Africa gives us some of the most important and diverse history of any continent.

This isn't surprising, as

Africa is the second biggest continent after Asia and presently has the largest number of countries. To
the north, the coast which touches the Mediterranean Sea is full of mountains. Just to the south of that
is the largest non-polar desert on the planet, the Sahara. The Sahara is a very important division in
Africa, making history in sub-Saharan Africa much different than in the north. This region came to be
dominated by the civilizations that would form around the Nile River Valley. To the south, the sub-
Saharan region is made up of a variety of terrain. In the hump of Africa, grasslands slowly develop as you
head south, which then turn into tropical rainforests. This region is home to the Niger River, a very
important river valley in African history, home to numerous civilizations. Moving further south, we find
the rainforests of the Congo Basin, where flows the mighty Congo River. In East Africa, which touches the
Indian Ocean, the terrain is more mountainous with plateaus and large lakes. We believe the Cradle of
Humankind is located in this region of modern-day Kenya. In the south of Africa, there are dry deserts
like in Namibia but also hills and plateaus. This area is home to some of the most valuable mineral
resources in the world.

We aren't exactly certain where agriculture first began in Africa, but it was most likely about 7,000 years
ago in the Sahel, the area between the Sahara and the savannah. The region was more green and fertile
than it is today. Though cultivation was easy, the suboptimal soil and scarce rainfall made more intensive
farming impossible, so populations remained relatively stable. This wasn't a problem, as they relied
mainly on hunting and gathering. It was only after the Sahara became drier, turning into a desert, that
some populations migrated south, deeper into the grasslands, spreading their farming techniques and
leading to more diverse crops like tropical fruits, which are only able to grow in wetter climates. Others
migrated towards the Nile River, which became a cradle of civilization. This eventually coalesced into
ancient Egypt, a region which we had previously discussed in our last mega-documentary. Egypt is
usually studied alongside the Mediterranean or Near East, but perhaps above all else, it was truly
African. This is evidenced by its neighbors right to the south, with whom they would be inextricably
linked.

In truth, archaeologists of the past could only work within their own perspectives, influenced by ever-
present ideologies. The most influential was the backdrop of biblical stories, many of which involved
Egypt. The result was European archaeologists and historians removing Egypt from Africa to place them
in the stories of the Near East, often depicting them with European features. Along with other regions
mentioned in the Bible, the Nubians were regarded as darker-skinned and out of the biblical sphere, so
they had always taken a backseat to Egypt. Nubia has often been overlooked because of Egypt's
dominance in the historical narrative, but the region of Nubia, today Sudan, also developed their
civilization around the same Nile River with which the Egyptians prospered.

Around 2500 BCE, the Kerma Culture would form in Upper Nubia. After growing in size and prominence,
they would expand northwards into Lower Nubia, on the border of their great rivals. The city of Kerma
itself was only home to around 2,000 Nubians, but most others lived rurally in smaller villages. The most
stunning Kerma structures were built of mud bricks. These were called deffufas. They were either
temples or chapels for funerals. They were built to promote air circulation, and the bricks kept the
interior nice and cool. Egypt often underestimated the Nubians, but this wasn't the Egypt of old. Egypt
was in a weakened state during the Second Intermediate Period. The Hyksos had encroached from the
north, and now Nubia from the south. After expelling the Hyksos, the Egyptian New Kingdom would
launch campaigns into Nubia, which they now referred to as Kush. The Nubian army was said to possess
stunningly skilled archers. The Egyptians previously called the region Ta-Seti, meaning "Land of the Bow."
By 1500 BCE, Nubia was absorbed, and their capital of Kerma was destroyed.

While Western narrative is that Nubia inherited most of their culture from Egypt, there was always a
mutual exchange of ideas. This period saw that exchange ramped up tenfold. Elites would intermarry,
and ceremonies involving the sun god Amun would take place. Though Nubia was annexed, they would
continue to fight back for centuries. Perhaps one of these rebellions would succeed, but there was no
need to find out. The Bronze Age collapse dismantled New Kingdom Egypt, sending the once-great
Egyptian Empire spiraling down. After Egypt finally disintegrated, Nubia had its own chance for glory. The
Kingdom of Kush was established in Nubia around 1070 BCE, with the capital eventually moving to
Napata after Kerma. This marked a second golden age for Nubia.

In the 700s BCE, Egypt was still fragmented from the fallout of the Bronze Age collapse, with Libyan
invaders making a mockery of Egypt's buildings and customs. A firm believer in the Egyptian religion
himself, King Kashta of Kush undertook a campaign to invade Egypt and drive off these invaders. While
there is no depiction of this man, he succeeded in taking the religious center of Thebes and was even
greeted as a liberator by the locals. He would then set his sights north to conquer the rest of Egypt, but it
was not to be. Kashta died and was buried with his predecessor, Alara. The conquest of Egypt would then
fall to Kashta's son, King Piye. Around 745 BCE, King Piye would invade a divided Egypt and succeed,
completing the conquest and becoming their first pharaoh of the 25th Dynasty. Ruling from Thebes and
Memphis, this dynasty would be known as the Nubian Dynasty, encompassing a wider Kushite Empire.

One of Piye's sons, Taharqa, became the most influential pharaoh of this dynasty. Under his rule, Egypt
became as prosperous as it had been during its New Kingdom period. Religion was promoted, and art
was restored and created. Temples and monuments were commissioned as well. Pyramid construction
began again, a practice not seen since the Middle Kingdom. Others of the dynasty are sometimes
depicted with distinct headdresses. The typical headdress involves a uraeus, or cobra, representing
rulership. Taharqa's headdress possesses two cobras, most likely signifying rulership of both Egypt and
Nubia. The Kushites also developed their own script, derived from the Egyptian. This was the Meroitic
alphabet.

The Kushites' success caught the eye of a new and expanding superpower in the Near East. The Neo-
Assyrian Empire was lapping up chunks of land in the Middle East and was on the march towards Egypt.
In Judah, King Hezekiah implored the Kushites for help to stave off the Assyrians, so the king sent an
army. Jerusalem was saved from the siege and merely became a tribute state of Assyria instead of fully
annexed. Furious, the Neo-Assyrians would then attack Egypt herself to crush this Kingdom of Kush once
and for all. The Nubians fought well, fending off the Assyrians over and over, even after all seemed lost.
In 664 BCE, though, the Kushites were finally defeated after the sack of Thebes. The Neo-Assyrians,
under King Ashurbanipal, had access to vast amounts of iron weapons, which wore down the Nubians,
forcing a retreat. The Assyrians withdrew as well but installed native puppet rulers as Egypt's 26th
Dynasty.

Their civilization would live on, though by 500 BCE, the capital was moved to Meroë, further away from
Egypt but more importantly, expanded southwards to a region with sufficient rainfall and easy access to
iron and other resources. Here, the Nubians would flourish once again. Their most significant structures
were their pyramids. While smaller and differently shaped than their Egyptian counterparts, some would
still stand an impressive 30 meters tall, just shy of 100 feet. Even more impressive is that just a single
burial area in Meroë contains more pyramids than in the entirety of Egypt. Yet not many have heard of
this land of pyramids. The Nubians would live on through the Classical period as well, often under female
rulers called Kandakes.

As the Kingdom of Kush flourished in Nubia for centuries, a rival would be growing to the southeast in
present-day Ethiopia. By the first century CE, the Kingdom of Aksum was founded here by people
claiming to be descendants of the Kingdom of Saba, which biblical sources call Sheba, whose queen
possessed great wealth. In the story, Saba, situated across the Red Sea on the tip of the Arabian
Peninsula, became a wealthy trading kingdom as an intermediary between the Mediterranean and India.
There still isn't evidence that the founders of Aksum were actual descendants or whether they just
adopted some of their culture. The Kingdom of Saba began to decline by the turn of the millennium and
dissolved by the third century. Aksum survived, though, relying on their own fortuitous trading location
between the Mediterranean and the East. They mainly exported ivory, perfumes, and slaves and brought
in metalworks, wine, and olive oil. They would eventually get into an economic war with their Nubian
neighbors over the ivory trade, and in 330, they attacked and conquered the Nubian capital, a final blow
to the already declining Nubians. The Kingdom of Kush disintegrated into different smaller states, and
the Kingdom of Aksum, later taking on the name Ethiopia, became the region's hegemonic power. So
much so, in fact, that the Iranian philosopher Mani regarded Aksum as one of the four great powers of
the world, along with Sassanid Persia, the Roman Empire, and China.

While they had originally practiced the religion of the Kingdom of Saba, they would adopt a new official
religion in the mid-300s. Frumentius was a Christian born in Byzantine Tyre and grew up in Aksum as a
slave. Before the Aksumite king's death, he freed Frumentius, who appealed to the Church of Alexandria
to send missionaries to Aksum. He was appointed as bishop and converted the new king to Christianity,
and Frumentius became the founder of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Aksum retained close ties with
the Church of Alexandria, just to their north in Byzantine Egypt. Tradition held that Aksum was the home
of the Ark of the Covenant, the sacred chest covered in gold where lay the two tablets with the Ten
Commandments.
In this region of Africa, Nubia and Aksum became so prominent because of the trading routes from the
Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean. Most of the rest of Africa saw different patterns that shaped their
cultural development. In North Africa during the ancient period, Carthage was a huge hub for commerce
and trade. Trading beyond the Sahara was conducted by the Berbers, a people we mentioned last
episode. The Berbers were part of the Afro-Asiatic language family, like the ancient Egyptian, the Cushitic
in the Horn of Africa, and the Semitic languages, which came to dominate the Arabian Peninsula and the
Levant. These pastoralists transported goods from North Africa to the sub-Saharan and vice versa. While
salt, gold, copper, and slaves moved north, food and manufactured wares would move south. Once the
camel was introduced to the Sahara from the Arabian Peninsula, the trans-Saharan trade truly
prospered, as the camels, which could store their own nutritional resources to survive in the desert,
were far superior transport units to the donkey, which had previously been used in North Africa.

A group possibly descended from Iron Age Berbers were known to the Romans as the Garamantes and
resided in Libya, forming a small kingdom. Though the earliest records date from the 5th century BCE,
they emerged as a regional power in the 100 CE, prospering from the trans-Saharan trading routes. The
Garamantes are most known for developing the first urban society in a major desert not centered near a
river. They did this using a complex irrigation technique known as the qanat system, similar to the one
used in Persia. The society declined heavily in the 400s once the deserts got drier and water became
more scarce.

10. In West Africa, agricultural communities would emerge based on the domestication of millet.
There is evidence of this as far back as 2000 BCE. These would become urban centers and
flourished because of the variation of environment in Western Africa. The desert nomads to the
north could produce salts, the farmers on the fertile coast could provide meat and grain, the
hunters along the Niger River provided fish, and those in the forests provided meats and furs.
The two most prominent urban centers were of the Tichitt culture: Dhar Tichitt and Walata in
present-day Mauritania. The Soninke people, a Mande-speaking ethnic group, are thought to be
responsible for beginning these centers by around 300 BCE. These centers would decline and
eventually become abandoned. We would see similar pottery in the later Ghana Empire, so the
culture did survive. Later, around 300 BCE, Great Zimbabwe

in Mali was settled, marked by homes and living quarters built with dried mud. By 250 BCE, Jenné-Jeno
became a huge urban center itself. The bricks were built by mixing mud with straw and letting it ferment
for a period of time, making the building materials thick and tough but also malleable. Once the mud
bricks were placed, they would be covered in mud plaster. This kept the insides cool.

To the south, in the Jos Plateau of central Nigeria, the Nok culture would emerge around 1500 BCE. They
were known for their life-like terracotta figures of humans and animals. By 200 CE, however, this culture
disappeared, but the Nok is thought to have influenced later figurines to the Yoruba.
Central and Southern Africa would start to see new migrants from the second millennium BCE.
Originating in Cameroon, Proto-Bantu speakers, part of the Niger-Congo language family, would branch
off, kick-starting a millennia-long migration. The western branch would migrate southwards, following
the rivers until reaching Angola. The eastern group would first settle near the Great Lakes region of
Africa, then they traveled southeast in different phases. These phases were not done within a lifetime
but over thousands of years, and by the end of the first millennium CE, the Bantu occupied all of Central
and most of Southern Africa, displacing or assimilating the nomadic and pastoralist tribes along the way.
In the east, they would encounter both Cushitic and Nilotic speakers. Cushitic speakers were from the
Afro-Asiatic language family, the same family as the Semitics from the Near East and the Egyptian
language. Nilotic speakers were from the Nilo-Saharan language family, the same family as the Nubian
language. As the Bantu speakers of Central Africa spread to the south, they encountered a people who
were still able to thrive through hunting and gathering and herding. Relations between the Bantu and
these people were relatively peaceful, and many would get absorbed into the Bantu society and culture,
which relied primarily on agriculture. The two main groups of these indigenous Africans were the
Khoekhoe and the San, collectively known as the Khoisan. Both shared similar languages, primarily from
three language families, and are known for their click consonants. The Khoekhoe were primarily nomadic
pastoralist herders, maintaining large herds of cattle indigenous to their region. The San were hunter-
gatherers who lived in small communities and have been called Bushmen in the past.

By the first century, the African East Coast was established as part of a trading network. It was around
this time a sailor from Roman Alexandria, who remained unknown, wrote a detailed account of his
voyages down the coast to the Strait of Madagascar. This document was called the Periplus of the
Erythraean Sea and provided descriptions of the people and settlements encountered. The Periplus also
describes trading opportunities with regions of the Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, and Indian Ocean. The port
of Rhapta, which could be located in present-day Tanzania, was described as a trading metropolis,
exporting valuable ivory, rhinoceros horns, and tortoise shells, while importing glass, grains, and
weapons. Beyond this lay the Strait of Madagascar, which led to the southern tip of Africa but was
known for its bad weather, so the Periplus goes no further.

We aren't certain of the beginnings of the East African trade with the Indian Ocean, but the monsoon
winds made it fast, easy, and one of the most efficient trading routes in the world. It's possible that
around the year 250, Malay traders from Southeast Asia, trading in spices like cinnamon, began a
settlement on the uninhabited island of Madagascar with their indigenous laborers from Borneo. Since
the region was so isolated, megafauna from the prehistoric period still roamed on the island but are now
extinct. Bantu migrants from the African mainland would eventually make it to the island around the
year 1000. After years of mixing, the Malagasy people and language would emerge, a blend of
Austronesian and East African.
After Africa's ancient period, the medieval period would be mixed into the sphere of a new religion: that
of Islam. Though Islam, the religion, managed to permeate into sub-Saharan Africa, the armies of Islam
never managed to break through, only completing direct control of North Africa. Before Islam, Africa had
rich traditions of its own. While there was no unified religion, Africans believed in pantheism, which is a
belief in one creator god who is responsible for creation, but other minor gods lived throughout the
world as well. Nyame was a supreme deity of the Akan people of Ghana, who gave birth to more minor
gods. One of these sons was the rainmaker; another god was responsible for sunshine. The afterlife was
viewed by how well a lineage group or clan honored their ancestors. The surviving members of a clan
needed to perform the correct rituals to keep their ancestors' souls from disappearing. In return, it was
thought the souls could influence their lives both positively and negatively, so best to keep them happy.

Once Islam arrived, these beliefs didn't go away, despite being at odds with each other. One common
thread was the acceptance of a single supreme deity, but Islam did not accept the worship of lesser
deities and spirits and the existence of a priest class. Furthermore, Islam was more rigid in its gender
roles, and there was often separation between men and women in Islamic society, while African society
was more lenient with their relationships and friendship circles. In the end, African culture and Islamic
culture became syncretized into a unique form of African Islam.

But how exactly did Islam first get to Africa? We touched on the rise of Islam last episode, focusing on
Africa. After the newly Islamized Arabs consolidated power in their peninsula, the Rashiduns, the first of
the major caliphates, went on a lightning-quick campaign of expansion. In 641, they toppled the 200-
year Byzantine rule in Egypt. Still more of a desert power than a naval power, the Arabs moved the
capital from the coastal city of Alexandria to Fustat, a more inland city and safer from maritime attacks.
After their initial successes in Egypt, the Arabs continued to expand westwards in North Africa along the
Mediterranean coast. The native Berbers at first fought back against the Arabs, delaying Arab expansion
into the region for decades. But by the 700s, the Arabs broke through under their next caliphate, the
Umayyads, and conquered all the way to the western coast and the Strait of Gibraltar, leading into their
own storied campaigns in Europe.

In the east, the Kingdom of Aksum, one of Africa's most prominent civilizations of the ancient period,
was in a period of decline by the medieval age. Overuse of their farmland began their problems, but
trading routes shifted from the Red Sea region to the Persian Gulf and Arabian ports in the 800s. Aksum
moved their capital inland, away from the shore, to the more mountainous regions. They attempted to
stay active in trade by exporting ivory, gold, perfumes, and slaves from the Amharic Plateau to the south
but couldn't regain their former glory as they were now landlocked and cut off from trading partners by
the Arabs to the north. In 960, tradition states that Aksum was destroyed by Yodit, a mysterious warrior
queen. The napata dynasty had taken power in Aksum in the mid-1100s. They made the government
more centralized and helped spread Christianity throughout Ethiopia. Christian churches and
monasteries were built all over in an attempt to spread the faith in rural areas. Though cut off
economically, they kept in contact with the Coptic Church in Egypt and the Christian communities in the
Middle East. In 1270, the Solomonic dynasty took control, founding the Ethiopian Empire, which would
last for centuries, even though it would always be surrounded by hostile forces and be one of the only
two African countries to have never been colonized.

The coast of East Africa would reach its zenith during the medieval period. In the ancient period, this
region was already booming with trade beyond the Indian Ocean, as identified in the Periplus. The Arabs
had called it the Land of Zanj, in reference to the darker skin of the indigenous people who inhabited the
area. According to Swahili tradition, in the seven and eight hundreds, Arabs from the peninsula began to
settle along the small islands and ports on the coast. Ivory, rhinoceros horn, and gold were shipped
across the Indian Ocean in return for ironworks, textiles from India, and porcelain from China. These
regions became quite rich quite quickly, and some of their stone palaces can still be seen in present-day
Mombasa and Zanzibar. The most impressive city was said to be Kilwa, to the south. It is now in ruins,
but Ibn Battuta claimed it was one of the most beautiful cities ever built. The Husuni Kubwa was a large
palace with domed roofs and a beautiful inner courtyard. Indoor plumbing was also common. The cities
were generally all independent but also exerted power over numerous smaller towns. The coastal cities
would often act as intermediaries between East Asia and the interior regions of Africa as well, who
utilized the ironworks and textiles. Sometimes, though, merchants on the coast would use force against
the interior Africans in order to gain more products. Mombasa was reported as often being at war with
the interior but still maintained trade relations.

By the 1100s, the culture was cosmopolitan, blossoming with a culture mixed from the indigenous
Africans and peoples from the Arabian Peninsula and Persia. From this mix developed a unique Swahili
culture, a word from the Arabic meaning "coast." Intermarriage would occur between immigrants and
the native population, leading to a powerful class of people of mixed heritage. Most of these upper
classes had converted to Islam by this time. Another consequence was the appearance of Middle
Eastern-style buildings and distinctly Arab culture in a society that was still widely African. The Arabic
language mixed in with the native Bantu and created a new distinct language, which came to be known
as Swahili. Today, it is still the national language of Kenya and Tanzania.

On the other side of the continent, West Africa would be home to numerous large commercial empires.
The introduction of the camel sparked the development of more efficient trans-Saharan trade routes,
leading to the development of the first of the major West African empires in the three to four hundreds:
the Ghana Empire. It was founded by the Soninke people, part of the Mande language family. The Ghana
Empire wasn't located in present-day Ghana but further north in the grasslands of the Upper Niger
Valley, between the deserts of the Sahara and the tropical forests to the south. Though the camel made
trade easier, the key to the development of Ghana was one of the most precious resources. In the center
of the Ghana Empire was one of the richest gold-producing areas in all of Africa. Garnet and gold were
traded with Morocco to the north and then transported all over the Old World. Ghana even became
known to the Arabs as the Land of Gold. Over time, ivory, ostrich feathers, and slaves became their
prime exports in the trans-Saharan trade. But the slave trade most likely began much earlier, with North
African merchants selling sub-Saharan slaves across the Mediterranean.
Though we don't know much about the kings of this empire, we know the capital was at Kumbi Saleh.
Kings ruled by divine right and were aided by an aristocratic class made up of heads of the different
clans. They each ruled different areas where they collected taxes and maintained order. The king was to
maintain order in the whole empire and also acted as a judge in internal disputes. The state religion was
traditional African beliefs, but over time, Islam would enter the region through the Berber merchants
from the north. The Islamization of West Africa began slowly, with individual merchants converting. By
the start of the new millennium, the Gao Empire, a newer empire established in the 800s in eastern
Mali, was the first in the region to adopt Islam as the state religion. The Ghana Empire adopted Islam in
1050. The empire lasted for almost 1,000 years but was weakened by constant wars with the Berbers.
Once trading routes shifted east, the empire would lose economic hegemony as well. Ghana continued
to decline and was eventually dissolved by the 1200s.

New states would coalesce in West Africa after the decline of Ghana, including smaller city-states like in
Hausaland in northern Nigeria and states like benin nri and Gao, which would develop into the enormous
empire of Songhai at the end of the medieval period. But the most powerful successor to Ghana would
be the Mali Empire, established in 1230. Extending from the West African coast all the way inland, it
encompassed the former Ghana capital of Kumbi Saleh as well as the important trading cities of Gao and
Jenne, all along the Niger River. They continued the gold trade that made the preceding Ghana Empire
wealthy but also relied more on farming, as they had access to more moist farmland. The political rulers
were known as Mansa and also acted as the religious authority. The trading and most of the rest of
commerce was done in the bigger cities. This was led by the merchants, many of whom had converted to
Islam. This was the Mali Empire's official state religion, although the rural regions kept the indigenous
African traditions. The empire was one of the wealthiest states in the world during the late medieval
period, and it's thought that one of its kings, Mansa Musa, was the wealthiest man to have ever lived.
Mansa Musa also strengthened Islam in the empire, building mosques and bringing in scholars for
Quranic studies.

One of the most interesting cities to develop under Mali was the city of Timbuktu. It was founded earlier,
around 1100, as a caravan camp for Berber merchants and traders. Under Mansa Musa and the Mali
Empire, the city became the biggest cultural center in West Africa. To the south of these West African
kingdoms would be the wetter climates, home to a wide variety of states based around the tropical
forests. By the modern age, this region would include the Ashanti Empire, primarily located in present-
day Ghana; the Kingdom of Dahomey in present-day Benin, known for their female warriors and the
kingdom's later role in the transatlantic slave trade; the Oyo Empire, the most powerful Yoruba state,
known for their cavalry; the Kingdom of Benin, established by the Edo in southern Nigeria; and the states
of Igboland, including the Kingdom of zagwe and its famous bronze artifacts dating to the 9th century.

Central and Southern Africa would remain relatively stable throughout the medieval period. While there
were no large empires in these regions during the ancient period, there were many non-centralized
societies ruled by local chieftains. During the medieval period, some of these societies began to coalesce
into larger states. Heading south from the major West African empires, in the Congo River Valley, two
new kingdoms would emerge in these rich, fertile lands. The Kingdom of Luba emerged from the
preceding Luban culture and had a centralized government with appointed governors who collected
tribute from the village locals. To the west, the Kingdom of Kongo would also form near the Congo River.
Both would grow quite powerful over time, as they were the main polities in the region and expanded to
overtake the local pastoralists and small farmers.

To the south, still further to the south and east, in the grasslands near the Zambezi River, more Bantu
speakers thrived through farming, herding, and trade. The villages here were built surrounded by walls,
mainly to protect their animals during the night. This was characterized by the Zimbabwe, a Bantu word
meaning "stone house." A society based on a plateau between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, it is
thought that the ruins of Great Zimbabwe were the capital of this powerful kingdom. Its location was
between gold reserves to the west and a river for trading to the east. During the late medieval period,
Zimbabwe was the most prosperous state in southern Africa and was a major player in trade with the
Swahili city-states on the coast. Great Zimbabwe rested on a hill, surrounded by its famous stone walls,
and could have held more than ten thousand residents. Houses of the upper classes were built with
stone and cement. The royal palace was also surrounded by large stone walls. Gold and copper
ornaments have been found here, along with porcelain imported from as far away as China. Zimbabwe
most likely became wealthy through their ownership of cattle and the taxes imposed on the gold passing
through their region. It appears that during the 1400s, Great Zimbabwe was abandoned, most likely
because of environmental factors or overgrazing.

African history has been difficult to fathom because many of their language families had no writing
systems, so we have had to rely on foreign visitors to Africa to report on it, like Ibn Battuta. Furthermore,
the rich oral traditions have been cut short because of the coming imperialism. Still, though, modern
historians are finding out more about the vast and varied African societies in this second-largest
continent, and not just the histories of its regions, states, and kingdoms, but deeper information about
its societies, cultures, and lifestyles. Africa, unfortunately, is still seen as a monolith, but it was not only a
diverse continent; it was arguably the most diverse in history. While we've mentioned many of the major
states, it is estimated that the continent was home to over 10,000 distinct societies, each with their own
cultures and traditions.

Ancient Africa was home to four major language families, like the Niger-Congo in the west. This included
the Bantu language family, which spread all throughout the rest of sub-Saharan Africa, and the Mande
speakers in the west. The Nilo-Saharan language family included the Nubians and other Sudanic cultures
near the Nile. The Afro-Asiatic language family dominated the Sahara and included Semitic languages,
Berber, Egyptian, and Cushitic. In the very south was the Khoisan, speaking three language families.
Many African urban centers began like in the rest of the world: small towns that were walled off and
then small villages ruled by a single clan. These villages grew into larger towns with division of labor and
a center of government, with different clans sharing the city, each ruling their own districts. In the West
African kingdoms, the major towns and cities were based around the royal districts. Unlike other cultures
of the time, the African kings weren't an untouchable divine presence. African kings would often hold
council with the local communities in order to hear grievances or hold festivals for foreign visitors.
Though the kings were more open and accessible, they were still well-guarded by a retinue of armed
guards and lived a life of extravagance in large palaces. There was a mutually beneficial relationship
between the kings and nobles and the merchant class. The merchants provided the taxes for the king
and were granted special favors.

In East Africa, there were also kings, but these were more merchants than rulers and presided more over
their city-states through wealth than by force. Most Africans lived in smaller rural villages, though, away
from the splendor of the palaces or the bustling thrill of the urban markets. The rural Africans lived a
more simple life based on their immediate family. This usually included parents and their young children
and sometimes grandparents as well. Houses were mostly just thatched mud huts inhabited by the
whole family. The families were, in turn, part of larger kinship groups. The kinship groups acted like they
did in other societies, and elders were generally the most respected and controlled most aspects of the
clan. In African society, women often worked the fields, and mothers were valued for their contribution
to the population. Men either went on hunting expeditions or tended to the cattle. In Islamic
communities in Africa, polygyny was practiced but also occurred in some non-Islamic regions. The main
difference between men and women in Africa compared to other contemporary societies was that
lineage was matrilineal. It was traced through mothers and daughters, and inheritances were generally
given to daughters or the sons of a man's sister rather than his own sons. Muslim traveler Ibn Battuta
wrote of how women never veil themselves and have male friends outside of their marriages, a
controversial practice back home in the Maghreb. After asking his African acquaintance why they give
women so much more freedom, he replied that there is nothing suspicious about a man and woman
being friends and that to think otherwise is suspicious in itself, suggesting infidelity would be common in
the Muslim world if men and women weren't kept separate. An insulted Ibn Battuta later refused to go
back to his friend's home. Though Islamic culture permeated throughout Africa, most Africans still kept
their own customs regarding men and women, even in the bastions of Islamic Africa in the western
kingdoms.

When we think of African slavery, our minds often go to the early modern period in the early 1500s and
the massive number of slaves taken from Africa in the transatlantic slave trade. While nothing compares
to the sheer magnitude and lasting consequences of this chattel slavery, slavery had been practiced in
different forms in most ancient and medieval societies. It most likely developed when one clan or society
took over another and forced them to become workers and servants. By the medieval period, the
Berbers in North Africa regularly raided regions of the Sahel and beyond to bring back captives who were
then sold across the Mediterranean world. Men could have been used as slave soldiers, while women as
domestic servants for the nobility. In the western empires and the Swahili coasts, African slaves were
used more for manual labor. Sometimes, even little girls would be used in mines in order to reach gold
too hard for larger bodies to reach. Plantations did exist in Africa, usually owned by the king or wealthy
landowners. Conditions were harsh and deplorable, and along with slaves who worked the mines, were
some of the worst lives of servitude. Those more lucky, like soldiers, could at some point win their
freedom. Those who worked in private residences as domestic servants also had a somewhat easier time
than the laborers. It's possible that the majority of the population in North Africa were slaves, while in
sub-Saharan Africa, this number is less than one in ten.

African culture was primarily based on their art, which was, like most other cultures of the world at the
time, created for religious purposes. As far as we can tell, the oldest forms of African art are their rock
paintings. The earliest of these is in the Sahara, in the Tassili Mountains, dating to around 5000 BCE.
Later paintings show the two-horse chariots widely used before the camel was brought to North Africa.
In southern Africa, the San rock paintings depict some of their village rituals. Africans also used trees to
create intricate art. After making a sacrifice to the tree spirit, an artist would carve masks, sculptures, or
headdresses from the tree itself. The masks and headwear were used by dancers during rituals. In Mali,
the Chi Wara mask represented the swift antelope, with their rituals honoring the myth of the creation
of farming and agriculture. A bit to the south, in Ife, present-day southern Nigeria, metalworkers created
copper alloy statues using the lost-wax method. These Ife sculptures could have influenced the
sculptures in the Kingdom of Benin, which represented different figures, both human and animal. The
Benin sculptures are quite complex and are collectively known as the Benin Bronzes, reaching their peak
during the late medieval period under a golden age under their obas, or kings.

It's no surprise that each of Africa's varied regions practiced varied types of architecture in ancient
Africa. The oldest and longest-lasting has been the pyramids—not just the ones in Egypt but to the south
in Meroë, built by the Nubians of the Kingdom of Kush from 300 BCE. As discussed earlier, these
pyramids were distinct from those to the north in Egypt in that they were smaller but much more
numerous. Later, to the south, the Kingdom of Aksum built colossal stone pillars up to 100 feet high, just
over 30 meters, called stelae, to mark the tombs of their kings. Once Christianity was officially adopted in
the mid-300s, Aksum focused on building large churches. In West Africa, though stone was used for
buildings, they relied more on mud-brick constructions or mixtures of earth and other organic
compounds. In the Swahili city-states, architecture was more related to those designs of the Middle East.
Most people lived in small mud or thatch houses, while the wealthy lived in large residences built of
stone, influenced by Arab culture. To the south were the walls of Great Zimbabwe, built with no mortar
by the Shona, part of the Bantu people who migrated throughout the continent. Some of these walls
reached 11 meters high. A lesser-known Zimbabwean archaeological site was at Bambusi, where colossal
stone walls were also built.

Although later, African music and dance was also created for religious purposes, to tell stories, or for
ceremonies like weddings. Emphasis was on percussion and rhythmic beats. Dances were
representations of the spirits coursing through the human form. Some societies, like the Maasai and
Nilotic people, jumped, while others shook, stomped, or sang. Many would join in and clap their hands.
The xylophones, like the balafon, were used in West Africa. Bells and flutes were also popular, and they
used stringed instruments like the fiddle, harp, and zither for musical storytelling. West Africans used
what we call a talking drum, which went by many names in the various regions. Two drumheads were
connected, and leather tension cords could be squeezed to manipulate the pitch. Leaders would use
voice repetition to incite a reply from listeners, called a call and response. This tradition made its way
over to the Americas during the slave trade and mostly survives in the present day through gospel music
and in American churches in the South.

A bard, also called a griot, was a professional storyteller and necessary to orally pass down a
community's history from generation to generation. As expected, bards needed a highly developed
memory and were said to possess the knowledge contained in entire libraries. When a griot died, so did
the knowledge. They weren't simply storytellers but entertained crowds by singing and playing
instruments and were even thought to possess supernatural powers, with the ability to both bless and to
curse. The Epic of Sundiata is one of the most prolific West African poems and has been passed down in
the oral tradition by bards for over seven centuries. It is set in West Africa and deals with the exploits of
Sundiata, also known as Sunjata, the founder of the Mali Empire. While Mansa Musa became more
famous because of his pilgrimage to Mecca, spending extravagant amounts of gold, Sundiata has always
been more celebrated by the Mandinka because of his legendary stories, which were told by their bards.
The Kouyaté line of griots, which began with the founding of the Mali Empire, still exists today.