. ... Grand Mosque in Muscat Muscat (مسقط), population 880,200 (2004), is the capital of Oman. ...

It has been seen that Portugal took no steps to acquire the southern part of the continent. To the Portuguese the Cape of Good Hope was simply a landmark on the road to India, and mariners of other nations who followed in their wake used Table Bay only as a convenient spot wherein to refit on their voyage to the East. By the beginning of the 17th century the bay was much resorted to for this purpose, chiefly by British and Dutch vessels. Table Bay is a natural inlet overlooked by Cape Town and is at the North end of the Cape Peninsula which stretches South to the Cape of Good Hope, it is so named because it is dominated by the flat-topped Table Mountain. ...

In 1620, with the object of forestalling the Dutch, two officers of the East India Company, on their own initiative, took possession of Table Bay in the name of King James, fearing otherwise that British ships would be "frustrated of watering but by license." Their action was not approved in London and the proclamation they issued remained without effect. The Netherlands profited by the apathy of the British. On the advice of sailors who had been shipwrecked in Table Bay the Netherlands East India Company, in 1651, sent out a fleet of three small vessels under Jan van Riebeeck which reached Table Bay on the April 6, 1652 when, 164 years after its discovery, the first permanent white settlement was made in South Africa. The Portuguese, whose power in Africa was already waning, were not in a position to interfere with the Dutch plans, and Britain was content to seize the island of Saint Helena as her half-way house to the East. Until the Dutch landed, the southern tip of Africa was inhabited by a sparse Khoi-San speaking culture including both San (hunter-gatherers) and Khoi (herders), who have in the past been referred to by Europeans respectively as "Bushmen" and "Hottentots". Europeans found it a paradise for their temperate crop suites. Events September 6 - English emigrants on the Mayflower depart from Plymouth, England for the future New England and arrive at the end of the year. ... The British East India Company, sometimes referred to as John Company, was a joint-stock company of investors, which was granted a Royal Charter by Elizabeth I on December 31, 1600, with the intent to favor trade privileges in India. ... James VI and I King of England, Scotland and Ireland James VI of Scotland and I of England (Charles James) (19 June 1566–27 March 1625) was a King who ruled over England, Scotland and Ireland, and was the first Sovereign to reign in the three realms simultaneously. ... London — containing the City of London — is the capital of the United Kingdom and of England and a major world city. With over seven million inhabitants (Londoners) in Greater London area, it is amongst the most densely populated areas in Western Europe. ... This article is about the trading company. ... Categories: Stub | History of the Netherlands | Dutch colonies ... April 6 is the 96th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (97th in leap years). ... Events April 6 - Dutch sailor Jan van Riebeeck establishes a resupply camp for the Dutch East India Company at the Cape of Good Hope, and founded Cape Town. ... For alternate uses, see Saint Helena (disambiguation). ... The Bushmen or San peoples of South Africa and neighbouring Botswana and Namibia, who live in the Kalahari, are part of the Khoisan group and are related to the Khoikhoi. ... The Khoikhoi (men of men) or Khoi are a division of the Khoisan ethnic group of south-western Africa, closely related to the Bushmen (San). ...

In its inception the settlement at the Cape was not intended to become an African colony, but was regarded as the most westerly outpost of the Dutch East Indies. Nevertheless, despite the paucity of ports and the absence of navigable rivers, the Dutch colonists, including Huguenots who had fled France, gradually spread northward, stamping their language, law and religion indelibly upon South Africa. This process, however, was exceedingly slow. The Dutch East Indies, or Netherlands East Indies, (Dutch: Nederlands Indië) was the name of the colonies colonised by the Dutch East India Company which came under administration of the Netherlands during the ninteenth century (see Indonesia). ...

During the 18th century the slave trade reached its highest development, the trade in gold, ivory, gum and spices being small in comparison. Slavery is any of a number of related conditions involving control of a person against his or her will, enforced by violence or other clear forms of coercion. ... A number of different things are called gum: gums the soft tissue partly covering teeth Chewing gum Bubblegum Guar gum Gum arabic Postage stamp gum Gum Springs, Arkansas, a town Trees: Gum tree (Eucalyptus; Australia and cultivated in other warm areas) Black gum (Tupelo, Nyssa; eastern North America) Sweet-gum...

An 1812 map of Africa by Arrowsmith and Lewis

Download high resolution version (1497x1213, 395 KB)1812 map of Africa by Arrowsmith and Lewis, printed in Boston by Thomas & Andrews This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Download high resolution version (1497x1213, 395 KB)1812 map of Africa by Arrowsmith and Lewis, printed in Boston by Thomas & Andrews This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ...

19th Century European explorers

See also: Colonization of Africa, Scramble for Africa Ancient Colonization North Africa in particular experienced colonization from Europe and Asia Minor in the early historical period. ... The Scramble for Africa was the period between the 1880s and the start of World War I, when colonial empires in Africa were acquired faster than anywhere else on the globe. ...

Although the Napoleonic Wars distracted the attention of Europe from exploratory work in Africa, those wars nevertheless exercised great influence on the future of the continent, both in Egypt and South Africa. The occupation of Egypt (1798-1803) first by France and then by Great Britain resulted in an effort by Turkey to regain direct control over that country, followed in 1811 by the establishment under Mehemet Ali of an almost independent state, and the extension of Egyptian rule over the eastern Sudan (from 1820 onward). In South Africa the struggle with Napoleon caused the United Kingdom to take possession of the Dutch settlements at the Cape, and in 1814 Cape Colony, which had been continuously occupied by British troops since 1806, was formally ceded to the British crown. The Napoleonic Wars lasted from 1804 until 1815. ... See Mehemet Ali (Turkey) for the Turkish foreign minister and regent. ... Foreign relations Main article: Foreign relations of Sudan Sudan has a territorial dispute with Egypt over the Halaib Triangle. ... Bonaparte as general Napoleon Bonaparte ( 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821) was a general of the French Revolution and was the ruler of France as First Consul (Premier Consul) of the French Republic from November 11, 1799 to May 18, 1804, then as Emperor of the French (Empereur des Français... Map of European presence in 1652 The Cape Colony was a part of South Africa under British occupation during the 19th century. ...

Meantime considerable changes had been made in other parts of the continent, the most notable being the occupation of Algiers by France in 1830, an end being thereby put to the piratical proceedings of the Barbary states; the continued expansion southward of Egyptian authority with the consequent additions to the knowledge of the Nile. The city of Zanzibar, on the island of that name, founded in 1832 by Seyyid Said of Muscat, rapidly attained importance. Accounts of a vast inland sea, and the discovery in 1840-1848, by the missionaries Johann Ludwig Krapf and Johann Rebmann, of the snow-clad mountains of Kilimanjaro and Kenya, stimulated in Europe the desire for further knowledge. Map of Zanzibars main island Zanzibar, Tanzania, comprises a pair of islands off the east coast of Africa called Zanzibar (Unguja) (1994 est. ... Kilimanjaro is a mountain in northeastern Tanzania. ...

At this period, the middle of the 19th century, Protestant missions were carrying on active propaganda on the Guinea coast, in South Africa and in the Zanzibar dominions. Their work, largely beneficent, was being conducted in regions and among peoples little known, and in many instances missionaries turned explorers and became pioneers of trade and empire. One of the first to attempt to fill up the remaining blank spaces in the map was David Livingstone, who had been engaged since 1840 in missionary work north of the Orange. In 1849 Livingstone crossed the Kalahari Desert from south to north and reached Lake Ngami, and between 1851 and 1856 he traversed the continent from west to east, making known the great waterways of the upper Zambezi. During these journeyings Livingstone discovered, November 1855, the famous Victoria Falls, so named after the Queen of the United Kingdom. In 1858-1864 the lower Zambezi, the Shire and Lake Nyasa were explored by Livingstone, Nyasa having been first reached by the confidential slave of Antonio da Silva Porto, a Portuguese trader established at Bihe in Angola, who crossed Africa during 1853-1856 from Benguella to the mouth of the Rovuma. Protestantism is a general grouping of denominations within Christianity. ... David Livingstone David Livingstone (March 19, 1813–May 1, 1873) was a Scottish missionary and explorer of the Victorian era, now best remembered because of his meeting with Henry Morton Stanley which gave rise to the popular quotation, Livingstone was born in the village of Blantyre in Lanarkshire, Scotland and... The Orange River is the largest river of South Africa. ... Lake Ngami is a lake in Botswana north of the Kalahari desert. ... Victoria Falls Victoria Falls is one of the worlds most spectacular waterfalls. ... Victoria Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Empress of India Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria) (24 May 1819–22 January 1901) was a Queen of the United Kingdom, reigning from 20 June 1837 until her death. ... The Shire is a river in Southern Africa. ... A view of the lake from Likoma Island Lake Malawi, originally known as Lake Nyasa, Lake Nyassa and Lake Niassa after the Yao word for lake, is the most southerly lake in the Great African Rift Valley system. ... Benguella (São Felipe de Benguella), is a town in Angola, capital of Benguella district, on a bay of the same name, in 12° 33’ S., 13° 25’ E. Benguella was founded in 1617 by the Portuguese under Manoel Cerveira Pereira. ...

Also in 1855, Hassa Kailu consolidated his rule in what is known today as Ethiopia. Events January 23 - The first bridge over the Mississippi River opens in what is now Minneapolis, Minnesota, a crossing made today by the Father Louis Hennepin Bridge. ...

Henry Morton Stanley, who had in 1871 succeeded in finding and succouring Livingstone, started again for Zanzibar in 1874, and in one of the most memorable of all exploring expeditions in Africa circumnavigated Victoria Nyanza and Tanganyika, and, striking farther inland to the Lualaba, followed that river down to the Atlantic Ocean—reached in August 1877 -- and proved it to be the Congo. Sir Henry Morton Stanley (January 29, 1841-May 10, 1904) was a 19th century Welsh-born journalist and explorer famous for his exploration of Africa and his search for David Livingstone. ... Lake Victoria or Victoria Nyanza is one of the Great Lakes of Africa. ... Fishermen on Lake Tanganyika Lake Tanganyika is a large lake in central Africa (3° 20 to 8° 48 South and from 29° 5 to 31° 15 East). ... The Lualaba is the largest tributary of the Congo River, running from the vicinity of Lubumbashi north to Kisangani, where the Congo officially begins. ...

While the great mystery of Central Africa was being solved explorers were also active in other parts of the continent. Southern Morocco, the Sahara and the Sudan were traversed in many directions between 1860 and 1875 by Gerhard Rohlfs, Georg Schweinfurth and Gustav Nachtigal. These travellers not only added considerably to geographical knowledge, but obtained invaluable information concerning the people, languages and natural history of the countries in which they sojourned. Among the discoveries of Schweinfurth was one that confirmed the Greek legends of the existence beyond Egypt of a "pygmy race". But the first discoverer of the dwarf races of Central Africa was Paul du Chaillu, who found them in the Ogowe district of the west coast in 1865, five years before Schweinfurth's first meeting with them; du Chaillu having previously, as the result of journeys in the Gabon region between 1855 and 1859, made popular in Europe the knowledge of the existence of the gorilla, perhaps the gigantic ape seen by Hanno the Carthaginian, and whose existence, up to the middle of the 19th century, was thought to be as legendary as that of the Pygmies of Aristotle. Gerhard Rohlfs (1831 - 1896) was a German geographer and adventurer who was the first European to cross Africa north to south. ... Georg August Schweinfurth Georg August Schweinfurth (December 29, 1836 – September 19, 1925), German botanist, traveller in East Central Africa and ethnologist, was born at Riga, Latvia, Russian Empire. ... Gustav Nachtigal (February 23, 1834 - April 20, 1885), German explorer in Central Africa, son of a Lutheran pastor, was born at Eichstedt in the Mark of Brandenburg. ... Paul du Chaillu (July 31, 1835 - April 29, 1903), traveller and anthropologist, was born either at Paris or at New Orleans (accounts conifict). ... The Ogooué (or Ogowe) is the principal river of Gabon in west central Africa. ... The Gabonese Republic, or Gabon, is a nation of west central Africa. ... Species Gorilla gorilla Gorilla beringei The gorilla, the largest of the primates, is a ground-dwelling herbivore that inhabits the forests of central Africa. ... Hanno the Navigator was a Carthaginian explorer, sent out with a fleet and many thousands of colonists, who founded or repopulated seven Carthaginian cities on the Atlantic shore of Morocco and explored the Atlantic coast of Africa, apparently deep into the Gulf of Guinea. ... Aristotle (sculpture) Aristotle ( Greek: Αριστοτέλης Aristotelēs) ( 384 BC – March 7, 322 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher. ...

Partition among European Powers

For details, see the main article Scramble for Africa The Scramble for Africa was the period between the 1880s and the start of World War I, when colonial empires in Africa were acquired faster than anywhere else on the globe. ...

In the last quarter of the 19th century the map of Africa was transformed. After the discovery of the Congo the story of exploration takes second place; the continent becomes the theatre of European expansion. Lines of partition, drawn often through trackless wildernesses, marked out the possessions of Germany, France, Britain and other powers. Railways penetrated the interior, vast areas were opened up to Western occupation, and from Egypt to the Zambezi the continent was startled into new life. The Federal Republic of Germany ( German: Bundesrepublik Deutschland) is one of the worlds leading industrialised countries, located in the heart of Europe. ... This is the top-level page of WikiProject trains Rail tracks Rail transport refers to the land transport of passengers and goods along railways or railroads. ...

The causes which led to the partition of Africa may now be considered. They are to be found in the economic and political state of western Europe at the time. Germany, strong and united as the result of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, was seeking new outlets for her energies—new markets for her growing industries, and with the markets, colonies. Battle of Gravelotte Main article: Battle of Gravelotte Battle of Sedan Main article: Battle of Sedan The French were soundly defeated in several battles owing to the military superiority of the Prussian forces and their commanders. ... This article refers to a colony in politics and history. ...

Yet the idea of colonial expansion slow to gain favour in Germany, and when Prince Bismarck at length acted Africa was the only field left to exploit, South America being protected from interference by the known determination of the United States to enforce the Monroe Doctrine, while Britain, France, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain already held most of the other regions of the world where colonization was possible. Alternative meanings: See Bismarck (disambiguation). ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... The United States of America — also referred to as the United States, the U.S.A., the U.S., America¹, the States, or (archaically) Columbia — is a federal republic of 50 states located primarily in central North America (with the exception of two states: Alaska and Hawaii). ... The Monroe Doctrine, expressed in 1823, proclaimed that the Americas should be free from future European colonization and free from European interference in sovereign countries affairs. ... Colonization (or colonisation) is the act where life forms move into a distant area where their kind is sparse or not yet existing at all and set up new settlements in the area. ...

Part of the reason Germany began to expand into the colonial sphere at this time, despite Bismarck's lack of enthusiasm for the idea, was a shift in the world view of the Prussian governing elite. Indeed, European elites as a whole began to view the world as a finite place, one in which only the strong would predominate. The influence of social-darwinism was deep, encouraging a view of the world as essentially characterized by zero-sum relationships. Social Darwinism is a descriptive term given to a kind of social theory that draws an association between Darwins theory of evolution by natural selection, and the sociological relations of humanity. ... Zero-sum describes a situation in which a participants gain (or loss) is exactly balanced by the losses (or gains) of the other participant(s). ...

For different reasons the war of 1870 was also the starting-point for France in the building up of a new colonial empire. In her endeavour to regain the position lost in that war France had to look beyond Europe. To the two causes mentioned must be added others. Britain and Portugal, when they found their interests threatened, bestirred themselves, while Italy also conceived it necessary to become an African power. Britain awoke to the need for action too late to secure predominance in all the regions where formerly hers was the only European influence. She had to contend not only with the economic forces which urged her rivals to action, but had also to combat the jealous opposition of almost every European nation to the further growth of British power. Italy alone acted throughout in cordial co-operation with Britain.

It was not, however, the action of any of the great powers of Europe which precipitated the struggle. This was brought about by the ambitious projects of Leopold II, king of the Belgians. The discoveries of Livingstone, Stanley and others had aroused especial interest among two classes of men in western Europe, one the manufacturing and trading class, which saw in Central Africa possibilities of commercial development, the other the philanthropic and missionary class, which beheld in the newly discovered lands millions of "savages" to Christianize and "civilize". The possibility of utilizing both these classes in the creation of a vast state, of which he should be the chief, formed itself in the mind of Leopold II even before Stanley had navigated the Congo. The king's action was immediate; it proved successful; but no sooner was the nature of his project understood in Europe than it provoked the rivalry of France and Germany, and thus the international struggle was begun. King Leopold II Leopold II, King of the Belgians (Louis Philippe Marie Victor) (April 9, 1835–December 17, 1909), succeeded his father, Leopold I of Belgium, to the Belgian throne in 1865 and remained king until his death. ... The Kingdom of Belgium ( Dutch: Koninkrijk België, French: Royaume de Belgique, German: Königreich Belgien) is a country in Western Europe, bordered by the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, France, and the North Sea. ... For other uses, see Civilization (disambiguation). ...

Conflicting ambitions of the European powers

In 1873, Zanzibar, the busiest slave market in Africa, closed. Map of Zanzibars main island Zanzibar, Tanzania, comprises a pair of islands off the east coast of Africa called Zanzibar (Unguja) (1994 est. ...

The part of the continent to which King Leopold directed his energies was the equatorial region. In September 1876 he took what may be described as the first definite step in the modern partition of the continent. He summoned to a conference at Brussels representatives of Britain, Belgium, France, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy and Russia, to deliberate on the best methods to be adopted for the exploration and Westernization of Africa, and the opening up of the interior of the continent to commerce and industry. The conference was entirely unofficial. The delegates who attended neither represented nor pledged their respective governments. Their deliberations lasted three days and resulted in the foundation of "The International African Association," with its headquarters at Brussels. It was further resolved to establish national committees in the various countries represented, which should collect funds and appoint delegates to the International Association. The central idea appears to have been to put the exploration and development of Africa upon an international footing. But it quickly became apparent that this was an unattainable ideal. The national committees were soon working independently of the International Association, and the Association itself passed through a succession of stages until it became purely Belgian in character, and at last developed into the Congo Free State, under the personal sovereignty of King Leopold. Emblem of the Brussels-Capital Region Flag of The City of Brussels Brussels ( Dutch: Brussel, French: Bruxelles, German: Brüssel) is the capital of Belgium and is considered by many to be the de facto capital of the European Union, as two of its three main institutions have their headquarters... Austria-Hungary, also known as the Dual monarchy (or: the k. ... The Russian Federation ( Russian: Росси́йская Федера́ция, transliteration: Rossiyskaya Federatsiya or Rossijskaja Federacija), or Russia (Russian: Росси́я, transliteration: Rossiya or Rossija), is a country that stretches over a vast expanse of eastern Europe and northern Asia. ... The Congo Free State was a private kingdom personally owned by Leopold II of Belgium that included the entire area now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. ...

For some time before 1884 there had been growing up a general conviction that it would be desirable for the powers who were interesting themselves in Africa to come to some agreement as to "the rules of the game," and to define their respective interests so far as that was practicable. Lord Granville's ill-fated treaty brought this sentiment to a head, and it was agreed to hold an international conference on African affairs. Granville George Leveson-Gower, 2nd Earl Granville (May 11, 1815 - March 31, 1891) was an English statesman. ...

The Berlin Conference of 1884-85

Main article: Berlin Conference The Berlin Conference of 1884–85 regulated European colonisation and trade in Africa. ...

From 1885 the scramble among the powers went on with renewed vigour, and in the fifteen years that remained of the century the work of partition, so far as international agreements were concerned, was practically completed.

1900s. The Boer War, conflict between the UK and Dutch settlers.

Relationship to "Victorian Era" in the UK.

Soldiers of King Menelik II fended off the Italians, keeping Ethiopia independent from European colonialization. Boer guerrillas during the Second Boer War There were two Boer wars, one in December 16, 1880- March 23, 1881 and the second from October 11, 1899- May 31, 1902 both between the British and the settlers of Dutch origin (called Boere, Afrikaners or Voortrekkers) in South Africa that put... Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her Accession to the Throne, June 20, 1837) gave her name to the historic era. ... Menelik II (August 17, 1844 - December 12, 1913), Conquering Lion of Judah, Elect of God, King of Kings of Ethiopia was negus negust (emperor) of Ethiopia from 1889 to his death. ... The Italian Republic or Italy ( Italian: Repubblica Italiana or Italia) is a country in southern Europe. ... This article needs cleanup. ...

20th Century: 1900-1945

Africa at the start of the 20th century

Map of Africa just before World War I (larger image (456 kB))

All of the continent claimed by European powers, except for Ethiopia ("Abyssinia") and Liberia. Map of Africa, smaller version, from 1917 Hammonds Atlas of the Modern World Large version 456 kb This image is in the public domain in the United States and possibly other jurisdictions. ... This article needs cleanup. ... The Republic of Liberia is a country on the west coast of Africa, bordered by Sierra Leone, Guinea and Côte dIvoire. ...

The European powers set up a variety of different administrations in Africa at this time, with different ambitions and degrees of power. In some areas, parts of British West Africa for example, colonial control was tenuous and intended for simple economic extraction, strategic power, or as part of a long term development plan.

In other areas Europeans were encouraged to settle, creating settler states in which a European minority came to dominate society. Settlers only came to a few colonies in sufficient numbers to have a strong impact. British settler colonies included British East Africa, now Kenya, North and South Rhodesia, later Zambia and Zimbabwe, and South Africa, which already had a significant population of European settlers, the Boers. British East Africa was a British protectorate in East Africa, covering generally the area of present-day Kenya and lasting from 1890 to 1920, when it became the colony of Kenya. ... This article is about the break-away colony of (Southern) Rhodesia , today Zimbabwe. ... The Republic of South Africa (pronunciation) is a large republic in Southern Africa. ... Afrikaners (sometimes known as Boers) are white South Africans, predominantly of Calvinist German, French Huguenot, Friesian and Walloons descent who speak Afrikaans. ...

France planned to settle Algeria and eventually incorporate it into the French state as an equal to the European provinces. Its proximity across the Meditterranean allowed plans of this scale.

In most areas colonial administrations did not have the manpower or resources to fully administer the territory and had to rely on local power structures to help them. Various factions and groups within the societies exploited this European requirement for their own purposes, attempting to gain a position of power within their own communities by cooperating with Europeans. One aspect of this struggle included what Terrence Ranger has termed the "invention of tradition." In order to legitimize their own claims to power in the eyes of both the colonial administrators, and their own people, people would essentially manufacture "traditional" claims to power, or ceremonies. As a result many societies were thrown into disarray by the new order. Terrence Ranger is a prominent African historian, focusing much of his work on the colonial History of Zimbabwe. ... A tradition is a story or a custom that is memorized and passed down from generation to generation, originally without the need for a writing system. ...

World War I

During World War I, there were several battles between the United Kingdom and Germany, the most notable being the Battle of Tanga, and a sustained guerrilla campaign by the German General Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck. Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... The Battle of Tanga (sometimes nicknamed the Battle of the Bees) was the blundered attempt by the United Kingdom to capture Tanzania) during World War I. It was the first major event in the war in Africa. ... Guerrilla (also called a partisan) is a term borrowed from Spanish (from guerra meaning war) used to describe small combat groups. ... General Paul Erich von Lettow-Vorbeck (March 20, 1870 - March 9, 1964) was the commander of the German East Africa campaign in World War I, the only campaign of that war where Germany remained undefeated. ...

Interbellum

After World War I, the formerly German colonies in Africa were taken over by France and the United Kingdom.

During this era a sense of local patriotism or nationalism took deeper root among African intellectuals and politicians. Some of the inspiration for this movement came from the First World War in which European countries had relied on colonial troops for their own defence. Many in Africa realized their own strength with regard to the colonizer for the first time. At the same time, some of the mystique of the "invincible" European was shattered by the barbarities of the war. However, in most areas European control remained relatively strong during this period. Nationalism is an ideology that creates and sustains a nation as a concept of a common identity for groups of humans. ...

In 1935 Benito Mussolini had Italian troops invade Ethiopia, the last African nation not dominated by a foreign power. 1935 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Benito Mussolini created a fascist state through the use of propaganda, total control of the media and disassembly of the working democratic government. ... The Italian Republic or Italy ( Italian: Repubblica Italiana or Italia) is a country in southern Europe. ... This article needs cleanup. ...

World War II

1940s. Pre-WW2 and World War II in Africa. Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km (60,000 ft) into the air. ...

North African campaign. Deutsches Afrika Korps under Erwin Rommel. Definitive defeat of the Germans in the Second Battle of El Alamein.

Importance of Egypt to the UK.

US invasion of Algeria.

The Deutsches Afrikakorps (often just Afrika Korps or DAK) was the corps-level headquarters controlling the German Panzer divisions in Libya and Egypts Western Desert during the North African Campaign of World War II. Since there was little turnover in the units attached to the corps the term is... Field Marshal Erwin Rommel Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel (November 15, 1891–October 14, 1944) was one of the most distinguished German Field Marshals and commander of the Deutsches Afrika Korps in World War II. He is also known by his nickname The Desert Fox (Wüstenfuchs). ... The Battle of Alamein, or more correctly the Second Battle of El Alamein, marked a significant turning point in the Western Desert Campaign of World War II and was the first major victory by an Allied force over the Wehrmacht. ...

20th Century: 1945-1990

Decolonization

Main articles: Decolonization, Decolonization of Africa This is the current collaboration of the week! Please help improve it to featured article standard. ... Causes The destruction of the African belief that the Caucasian was invincible. ...

The Decolonization in Africa started with Libya in 1951. Many countries followed in the 50s and 60s, with a peak in 1960 with independence of a large part of French West Africa. Because many cities were founded, enlarged and renamed by the Europeans, after the independence many place names (for example Stanleyville, Leopoldville, Rhodesia) were renamed: see historical African place names for these. This is the current collaboration of the week! Please help improve it to featured article standard. ... This article is about Libya, the country in North Africa. ... Global Metrics Human security Major Armed Conflicts: Total Deaths in Battle: 700,000 people Violent Deaths caused by Government (Other than War): Violent Deaths caused by other humans: Juvenile Violent Crime: Political security Nations Holding Multi-party Elections: Percentage Living under a Fully Democratic System of Governance: Free Countries: Percentage... 1960 was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... French West Africa (Afrique occidentale française, or AOF) was a federation of eight French territories in Africa: Mauritania, Senegal, French Sudan (now Mali), Guinea, Côte dIvoire, Niger, Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) and Dahomey (now Benin). ... For other uses, see Independence (disambiguation) Independence is autonomous self-government of a country by its residents and indigenous population. ... Kisangani, formerly Stanleyville, (population 500,000) is a city in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Central Africa. ... Kinshasa (formerly Léopoldville) is the capital and largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. ... This article is about the break-away colony of (Southern) Rhodesia , today Zimbabwe. ... This is a list of historical African place names. ...

Postcolonial Relationship with Europe

paternalism

development help

weapon deliveries

The Cold War in Africa

Angola

Congo-Brazzaville

U.S. policy of supporting certain regimes (for instance Mobutu)

Soviet interests in Africa

Angola is a country in southwestern Africa bordering Namibia, Congo-Kinshasa, and Zambia, and with a west coast along the Atlantic Ocean. ... The Republic of the Congo, also known as Middle Congo, Congo-Brazzaville, and Congo (but not to be confused with the Democratic Republic of the Congo, formerly Zaire, which was also at one time known as the Republic of the Congo), is a former French colony of west-central Africa. ... The United States of America — also referred to as the United States, the U.S.A., the U.S., America¹, the States, or (archaically) Columbia — is a federal republic of 50 states located primarily in central North America (with the exception of two states: Alaska and Hawaii). ... Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku wa za Banga (or Mobutu Sese Seko Koko Ngbendu Wa Za Banga; October 14, 1930 - September 7, 1997) was the President of Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) from 1965 to 1997. ...

Pan-Africanism

Main article: Pan-Africanism Pan-Africanism is a term which can have two separate, but related meanings. ...

Central Africa

See also: Central Africa Categories: Africa geography stubs | Central Africa ...

East Africa

See also: East Africa Categories: Africa geography stubs | Eastern Africa ...

In 1952, the Mau Mau Rebellion started in Kenya. This would lead to that country's independence. Jomo Kenyatta became the first president of independent Kenya. 1952 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Mau Mau Uprising was an insurgency by Kenyan rebels against the British colonial administration from 1952 to 1960. ... Kenya (pronounced either as KEN-ya or as KEEN-ya, the former being more common and thought to be correct) is a country of eastern Africa, bordering Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and the Indian Ocean. ... Jomo Kenyatta (October 20, 1892?–August 22, 1978) was an African politician, the first Prime Minister (1963–1964) and President (1964–1978) of an independent Kenya. ...

The early 1990s also signaled the start of major clashes between the Hutus and the Tutsis in Rwanda and Burundi. In 1994 this resulted in the Rwandan Genocide, a conflict in which thousands died. Hutu is the name given to one of the three ethnic groups occupying Burundi and Rwanda. ... The Tutsi are one of three native peoples of the nations of Rwanda and Burundi in central Africa: the other two being the Twa (or Watwa), a pygmy people, and the original inhabitants; and the Hutu (Wahutu), a Bantu-derived people. ... Rwanda is a country in central Africa. ... The Republika yu Burundi (formerly Urundi) is a small landlocked nation in the Great Lakes region of Africa. ... 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... The Rwandan Genocide was a genocide of 937,000 Rwandan Tutsis and Hutu moderates at the hands of Hutu militias and the Hutu-dominated government. ...

North Africa

See also: North Africa Categories: Africa geography stubs | North Africa ...

In 1954 a government came to power in Egypt that was opposed to the United States. The same occurred in Libya in 1969. Egypt was under Gamal Abdel Nasser, and Libya under Moammar al-Qadhafi. As of 2004, al-Qadhafi is still in power. 1954 was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... The United States of America — also referred to as the United States, the U.S.A., the U.S., America¹, the States, or (archaically) Columbia — is a federal republic of 50 states located primarily in central North America (with the exception of two states: Alaska and Hawaii). ... This article is about Libya, the country in North Africa. ... 1969 was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... Gamal Abdel Nasser (Arabic: جمال عبد الناصر) Gamal Abdel Nasser (January 15, 1918 - September 28, 1970) was the second President of Egypt after Muhammad Naguib and is considered one of the most important Arab leaders in history. ... Colonel Muammar al-Qaddafi Muammar Abu Minyar al-Qaddafi 1 (Arabic: معمر القذافي Mu`ammar al-Qadhdhāfī) (born 1942), leader of Libya since 1970 and a controversial Arab statesman. ...

Egypt was involved several wars against Israel, and was allied with other Arab countries. The first was right after the Israel was founded, in 1947. Egypt went to war again in 1967 and lost the Sinai Peninsula to Israel. They went to war yet again in 1973. In 1979, Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin signed the Camp David Accords, which gave back the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt in exchange for the recognition of Israel. The accords are still in effect today. In 1981, Anwar Sadat was assassinated by an Islamist for signing the accords. The State of Israel (Hebrew: מדינת ישראל, translit. ... Arab (disambiguation). ... 1947 was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1967 - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins/monobook/IE50Fixes. ... Sinai Peninsula, Gulf of Suez (west), Gulf of Aqaba (east) from Space Shuttle STS-40 The Sinai Peninsula (in Arabic, Shibh Jazirat Sina) is a triangle-shaped peninsula lying between the Mediterranean Sea (to the north) and Red Sea (to the south). ... 1973 was a common year starting on Monday. ... 1979 is a common year starting on Monday. ... Anwar Sadat Mohamed Anwar el-Sadat – محمد أنورالسادات Arabic - ( December 25, 1918 – October 6, 1981) was an Egyptian politician and President from 1970 to 1981. ... Prime Minister Menachem Begin Menachem Begin (August 16, 1913 - March 9, 1992) became the 6th Prime Minister of Israel in May 1977. ... Anwar Sadat (left), Jimmy Carter (center), and Menachem Begin (right) shake hands in celebration of the success of the Camp David Accords The Camp David Accords were signed by Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin on September 17, 1978, following twelve days of secret negotiations at... 1981 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... Jack Ruby murdered the assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, in a very public manner. ... Islamism is a political ideology derived from the conservative religious views of Muslim fundamentalism. ...

Southern Africa

See also: Southern Africa Categories: Africa geography stubs | Southern Africa ...

In 1948, the Apartheid laws were started in South Africa by the dominant party. 1948 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Apartheid ( International Phonetic Alphabet in English and in Afrikaans) is the policy and the system of laws implemented and enforced by White minority governments in South Africa from 1948 till 1990; and by extension any legally sanctioned system of racial segregation. ... The Republic of South Africa (pronunciation) is a large republic in Southern Africa. ...

Conflict between Afrikaans-speakers and English-speakers.

Establishment of "homelands".

South African military efforts in Angola.

International trade sanctions.

Conflict between ANC and Zulu factions.

End of Apartheid and establishment of new constitution.

In 1994, the Apartheid had ended in South Africa, and Nelson Mandela of the ANC was elected president of South Africa in the country's first multiracial elections. 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... Apartheid ( International Phonetic Alphabet in English and in Afrikaans) is the policy and the system of laws implemented and enforced by White minority governments in South Africa from 1948 till 1990; and by extension any legally sanctioned system of racial segregation. ... Nelson Mandela Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, (born 18 July 1918) is a former President of South Africa, was one of its chief anti-apartheid activists, and was also an anti-apartheid saboteur and guerrilla leader. ... ANC redirects here. ...

West Africa

See also: West Africa West Africa is the region of western Africa generally considered to include these countries: Benin Burkina Faso Cameroon Côte dIvoire (Ivory Coast) Equatorial Guinea Gabon The Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Liberia Mali Niger Nigeria Republic of the Congo (Congo-Brazzaville) Senegal Sierra Leone Togo Chad, Mauritania, and...

In 1983, Thomas Sankara came to power in Upper Volta later renamed Burkina Faso and started what he and his supporters saw as an African revolution. Thomas Sankara (December 21, 1949 - October 15, 1987) was a charismatic left-leaning leader in West Africa. ... Upper Volta (French Haute-Volta) was the name of the African country now called Burkina Faso until August 4, 1984. ... Burkina Faso is a landlocked nation of western Africa. ... A revolution is a relatively sudden and absolutely drastic change. ...

History of African Nations

Central Africa

• History of Equatorial Guinea
• History of the Central African Republic
• History of Chad
• Congo Free State
• History of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
• History of the Republic of the Congo

The first inhabitants of the region that is now Equatorial Guinea are believed to have been Pygmies, of whom only isolated pockets remain in northern Rio Muni. ... The Central African Republic is believed to have been settled from at least the 7th century on by overlapping empires, including the Kanem-Bornu, Ouaddai, Baguirmi, and Dafour groups based around Lake Chad region and along Upper Nile. ... This page discusses the history of Chad, Africa. ... The Congo Free State was a private kingdom personally owned by Leopold II of Belgium that included the entire area now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. ... The area now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo was populated as early as 10,000 years ago and settled in the 7th and 8th centuries A.D. by Bantus from present-day Nigeria. ... First settled by Mbuti, Congo was later settled by Bantu groups that also occupied parts of present-day Angola, Gabon, and Democratic Republic of the Congo, forming the basis for ethnic affinities and rivalries among those states. ...

Eastern Africa

• History of Burundi
• History of Comoros
• History of Djibouti
• History of Eritrea
• History of Ethiopia
• History of Kenya
• History of Rwanda
• History of Somalia
• History of Seychelles
• History of Tanzania
• History of Uganda

Burundi is one of the few countries in Africa, along with its closely linked neighbour Rwanda, to be a direct territorial continuation of an ancient African state. ... Early inhabitants Over the centuries, the islands of Comoros were invaded by a succession of diverse groups from the coast of Africa, the Persian Gulf, Indonesia, and Madagascar. ... The Republic of Djibouti gained its independence on June 27, 1977. ... Eritrea is an ancient name, associated in the past with its Greek form Erythraía (Greek alphabet Ερυθραία), and its derived Latin form Erythræa. ... Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world. ... Fossils found in East Africa suggest that protohumans roamed the area more than 20 million years ago. ... This article discusses the history of Rwanda. ... Early History The original settlers of the Somali region were ethnic Cushites from the fertile lakes of southern Ethiopia. ... The Seychelles islands remained uninhabited for more than 150 years after they became known to Western explorers. ... What is now Tanzania was a colony and part of Germany from the 1880s to 1919. ... Uganda before 1900 When Arab traders moved inland from their enclaves along the Indian Ocean coast of East Africa and reached the interior of Uganda in the 1830s, they found several African kingdoms with well-developed political institutions dating back several centuries. ...

Northern Africa

• History of Algeria
• History of Ceuta
• History of Egypt
• History of Libya
• History of Mauritania
• Melilla
• History of Morocco
• History of Sudan
• History of Tunisia
• History of Western Sahara

This article is an overview of the History of Algeria. ... Ceuta is a Spanish exclave in North Africa, located on the northernmost tip of Morocco, on the Mediterranean coast near the Straits of Gibraltar. ... Hathor The history of Egypt is the longest continuous history, as a unified state, of any country in the world. ... The visible history of Libya is a flux of stronger and weaker control by outsiders. ... From the 3rd to 7th century, the migration of Berber tribes from North Africa displaced the Bafours, the original inhabitants of present-day Mauritania and the ancestors of the Soninke. ... Melilla, known in Arabic as مليلة, and in Tamazight as Tamlit is a Spanish autonomous city on the coast of eastern Morocco, in North Africa. ... The Capsian culture brought Morocco into the Neolithic about 8000 BC, in a time when the Maghreb was less arid than it is today. ... The history of Sudan is marked by its location between the largely Middle Eastern influences of Egypt and its close connections with the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa. ... Classical Period In ancient times, the city of Carthage was located in present-day Tunisia. ... Background The Western Sahara has never been a nation in the modern sense of the word. ...

Southern Africa

• History of Angola
• History of Botswana
• History of Lesotho
• History of Madagascar
• History of Malawi
• History of Mauritius
• History of Mozambique
• History of Namibia
• History of Réunion
• History of Swaziland
• History of South Africa
• History of Zambia
• History of Zimbabwe

This is the History of Angola. ... This is the history of Botswana. ... Basutoland — now Lesotho (pronounced le-SOO-too) — was sparsely populated by Bushmen (Qhuaique) until the end of the 16th century. ... The written history of Madagascar began in the seventh century A.D., when Arabs established trading posts along the northwest coast. ... Hominid remains and stone implements have been identified in Malawi dating back more than 1 million years, and early humans inhabited the vicinity of Lake Malawi 50,000 to 60,000 years ago. ... While Arab and Malay sailors knew of Mauritius as early as the 10th century AD and Portuguese sailors first visited in the 16th century, the island was not colonized until 1638 by the Dutch. ... Mozambiques first inhabitants were San hunter and gatherers, ancestors of the Khoisani peoples. ... The history of Namibia has passed through several distinct stages, and Namibia as a modern state has only existed since the early 1980s. ... According to tradition, the people of the present Swazi nation migrated south before the 16th century to what is now Mozambique. ... Prehistory Extensive fossil remains at the Sterkfontein, Kromdraai and Makapansgat caves suggest that various ape-men (australopithecines) existed in South Africa from about three million years ago. ... The indigenous hunter-gatherer occupants of Zambia began to be displaced or absorbed by more advanced migrating tribes about 2,000 years ago. ... This is the History of Zimbabwe. ...

Western Africa

• History of Benin
• History of Burkina Faso
• History of Cameroon
• History of Cape Verde
• History of Gabon
• History of The Gambia
• History of Ghana
• History of Guinea-Bissau
• History of Liberia
• History of Mali
• History of Niger
• History of Nigeria
• History of Sao Tome and Principe
• History of Senegal
• History of Togo

The Republic of Benin was the seat of one of the great medieval African kingdoms, called Dahomey, governed from the capital, Abomey, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. ... This is the history of Burkina Faso. ... Early history The earliest inhabitants of Cameroon were probably the Bakas (Pygmies). ... The known history of Cape Verde dates from the first Portuguese explorers, who arrived in the fifteenth century. ... During the last seven centuries, Bantu ethnic groups arrived in the area from several directions to escape enemies or find new land. ... The Gambia was once part of the Ghana and the Songhai Empires. ... The history of Ghana before the last quarter of the 15th century is derived primarily from oral tradition that refers to migrations from the ancient kingdoms of the western Sahel—the area of present-day Mauritania and Mali. ... The history of Guinea-Bissau is long and bloody. ... Portuguese explorers established contacts with the land later known as Liberia as early as 1461 and named the area the Grain Coast because of the abundance of grains of malegueta pepper. ... Malians express great pride in their ancestry. ... This is the history of Niger. ... Italic textBefore the colonial period, the area which comprises modern Nigeria had an eventful history. ... The islands of São Tomé and Príncipe were uninhabited before the arrival of the Portuguese sometime in 1469, 1470, or 1471. ... Archaeological findings throughout the area indicate that Senegal was inhabited in prehistoric times. ... The Ewes moved into the area which is now Togo from the Niger River valley between the 12th and 14th centuries. ...

See also

• Economic history of Africa
• History of the African economy
• History of the Middle East
• African archaeology

It is today believed that humanity originated in Africa and as soon as human societies formed so did economic activity. ... The economy of Africa comprises more than 800 million people in 54 different states. ... This article is a general overview of the history of the Middle East. ... The continent of Africa has the longest record of human activity of any part of the world and along with its geographical extent, it contains an enormous archaeological resource. ...

World map showing location of Africa A satellite composite image of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest continent in both area and population, after Eurasia. ... Culture of Africa encompasses and includes all cultures which were ever in the continent of Africa. ... The economy of Africa comprises more than 800 million people in 54 different states. ... Africa is the name of a continent comprising 56 countries, representing the largest of the three great southward projections from the main mass of the earths surface. ...