French west Africa(history)

As the French pursued their part in the Scramble for Africa in the 1880 s and 1890 s, they conquered large inland areas, and at first ruled them as either a part of the Senegal colony, or as independent entities. These conquered areas were usually governed by French Army officers, and dubbed "Military Territories." In the late 1890 s, the French government began to rein-in the territorial expansion of its "officers on the ground", and transferred all the territories west of Gabon to a single Governor based in Senegal, reporting directly to the Minister of Overseas Affairs. The first Governor General of Senegal was named in 1895 , and in 1904 , the territories he oversaw were formally named French West Africa (AOF). Gabon would later become the seat of its own federation French Equatorial Africa ( AEF), which was to border its western neighbor on the modern boundary between Niger and Chad .

international migration , [ 60 ] has researched the mortality rates among Africans during the voyages of the Atlantic slave trade. He found that mortality rates decreased over the history of the slave trade, primarily because the length of time necessary for the voyage was declining. " In the eighteenth century many slave voyages took at least 2½ months. In the nineteenth century, 2 months appears to have been the maximum length of the voyage, and many voyages were far shorter. Fewer slaves died in the Middle Passage over time mainly because the passage was shorter." [ 61 ]

Atlantic shipment

After being captured and held in the factories, slaves entered the infamous Middle Passage . Meltzer's research puts this phase of the slave trade's overall mortality at 12.5 %. [ 59 ] Around 2. 2 million Africans died during these voyages where they were packed into tight, unsanitary spaces on ships for months at a time. Measures were taken to stem the onboard mortality rate such as enforced "dancing" (as exercise) above deck and the practice of force-feeding enslaved people who tried to starve themselves. [ 48 ] The conditions on board also resulted in the spread of fatal diseases. Other fatalities were the result of suicides by jumping over board by slaves who could no longer endure the conditions. [ 48 ] The slave traders would try to fit anywhere from 350 to 600 slaves on one ship. Before the shipping of enslaved people was completely outlawed in 1853 , 15.3 million enslaved people had arrived in the Americas. Raymond L. Cohn, an economics professor whose research has focused on economic history and

Port factories

After being marched to the coast for sale, enslaved people waited in large forts called factories. The amount of time in factories varied, but Milton Meltzer 's Slavery: A World History states this process resulted in or around 4.5 % of deaths during the transatlantic slave trade. [ 59 ] In other words, over 820 ,000 people would have died in African ports such as Benguela , Elmina and Bonny reducing the number of those shipped to 17.5 million. [ 59 ]

In 1807 , the UK Parliament passed the Bill that abolished the trading of slaves. The King of Bonny (now in Nigeria ) was horrified at the conclusion of the practice: We think this trade must go on. That is the verdict of our oracle and the priests. They say that your country, however great, can never stop a trade ordained by God himself. [ 58 ]

War bands

war bands. In letters written by the Manikongo , Nzinga Mbemba Affonso , to the King João III of Portugal , he writes that Portuguese merchandise flowing in is what is fueling the trade in Africans. He requests the King of Portugal to stop sending merchandise but should only send missionaries. In one of his letter he writes: "Each day the traders are kidnapping our people—children of this country, sons of our nobles and vassals, even people of our own family. This corruption and depravity are so widespread that our land is entirely depopulated. We need in this kingdom only priests and schoolteachers, and no merchandise, unless it is wine and flour for Mass. It is our wish that this Kingdom not be a place for the trade or transport of slaves." Many of our subjects eagerly lust after Portuguese merchandise that your subjects have brought into our domains. To satisfy this inordinate appetite, they seize many of our black free subjects.... They sell them. After having taken these prisoners [to the coast] secretly or at night..... As soon as the captives are in the hands of white men they are branded with a red-hot iron. [ 3 ] Before the arrival of the Portuguese , slavery had already existed in Kongo . Despite its establishment within his kingdom, Afonso believed that the slave trade should be subject to Kongo law. When he suspected the Portuguese of receiving illegally enslaved persons to sell, he wrote in to King João III in 1526 imploring him to put a stop to the practice. [ 51 ]

African conflict

African conflicts According to Dr. Kimani Nehusi, the presence of European slavers affected the way in which the legal code in African societies responded to offenders. Crimes traditionally punishable by some other form of punishment became punishable by enslavement and sale to slave traders. [ 47 ] According to David Stannard 's American Holocaust , 50 % of African deaths occurred in Africa as a result of wars between native kingdoms, which produced the majority of slaves. [ 45 ] This includes not only those who died in battles, but also those who died as a result of forced marches from inland areas to slave ports on the various coasts. [ 48 ] The practice of enslaving enemy combatants and their villages was widespread throughout Western and West Central Africa, although wars were rarely started to procure slaves. The slave trade was largely a by-product of tribal and state warfare as a way of removing potential dissidents after victory or financing future wars. [ 49 ] However, some African groups proved particularly adept and brutal at the practice of enslaving such as Oyo , Benin , Igala , Kaabu , Asanteman , Dahomey , the Aro Confederacy and the Imbangala

Human toll

The neutrality of this section is disputed . Please see the discussion on the talk page . Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (November 2010) The transatlantic slave trade resulted in a vast and as yet still unknown loss of life for African captives both in and outside of America. Approximately 1.2 – 2.4 million Africans died during their transport to the New World [ 44 ] More died soon upon their arrival. The amount of life lost in the actual procurement of slaves remains a mystery but may equal or exceed the amount actually enslaved. [ 45 ] The savage nature of the trade, in which most of the enslaved people were prisoners from African wars, led to the destruction of individuals and cultures. The following figures do not include deaths of enslaved Africans as a result of their actual labor, slave revolts or diseases they caught while living among New World populations. A database compiled in the late 1990 s put the figure for the transatlantic slave trade at more than 11 million people. For a long time an accepted figure was 15 million, although this has in recent years been revised down. Most historians now agree that at least 12 million slaves left the continent between the 15 th and 19 th century, but 10 to 20 % died on board ships. Thus a figure of 11 million enslaved people transported to the Americas is the nearest demonstrable figure historians can produce. [ 44 ] Besides the slaves who died on the Middle Passage itself, even more slaves probably died in the slave raids in Africa. The death toll from slavery in the western hemisphere over the 370- year period of its existence must be reckoned at 10 million or so. Of these 10 million estimated dead blacks, possibly 6 million were killed by other blacks in tribal wars. [ 46 ] This is in addition to the unknown but comparable number of Africans removed from the continent through the Arab slave trade from the fifth through the twentieth centuries.

Ethnic groups

The different ethnic groups brought to the Americas closely corresponds to the regions of heaviest activity in the slave trade. Over 45 distinct ethnic groups were taken to the Americas during the trade. Of the 45 , the ten most prominent according to slave documentation of the era are listed below. [ 43 ] 1 . The Gbe speakers of Togo , Ghana and Benin ( Adja, Mina, Ewe, Fon) 2 . The Akan of Ghana and Cote d'Ivoire 3 . The Mbundu of Angola (includes Ovimbundu) 4 . The BaKongo of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola 5 . The Igbo of southeastern Nigeria 6 . The Yoruba of southwestern Nigeria 7 . The Mandé of Upper Guinea 8 . The Wolof of Senegal and The Gambia 9 . The Chamba of Cameroon 10 . The Makua of Mozambique

Slave market region and participation

There were eight principal areas used by Europeans to buy and ship slaves to the Western Hemisphere. The number of enslaved people sold to the new world varied throughout the slave trade. As for the distribution of slaves from regions of activity, certain areas produced far more enslaved people than others. Between 1650 and 1900 , 10.24 million enslaved Africans arrived in the Americas from the following regions in the following proportions: [ 42 ] Senegambia ( Senegal and The Gambia ): 4.8 % Upper Guinea ( Guinea-Bissau , Guinea and Sierra Leone ): 4.1 Windward Coast ( Liberia and Côte d'Ivoire ): 1.8 % Gold Coast ( Ghana and east of Côte d'Ivoire ): 10.4 % Bight of Benin ( Togo , Benin and Nigeria west of the Niger Delta): 20.2 % Bight of Biafra ( Nigeria east of the Niger Delta , Cameroon West Central Africa ( Republic of Congo , Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola ): 39.4 % Southeastern Africa ( Mozambique and Madagascar ): 4.7 %

Slavery in Africa and the new world contrasted

Further information: African slave trade Forms of slavery varied both in Africa and in the New World. In general, slavery in Africa was not heritable – that is, the children of slaves were free – while in the Americas slaves' children were legally enslaved at birth. This was connected to another distinction: slavery in West Africa was not reserved for racial or religious minorities, as it was in European colonies. [ 38 ] The treatment of slaves in Africa was more variable than in the Americas. At one extreme, the kings of Dahomey routinely slaughtered slaves in hundreds or thousands in sacrificial rituals, and the use of slaves as human sacrifices was also known in Cameroon. [ 39 ] On the other hand, slaves in Ghana were often treated as part of the family, "adopted children," with significant rights including the right to marry without their masters' permission. [ 40 ] In the Americas, slaves were denied the right to marry freely and even humane masters did not accept them as equal members of the family; however, while grisly executions of slaves convicted of revolt or other offenses were commonplace in the Americas, New World slaves were not subject to arbitrary ritual sacrifice. [ 41 ]

European participation

European participation in the slave trade Although Europeans were the market for slaves, Europeans rarely entered the interior of Africa, due to fear of disease and fierce African resistance. [ 32 ] The enslaved people would be brought to coastal outposts where they would be traded for goods. Enslavement became a major by-product of internal war in Africa as nation states expanded through military conflicts in many cases through deliberate sponsorship of benefiting Western European nations. During such periods of rapid state formation or expansion ( Asante or Dahomey being good examples), slavery formed an important element of political life which the Europeans exploited: As Queen Sara's plea to the Portuguese courts revealed, the system became "sell to the Europeans or be sold to the Europeans". In Africa, convicted criminals could be punished by enslavement, a punishment which became more prevalent as slavery became more lucrative. Since most of these nations did not have a prison system, convicts were often sold or used in the scattered local domestic slave market. [ 33 ] The Atlantic slave trade peaked in the last two decades of the 18 th century, [ 34 ] during and following the Kongo Civil War . [ 35 ] Wars amongst tiny states along the Niger River's Igbo-inhabited region and the accompanying banditry also spiked in this period. [ 28 ] Another reason for surplus supply of enslaved people was major warfare conducted by expanding states such as the kingdom of Dahomey , [ 36 ] the Oyo Empire and Asante Empire . [ 37 ]

African participation in the slave trade

African participation in the slave trade Africans themselves played a role in the slave trade. The Africans that participated in the slave trade would sell their captive or prisoners of war to European buyers. [ 25 ] Selling captives or prisoners was common practice amongst Africans and Arabs during that era. The prisoners and captives that were sold were usually from neighboring or enemy ethnic groups. [ 31 ] These captive slaves were not considered as part of the ethnic group or 'tribe' and kings held no particular loyalty to them. At times, Kings and businessmen would sell the criminals in their society to the buyers so that they could no longer commit crimes in that area. Most other slaves were obtained from kidnappings, or through raids that occurred at gunpoint through joint ventures with the Europeans. [ 25 ] Some Africans Kings refused to sell any of their captives or criminals. King Jaja of Opobo refused to do business with the slavers completely. [ 31 ] For this, he was captured along with his people. Ashanti King Agyeman Prempeh (Ashanti king, b. 1872) also sacrificed his own freedom so that his people would not face collective slavery. [ 31 ]

African slave market

be more cost effective than producing them on the European mainland. A vast amount of labor was needed for the plantations in the intensive growing, harvesting and processing of these prized tropical crops. Western Africa (part of which became known as 'the Slave Coast '), and later Central Africa , became the source for enslaved people to meet the demand for labor. The basic reason for the constant shortage of labor was that, with large amounts of cheap land available and lots of landowners searching for workers, free European immigrants were able to become landowners themselves after a relatively short time, thus increasing the need for workers. [ 24 ]

Labor and slavery

Triangular trade

However, Brazil (the main importer of slaves) manufactured these goods in South America and directly traded with African ports, thus not taking part in a triangular trade. [ citation needed ]

 and European colonization of the Americas Slavery was practiced in some parts of Africa , [ 13 ] Europe , [ 14 ] Asia [ 15 ] and the Americas before the beginning of the Atlantic slave trade. There is evidence that enslaved people from some African states were exported to other states in Africa, Europe and Asia prior to the European colonization of the Americas. [ 16 ] The African slave trade provided a large number of slaves to Europeans . [ 17 ] [ 18 ] The Atlantic slave trade is customarily divided into two eras, known as the First and Second Atlantic Systems. The First Atlantic system was the trade of enslaved Africans to, primarily, South American colonies of the Portuguese and Spanish empires; it accounted for only slightly more than 3 % of all Atlantic slave trade. It started (on a significant scale) in about 1502 [ 19 ] and lasted until 1580 , when Portugal was temporarily united with Spain . While the Portuguese traded enslaved people themselves, the Spanish empire relied on the asiento system, awarding merchants (mostly from other countries) the license to trade enslaved people to their colonies. During the first Atlantic system most of these traders were Portuguese, giving them a near-monopoly during the era, although some Dutch , English , Spanish and French traders also participated in the slave trade. [ 20 ] After the union, Portugal was weakened, with its colonial empire being attacked by the Dutch and British. The Second Atlantic system was the trade of enslaved Africans by mostly British, Portuguese, French and Dutch traders. The main destinations of this phase were the Caribbean colonies, Brazil , and North America , as a number of European countries built up economically slave-dependent colonies in the New World. Amongst the proponents of this system were Francis Drake and John Hawkins . Only slightly more than 3 % of the enslaved people exported were traded between 1450 and 1600 , 16 % in the 17 th century. More than half

Atlantic slave trade

The Atlantic slave trade , also known as the transatlantic slave trade , was the enslavement and transportation, primarily of African people, to the colonies of the New World that occurred in and around the Atlantic Ocean. It lasted from the 16 th to the 19 th centuries. Most enslaved people were shipped from West Africa and Central Africa and taken to North and South America [ 1 ] to labor on coffee , cocoa and cotton plantations , in gold and silver mines , in rice fields, the construction industry, timber, and shipping [ 2 ] or in houses to work as servants. The shippers were, in order of scale, the Portuguese, the British, the French, the Spanish, the Dutch, and North Americans. [ 1 ] European- and American- owned fortresses and ships obtained enslaved people from African slave-traders, though some were captured by European slave-traders through raids and kidnapping. [ 3 ] [ 4 ] Most contemporary historians estimate that between 9.4 and 12 million [ 5 ] [ 6 ] Africans arrived in the New World, [ 7 ] [ 8 ] although the actual number of people taken from their homes is considerably higher. [ 9 ] [ 10 ] [ 11 ] The slave trade is sometimes called the Maafa by African and African-American scholars, meaning " holocaust " or "great disaster" in Swahili . Some scholars, such as Marimba Ani and Maulana Karenga use the terms African Holocaust or Holocaust of Enslavement . Slavery was one element of a three-part economic cycle — the triangular trade and its Middle Passage — which ultimately involved four continents , four centuries and millions of people. [ 12 ]

defeated the kingdom and incorporated it into the Gold Coast colony as a protectorate . Because of the long history of mutual interaction between Ashanti and European powers, the Ashanti have the greatest amount of historiography in sub-Saharan Africa. The British touted the Ashanti as one of the more civilized African peoples, cataloguing their religious, familial, and legal systems in works like R.S. Rattray's Ashanti Law and Constitution .

Eauropean colonization

The Ashanti have always defended their Golden Stool when it was at risk. In 1896 , the Ashanti allowed their King, Prempeh I , to be exiled rather than risk losing a war and the Golden Stool in the process. The Governor of the Gold Coast , Sir Frederick Hodgson, demanded to sit on the stool in 1900. The Ashanti remained silent and when the assembly ended, they went home and prepared for war . Although they lost on the battle field, they claimed victory because they fought only to preserve the sanctity of the Golden Stool, and they had. Then in 1920 , a group of African road builders accidentally found the Golden Stool and stripped it of its gold ornaments. They were tried by an Ashanti court, found guilty, and the death penalty was imposed. But the British intervened and the sentence was commuted to perpetual banishment . The Ashanti have always been proud of the uniqueness of their Golden Stool , and it was a symbol of not only their independence, but a common bond between their people. When the King of Gyaaman , Adinkra, made a Golden Stool for himself, the Asantehene was so annoyed that he led a massive army against him. Adinkra was completely destroyed near Bondoukou , and he was decapitated. The Asantehene then proceeded to order the melt down of Adinkra's golden stool, and for it to be made into two masks, to represent his "ugly" face. These masks remain hanging on each side of the Ashanti Golden Stool to this day.

Family

Ashanti are one of Africa's matrilineal societies where line of descent is traced through the female. Historically, this mother progeny relationship determined land rights , inheritance of property, offices and titles. It is also true that the Ashanti inherit from the paternal side of the family. Property is defined as something inherited from the father, hence the name " agyapade", meaning inheritance from a good father. Normally, a poor father has nothing to give their children, and often marry into a family which has wealth from ancestors. The father 's role was to catalyze the conception and provide the nkra or the soul of the child; that is, the child received its life force, character, and personality traits from the father . Though not considered as important as the mother , the male interaction continues in the place of birth after marriage. Historically, an Ashanti girl was betrothed with a golden ring called "petia" (I love you), if not in childhood, immediately after the puberty ceremony. They did not regard marriage " awade" as an important ritual event, but as a state that follows soon and normally after the puberty ritual. The puberty rite was and is important as it signifies passage from childhood to adulthood in that chastity is encouraged before marriage. The Ashanti required that various goods be given by the boy's family to that of the girl, not as a 'bride price,' but to signify an agreement between the two families.

Their political power has fluctuated since Ghana' s independence, but they remain largely influential. The former president of Ghana, John Agyekum Kufuor is Ashanti. Kofi Annan, the past U.N secretary General was also raised and brought up in Kumasi, the capital of the Ashanti region. The majority of the Ashanti reside in the Ashanti Region , one of the administrative regions of the country. Kumasi, the capital of the current Ashanti region, has also been the historic capital of the Ashanti Kingdom. Currently, the Ashanti region of Ghana has a population of 3 ,812 ,950 , making it Ghana's most populous administrative district. [ 1 ]

Geography

Ghana has a variable terrain, coasts and mountains, forests and grasslands , lush agricultural areas and near deserts. The Ashanti settled in the central part of present-day Ghana, about three hundred kilometres from the coast. The territory is densely forested, mostly fertile and to some extent mountainous. There are two seasons—the rainy season (April to November) and the dry season (December to March). The land has several streams ; the dry season, however is extremely desiccated. It is hot year round. Today Ashanti number close to 7 million people ( roughly 19 % of the Ghanaian population, speaking Asante, also referred to as Twi , a member of the Niger-Congo language group.) Their political power has fluctuated since Ghana'

Precolonial Ashanti

For other uses, see Ashanti (disambiguation) . Ashanti , or Asante , are a major ethnic group of Ashanti Region in Ghana . They are an Akan people who speak Asante , an Akan dialect similar to Fante . For the Ashanti (Asante) Empire see Asanteman . Prior to European colonization, the Ashanti people developed a large and influential empire in West Africa . The Ashanti later developed the powerful Ashanti Confederacy or Asanteman and became the dominant presence in the region. Recent changes

west African cultural legacies

Patrilineality

Matrilineality

Culture

The Akan people

Brief history From the 15 th century to the 19 th century, the Akan people dominated gold mining and the gold trade in the region. From the 17 th century on, the Akan were the most powerful group(s) in the West African region. They fought many battles against the European colonists to maintain autonomy . By the early 1900 s, all Akan lands were colonized by the French and English. On the 6 th of March 1957 , Akan lands in the Gold Coast were liberated by the efforts of Kwame Nkrumah and were joined with other territory to form the independent nation of Ghana . The Ivory Coast was liberated on 7 th August 1960. 1625 historical map of west Africa

Regional organisation

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), founded by the 1975 Treaty of Lagos , is an organization of West African states which aims to promote the region's economy. The West African Monetary Union (or UEMOA from its name in French, Union économique et monétaire ouest-africaine ) is limited to the eight, mostly Francophone countries that employ the CFA franc as their common currency. The Liptako-Gourma Authority of Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso seeks to jointly develop the contiguous areas of the three countries.

Precolonial era

Postcolonial era Following World War II , nationalist movements arose across West Africa. In 1957 , Ghana, under Kwame Nkrumah , became the first sub-Saharan colony to achieve its independence, followed the next year by France's colonies (Guinea in 1958 under the leadership of President Ahmed Sekou Touré); by 1974 , West Africa's nations were entirely autonomous. Since independence, many West African nations have been submerged under political instability, with notable civil wars in Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Côte d'Ivoire, and a succession of military coups in Ghana and Burkina Faso . AIDS is also a growing problem for the region, particularly in Côte d'Ivoire and Liberia. Famine has been a problem in parts of northern Mali and Niger, the latter of which is currently undergoing a food crisis . Since the end of colonialism, the region has been the stage for some of the most brutal conflicts ever to erupt. Among the latter are: Nigerian Civil War First Liberian Civil War Second Liberian Civil War Guinea-Bissau Civil War Ivorian Civil War Sierra Leone Civil War

Colonialism

French colonies in West Africa circa 1913. Colonialism In the early nineteenth century, a series of Fulani reformist jihads swept across Western Africa. The most notable include Usman dan Fodio 's Fulani Empire , which replaced the Hausa city-states, Seku Amadu 's Massina Empire , which defeated the Bambara, and El Hadj Umar Tall 's Toucouleur Empire , which briefly conquered much of modern-day Mali. However, the French and British continued to advance in the Scramble for Africa , subjugating kingdom after kingdom. With the fall of Samory Ture's new-founded Wassoulou Empire in 1898 and the Ashanti queen Yaa Asantewaa in 1902 , most West African military resistance to colonial rule came to an effective end. Britain controlled The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Ghana, and Nigeria throughout the colonial era, while France unified Senegal, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Benin, Côte d'Ivoire and Niger into French West Africa . Portugal founded the colony of Guinea-Bissau , while Germany claimed Togoland , but was forced to divide it between France and Britain following First World War due to the Treaty of Versailles . Only Liberia retained its independence, at the price of major territorial concessions.

Slavery and European contact

Two slightly differing Okpoko manillas as used by Europeans purchase slaves . Slavery and European contact Following the 1591 destruction of the Songhai capital by Moroccan invaders, a number of smaller states arose across West Africa, including the Bambara Empire of Ségou , the Bambara kingdom of Kaarta , the Fula / Malinké kingdom of Khasso , and the Kénédougou Empire of Sikasso . Portuguese traders began establishing settlements along the coast in 1445 , followed by the French and English; the African slave trade began not long after, which over the following centuries would debilitate the region's economy and population. The slave trade also encouraged the formation of states such as the Asante Empire , Bambara Empire and Dahomey , whose economies largely depended on exchanging slaves for European firearms , which were then used to capture more slaves. The expanding trans-Atlantic slave trade produced significant populations of West Africans living in the New World , recently colonized by Europeans. The oldest known remains of African slaves in the Americas were found in Mexico in early 2006 ; they are thought to date from the late 16 th century and the mid-17 th century. [ 3 ] European and American governments passed legislation prohibiting the Atlantic slave trade in the 19 th century, though slavery in the Americas persisted in some capacity through the century; the last country to abolish the institution was Brazil in 1888. Descendants of West Africans make up large and important segments of the population in Brazil, the Caribbean , Latin America , and the United States .

Empires

The development of the region's economy allowed more centralized states and civilizations to form, beginning with the Nok civilization which began 500 B.C. and the Ghana Empire in the 8 th century AD which stretched to the Mali empire . Based on the city of Kumbi Saleh in modern-day Mauritania, the empire came to dominate much of the region until its defeat by Almoravid invaders in 1052. The Sosso Empire sought to fill the void, but was defeated (c. 1240) by the Mandinka forces of Sundiata Keita , founder of the new Mali Empire . The Mali Empire continued to flourish for several centuries, most particularly under Sundiata's grandnephew) Musa I , before a succession of weak rulers led to its collapse under Mossi , Tuareg and Songhai invaders. In the fifteenth century, the Songhai would form a new dominant state based on Gao , in the Songhai Empire , under the leadership of Sonni Ali and Askia Mohammed . Further south, Osei Tutu and Okomfo Anokye have started to build the Empire of Ashanti Meanwhile, south of the Sudan, strong city states arose in Igboland , such as the Kingdom of Nri in the tenth century, while Ife , Bono , and Benin arose around the fourteenth century. Further east, Oyo arose as the dominant Yoruba state and the Aro Confederacy as a dominant Igbo state in modern-day Nigeria. Slavery and European contact

Pre history

Prehistory Early human settlers arrived in West Africa around 12 ,000 B.C. Sedentary farming began in, or around the fifth millennium B.C, as well as the domestication of cattle. By 400 B.C, ironworking technology allowed an expansion of agricultural productivity, and the first city-states formed. The domestication of the camel allowed the development of a cross-Saharan trade with cultures across the Sahara, including Carthage and the Berbers ; major exports included gold , cotton cloth, metal ornaments and leather goods, which were then exchanged for salt , horses , textiles, and other such materials. Local leather, cloth, and gold also contributed to the abundancy of prosperity for many of the following empires.

Sub.History

Main article: History of West Africa The history of West Africa can be divided into five major periods: first, its prehistory, in which the first human settlers arrived, developed agriculture, and made contact with peoples to the north; the second, the Iron Age empires that consolidated both intra-African, and extra- African trade, and developed centralized states; third, Major polities flourished, which would undergo an extensive history of contact with non-Africans; fourth, the colonial period, in which Great Britain and France controlled nearly the whole of the region; fifth, the post- independence era, in which the current nations were formed.

Recreation and music

The game Oware is quite popular in many parts of West Africa. Soccer is also a pastime enjoyed by many, either spectating or playing. The national teams of some West African nations, especially Nigeria, Ghana and the Ivory Coast, regularly qualify for the World Cup . Music Mbalax , Highlife , Fuji and Afrobeat are all modern musical genres which enjoin listeners in this region. A typical formal attire worn in this region is the flowing Boubou (also known as Agbada and Babariga ), which has its origins in the clothing of nobility of various West African empires in the 12 th century. The Djembe drum, whose origins lie with the Mandinka peoples, is now a popularly played drum among many West African ethnic groups. The Kora is a 21- string harp-lute of Mandinkan origin, played by various groups in the region. The Djembe, Kora, the silk Kente cloth of the Akan peoples of Ghana and the distinct Sudano- Sahelian architectural style seen in the many mosques of the region (see Djenné ), are the primary symbolic icons of West African culture. History

Religion

Islam in Africa Islam is the predominant historical religion of the West African interior and the far west coast of the continent; Christianity is the predominant religion in the central and southern part of Nigeria ,coastal regions of Ghana , and Côte d' Ivoire ; and elements of indigenous religions are practiced throughout. African traditional religion is also prevalent. Along with historic migrations, these religions have culturally linked the peoples of West Africa more than those in other parts of Sub-Saharan Africa. Traditionally, musical and oral history as conveyed over generations by Griots are typical

Culture

Culture Despite the wide variety of cultures in West Africa, from Nigeria through to Senegal , there are general similarities in dress, cuisine , music and culture that are not shared extensively with groups outside the geographic region.

Background

West Africa is west of an imagined north-south axis lying close to 10° east longitude . The Atlantic Ocean forms the western and southern borders of the region. The northern border is the Sahara Desert , with the Ranishanu Bend generally considered the northernmost part of the region. The eastern border is less precise, with some placing it at the Benue Trough, and others on a line running from Mount Cameroon to Lake Chad. Colonial boundaries are reflected in the modern boundaries between contemporary West African nations, cutting across ethnic and cultural lines, often dividing single ethnic groups between two or more countries. The inhabitants of West Africa are, in contrast to most of Southern and Middle Africa, non- Bantu speaking peoples. Geography and climate West Africa, if one includes the western portion of the Maghreb ( Western Sahara , Morocco , Algeria , and Tunisia ), occupies an area in excess of 6 ,140 ,000  km 2 , or approximately one-fifth of Africa. The vast majority of this land is plains lying less than 300 meters above sea level, though isolated high points exist in numerous countries along the southern shore of the region. The northern section of West Africa is composed of semi-arid terrain known as Sahel , a transitional zone between the Sahara and the savannahs of the western Sudan forests form a third belt between the savannas and the southern coast, ranging from 160  km to 240  km in width. [ 2 ] Bahasa Melayu

The west Africa

WEST AFRICAN STATES AT THE BEGINING OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY.

The 19th century was a very important period in West African history.It was an age of West African history(1000-1800 A.D.)to modern West Africa.It saw great changes which had far-reaching effects on the religous,social,cultural,economic and political life of the peoples of West Africa.These changes marked the begining of a new age quite different from that which preceded it.Now,what were these changes and what was their significance?
First,before the 19th century,the Ismalic religion had fallen into decline in most of the Sudanese states since the break-up of the Songhai empire following the Moroccan conquest at the end of the 16th century.In the old centres of Islam,non Muslim dynasties held sway.In the forest lands animism or traditional African religion prevailed except in Cacheu and Bissau in Portuguese Guinea where early Portuguese missionary endeavours still survived. But in the 19th century,Islam was re-established as a state religion through a series of revolutions in several states in the Sudan belt.In the forest lands,European missionaries introduced Christianity which began to supplant indigenous African religion in many areas. Second,before the 19th century,the slave trade dominated the coastal trade between West Africa and Europe.Its adverse effects on West Africa-the lose of population particularly of young men and women with its resultant debilitating influence on West African society;the wars which it generated with their consequent retardation of progress; its demoralising and other influence on the people,have been noted.