History of Africa - 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 Empire, Oba of Benin, the Kanem-Bornu Empire, the Fulani Empire, the Dahomey, the Ashanti Empire, and the Songhay. Also common in this ...

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History of Africa, History of Africa - Paleolithic, History of Africa - Evolution of hominids and Homo sapiens in Africa, History of Africa - Neolithic prehistoric cultures, History of Africa - North Africa, History of Africa - Sub-Saharan Africa, History of Africa - History of North Africa 3500 B.C. - 1500 A.D., History of Africa - Ancient Egypt, History of Africa - Phoenician Greek and Roman colonization, History of Africa - Dark Age, History of Africa - Islamisation, History of Africa - History of Sub-Saharan Africa until 1500 A.D., History of Africa - Medieval empires, History of Africa - European exploration and conquest, History of Africa - Portuguese, History of Africa - 19th Century European explorers, History of Africa - Partition among European Powers, History of Africa - Conflicting ambitions of the European powers, History of Africa - The Berlin Conference of 1884-85, History of Africa - 20th Century: 1900-1945, History of Africa - Africa at the start of the 20th century, History of Africa - Interbellum, History of Africa - World War II, History of Africa - Postcolonial era:1945-present, History of Africa - Decolonization, History of Africa - Postcolonial Relationship with Europe, History of Africa - The Cold War in Africa, History of Africa - Pan-Africanism, History of Africa - Central Africa, History of Africa - East Africa, History of Africa - North Africa, History of Africa - Southern Africa, History of Africa - West Africa

Read more here: » History of Africa: Encyclopedia II - History of Africa - History of Sub-Saharan Africa until 1500 A.D.

See also:

AIDS pandemic, AIDS pandemic - An overview of the problem, AIDS pandemic - Global campaign, AIDS pandemic - Sub-Saharan Africa, AIDS pandemic - Middle East and North Africa, AIDS pandemic - South and South-East Asia, AIDS pandemic - East Asia, AIDS pandemic - Latin America, AIDS pandemic - Caribbean, AIDS pandemic - Eastern Europe and Central Asia, AIDS pandemic - Western Europe, AIDS pandemic - North America, AIDS pandemic - Oceania

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The Portuguese journeys around the West African coast opened up new avenues for trade between Europe and West Africa. By the early sixteenth century, European bases were being established on the coast and trade with the now wealthier Europeans became of prime importance to West Africa. North Africa had declined in both political and economic importance, while the Saharan crossing remained long and treacherous. However, the major blow to trans-Saharan trade was the Moroccan War of 1591-2. Morocco sent troops across the Sahara and attacked Tim ...

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Trans-Saharan trade, Trans-Saharan trade - Early trans-Saharan trade, Trans-Saharan trade - Trans-Saharan trade in the Middle Ages, Trans-Saharan trade - Decline of trans-Saharan trade, Trans-Saharan trade - Notes

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Ancient history is the study of significant cultural and political events from the beginning of human history until the Early Middle Ages. Although the ending date is largely arbitrary, most Western scholars use the fall of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476 as the traditional end of ancient history. Another term that is often used to refer to ancient history is antiquity, although this term is most often used to refer specifically to ...

Including:

Ancient history - The study of ancient history
Ancient history - Archaeology Ancient history - Primary sources
Ancient history - Chronology
Ancient history - Prehistory Ancient history - Important events Ancient history - End of ancient history in Europe
Ancient history - Some prominent civilizations of ancient history
Ancient history - Europe and the Mediterranean Ancient history - East Asia Ancient history - Central and Southwest Asia Ancient history - Saharan and Sub-Saharan Africa Ancient history - The Americas
Ancient history - References and further reading

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Small trade routes around the Nile Valley have been used for millennia, but travel across the Sahara prior to the domestication of the camel was difficult. Objects and materials found far from their places of origin are archaeological records of some trade taking place, particularly in the far west, where the desert is at its narrowest. There are also some reports of contacts in classical literature. The growth of the city of Aoudaghost may have been around this limited trade, but suggestions that all urb ...

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Trans-Saharan trade, Trans-Saharan trade - Early trans-Saharan trade, Trans-Saharan trade - Trans-Saharan trade in the Middle Ages, Trans-Saharan trade - Decline of trans-Saharan trade, Trans-Saharan trade - Notes

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The Korandje language of the Saharan oasis of Tabelbala is a heavily Berber-influenced variety of Songhay, a language more widely spoken far to the south in Niger. Another northern Songhay language, Tadaksahak, may be spoken in parts of the far south; its nomadic speakers range over a wide area centered in northern Mali. There are also a few thousand Hausa speakers in the south. ...

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Languages of Algeria, Languages of Algeria - Arabic, Languages of Algeria - Berber, Languages of Algeria - Romance languages, Languages of Algeria - Sub-Saharan African languages, Languages of Algeria - Sign languages, Languages of Algeria - Phoenician, Languages of Algeria - Turkish

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The rise of the Ghana Empire, centred on what is now southern Mauritania, paralleled the increase in trans-Saharan trade. Mediterranean economies were short of gold but could supply salt, whereas West African countries had plenty of gold but desired salt. The slave trade was also important because large numbers of Africans were sent north, generally to serve as domestic servants. The West African states imported highly trained slave soldiers. Several trade routes became established, perhaps the most important terminating in Sijilmasa and Ifr ...

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Trans-Saharan trade, Trans-Saharan trade - Early trans-Saharan trade, Trans-Saharan trade - Trans-Saharan trade in the Middle Ages, Trans-Saharan trade - Decline of trans-Saharan trade, Trans-Saharan trade - Notes

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Africa is the world's second-largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30,370,000 km² (11,730,000 sq mi) including its adjacent islands, it covers 5.9% of the Earth's total surface area, and 20.3% of the total land area. With over 840,000,000 people (as of 2005) in 57 territories, it accounts for more than 12% of the world's human population. Africa - Etymology. The name Africa came into Western use through the Romans, who used the name Africa terra — "land of the Afr ...

Including:

Africa - Etymology Africa - Geography Africa - History Africa - Politics
Africa - Precolonial Africa Africa - Colonial Africa Africa - Post-colonial Africa Africa - Modern Africa
Africa - Economy Africa - Demographics Africa - Languages Africa - Culture Africa - Religion Africa - Territories
Africa - Independent states Africa - Territories possessions départements Africa - Disputed territories Africa - Table of territories and regions

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The supercontinent of Africa-Eurasia (or Afro-Eurasia) is the world's largest land mass and contains around 85% of the human population. It is typically subdivided into the continents Africa and Eurasia (which is culturally, but not geographically, divided into Europe and Asia) by drawing a line at the Suez Canal. Historians of the cultural materialism school may subdivide it into Eurasia-North Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa, based on differing agricultur ...

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The HIV/AIDS epidemics spreading through the countries of Sub-Saharan Africa are highly varied. Although it is not correct to speak of a single African epidemic, Africa is without doubt the region most affected by the virus. Inhabited by just 10% of the world's population, Africa is estimated to have more than 60% of the AIDS-infected population. AIDS in Africa - General overview. HIV prevalence is stable throughout most of Sub-Saharan Africa, is still rising in a few countries such as Madagascar and ...

Including:

AIDS in Africa - General overview AIDS in Africa - Measuring the epidemic AIDS in Africa - Access to treatment AIDS in Africa - Regional analysis
AIDS in Africa - East-central Africa AIDS in Africa - West Africa AIDS in Africa - Southern Africa

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Nilo-Saharan languages - External relationships. Roger Blench. "Is Niger-Congo simply a branch of Nilo-Saharan?", in ed. Nicolai & Rottland, Fifth Nilo-Saharan Linguistics Colloquium. Nice, 24-29 August 1992. Proceedings. (Nilo-Saharan 10). Koeln: Koeppe Verlag. 1995. pp.36-49. Edgar Gregersen. "Kongo-Saharan". Journal of African Languages, 11, 1:69-89. 1972. ...

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Nilo-Saharan languages, Nilo-Saharan languages - Subclassification, Nilo-Saharan languages - Bender 1997, Nilo-Saharan languages - Ehret 2001, Nilo-Saharan languages - Bibliography, Nilo-Saharan languages - External relationships

Read more here: » Nilo-Saharan languages: Encyclopedia II - Nilo-Saharan languages - Bibliography

West Africa is the region of. western Africa that is generally considered to include the countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo. In addition, the region is sometimes considered to include Cape Verde, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Mauritania, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Western Sahara. West Africa is an area with a great span of geography, bioregions, and cultures. It is oriented west of an imagined no ...

Including:

West Africa - Geography and climate West Africa - Culture West Africa - History
West Africa - Prehistory West Africa - Empires West Africa - Slavery and colonialism West Africa - Postcolonial era
West Africa - Regional organizations West Africa - Reference

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Ancient Egypt was a civilization along the Lower Nile, reaching from the Nile Delta in the north as far south as Jebel Barkal at the time of its greatest extension (15th century BC). It lasted for three millennia, from circa 3200 BC to 343 BC, ending with the conquest of Alexander the Great. As a civilization based on irrigation it is the quintessential example of a hydraulic empire. Ancient Egypt - Geography. Most of Egypt is in North Africa; though the Sinai Peninsula is in Southwest Asia. The coun ...

Including:

Ancient Egypt - Geography Ancient Egypt - People Ancient Egypt - History Ancient Egypt - Government Ancient Egypt - Language
Ancient Egypt - Writing Ancient Egypt - Literature
Ancient Egypt - Culture Ancient Egypt - Ancient achievements
Ancient Egypt - Timeline Ancient Egypt - Open problems
Ancient Egypt - Notes

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Ancient warfare is war as conducted from the beginnings of history to the end of the ancient period. In Europe, the end of antiquity is often equated with the fall of Rome in 476. In China, it can also be seen as ending in the fifth century, with the growing role of mounted warriors needed to counter the ever-growing threat from the north. Ancient warfare - Overview. The difference between prehistoric and ancient warfare is less one of technology than of organization. The development of first city-states, a ...

Including:

Ancient warfare - Overview
Ancient warfare - Chariots Ancient warfare - Infantry Ancient warfare - Cavalry Ancient warfare - Naval warfare
Ancient warfare - Tactics and weapons
Ancient warfare - Strategy Ancient warfare - Tactics Ancient warfare - Weapons Ancient warfare - Sieges
Ancient warfare - Cultures
Ancient warfare - Chinese Ancient warfare - Persian Ancient warfare - Egyptian Ancient warfare - Germanic Ancient warfare - Greek Ancient warfare - Indus Valley Ancient warfare - Japanese Ancient warfare - Roman
Ancient warfare - Important ancient wars Ancient warfare - Important ancient battles Ancient warfare - Unit types Ancient warfare - Sources

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Nilo-Saharan languages - Bender 1997. Lionel Bender classifies them as follows, slightly modifying his 1989 classification: Songay languages Saharan languages Kuliak languages Satellite-Core: Maban languages Fur languages Berta language Kunama language Core Nilo-Saharan languages Eastern Sudanic languages Central Sudanic languages Komuz languages Kadu languages < ...

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Nilo-Saharan languages, Nilo-Saharan languages - Subclassification, Nilo-Saharan languages - Bender 1997, Nilo-Saharan languages - Ehret 2001, Nilo-Saharan languages - Bibliography, Nilo-Saharan languages - External relationships

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The boundaries for the largest part of this ecoregion, which includes the Tassili-n-Ajjer Ahaggar and Aïr ou Azbine massifs, follow the ‘regs, hamadas and wadis’ above the 1000 m contour. This covers a good part of southeast Algeria. These areas are reaching almost 3000 meters Additional areas further south were included within this ecoregion, including the Aïr ou Azbine in northern Niger, Dhar Adrar in Mauritania, and Adrar des Iforas in Mali and Algeria, using the 500 m-elevation contour. This ecoregio ...

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West Saharan montane xeric woodlands, West Saharan montane xeric woodlands - Overview, West Saharan montane xeric woodlands - External link

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History of Africa - Evolution of hominids and Homo sapiens in Africa. Main article: Human evolution Africa was the birthplace of both the hominin subfamily and the genus Homo, including eight species of which only Homo sapiens remains. 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 ...

See also:

History of Africa, History of Africa - Paleolithic, History of Africa - Evolution of hominids and Homo sapiens in Africa, History of Africa - Neolithic prehistoric cultures, History of Africa - North Africa, History of Africa - Sub-Saharan Africa, History of Africa - History of North Africa 3500 B.C. - 1500 A.D., History of Africa - Ancient Egypt, History of Africa - Phoenician Greek and Roman colonization, History of Africa - Dark Age, History of Africa - Islamisation, History of Africa - History of Sub-Saharan Africa until 1500 A.D., History of Africa - Medieval empires, History of Africa - European exploration and conquest, History of Africa - Portuguese, History of Africa - 19th Century European explorers, History of Africa - Partition among European Powers, History of Africa - Conflicting ambitions of the European powers, History of Africa - The Berlin Conference of 1884-85, History of Africa - 20th Century: 1900-1945, History of Africa - Africa at the start of the 20th century, History of Africa - Interbellum, History of Africa - World War II, History of Africa - Postcolonial era:1945-present, History of Africa - Decolonization, History of Africa - Postcolonial Relationship with Europe, History of Africa - The Cold War in Africa, History of Africa - Pan-Africanism, History of Africa - Central Africa, History of Africa - East Africa, History of Africa - North Africa, History of Africa - Southern Africa, History of Africa - West Africa

Read more here: » History of Africa: Encyclopedia II - History of Africa - Paleolithic

History of Africa - Ancient Egypt. Main articles: History of Ancient Egypt, Kush 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. 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) ...

See also:

History of Africa, History of Africa - Paleolithic, History of Africa - Evolution of hominids and Homo sapiens in Africa, History of Africa - Neolithic prehistoric cultures, History of Africa - North Africa, History of Africa - Sub-Saharan Africa, History of Africa - History of North Africa 3500 B.C. - 1500 A.D., History of Africa - Ancient Egypt, History of Africa - Phoenician Greek and Roman colonization, History of Africa - Dark Age, History of Africa - Islamisation, History of Africa - History of Sub-Saharan Africa until 1500 A.D., History of Africa - Medieval empires, History of Africa - European exploration and conquest, History of Africa - Portuguese, History of Africa - 19th Century European explorers, History of Africa - Partition among European Powers, History of Africa - Conflicting ambitions of the European powers, History of Africa - The Berlin Conference of 1884-85, History of Africa - 20th Century: 1900-1945, History of Africa - Africa at the start of the 20th century, History of Africa - Interbellum, History of Africa - World War II, History of Africa - Postcolonial era:1945-present, History of Africa - Decolonization, History of Africa - Postcolonial Relationship with Europe, History of Africa - The Cold War in Africa, History of Africa - Pan-Africanism, History of Africa - Central Africa, History of Africa - East Africa, History of Africa - North Africa, History of Africa - Southern Africa, History of Africa - West Africa

Read more here: » History of Africa: Encyclopedia II - History of Africa - History of North Africa 3500 B.C. - 1500 A.D.

History of Africa - North Africa. Main article: History of the Sahara 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 p ...

See also:

History of Africa, History of Africa - Paleolithic, History of Africa - Evolution of hominids and Homo sapiens in Africa, History of Africa - Neolithic prehistoric cultures, History of Africa - North Africa, History of Africa - Sub-Saharan Africa, History of Africa - History of North Africa 3500 B.C. - 1500 A.D., History of Africa - Ancient Egypt, History of Africa - Phoenician Greek and Roman colonization, History of Africa - Dark Age, History of Africa - Islamisation, History of Africa - History of Sub-Saharan Africa until 1500 A.D., History of Africa - Medieval empires, History of Africa - European exploration and conquest, History of Africa - Portuguese, History of Africa - 19th Century European explorers, History of Africa - Partition among European Powers, History of Africa - Conflicting ambitions of the European powers, History of Africa - The Berlin Conference of 1884-85, History of Africa - 20th Century: 1900-1945, History of Africa - Africa at the start of the 20th century, History of Africa - Interbellum, History of Africa - World War II, History of Africa - Postcolonial era:1945-present, History of Africa - Decolonization, History of Africa - Postcolonial Relationship with Europe, History of Africa - The Cold War in Africa, History of Africa - Pan-Africanism, History of Africa - Central Africa, History of Africa - East Africa, History of Africa - North Africa, History of Africa - Southern Africa, History of Africa - West Africa

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History of Africa - 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 esta ...

See also:

History of Africa, History of Africa - Paleolithic, History of Africa - Evolution of hominids and Homo sapiens in Africa, History of Africa - Neolithic prehistoric cultures, History of Africa - North Africa, History of Africa - Sub-Saharan Africa, History of Africa - History of North Africa 3500 B.C. - 1500 A.D., History of Africa - Ancient Egypt, History of Africa - Phoenician Greek and Roman colonization, History of Africa - Dark Age, History of Africa - Islamisation, History of Africa - History of Sub-Saharan Africa until 1500 A.D., History of Africa - Medieval empires, History of Africa - European exploration and conquest, History of Africa - Portuguese, History of Africa - 19th Century European explorers, History of Africa - Partition among European Powers, History of Africa - Conflicting ambitions of the European powers, History of Africa - The Berlin Conference of 1884-85, History of Africa - 20th Century: 1900-1945, History of Africa - Africa at the start of the 20th century, History of Africa - Interbellum, History of Africa - World War II, History of Africa - Postcolonial era:1945-present, History of Africa - Decolonization, History of Africa - Postcolonial Relationship with Europe, History of Africa - The Cold War in Africa, History of Africa - Pan-Africanism, History of Africa - Central Africa, History of Africa - East Africa, History of Africa - North Africa, History of Africa - Southern Africa, History of Africa - West Africa

Read more here: » History of Africa: Encyclopedia II - History of Africa - European exploration and conquest