Sub-Saharan Africa

Warm-up 3/23

• List 3 good things that happened over spring break!!!

Sub-Saharan Africa

• Nations linked due to history • No real common physical features, ethnic

groups, or languages

Western Africa

• Atlantic Coast and ‘armpit’ of Africa

• Major Physical Features– Niger River– Lake Volta

• Tropical climate– Tropical rainforests in

south, savannas in north• Agriculture based

economies• Oil in Nigeria

Central Africa

• Along equator• Major Physical Features:

– Congo River and Ubangi– Congo Basin surrounded by mountains and

plateaus• Tropical climate with lots of rain• Economy based on primary levels

• Farming, fishing, mining, logging• Vast amounts of natural and mineral resources

– Oil, gold, silver, diamonds, uranium, etc

Eastern Africa

• Along Eastern coast and inland• Major Physical Features

– Lake Victoria- world’s second largest freshwater lake– Lake Tanganyika- longest freshwater lake in world– Mount Kilimanjaro- tallest mountain in Africa

• Tropical climate with cooler areas in high elevation• Light tropical forest to savannas with some mountains• Economy based on agriculture

– Coffee, tea, fruit, and vegetables– Some diamonds and gold

Great Rift Valley– Rift Valley – a long, thin valley created by the

moving apart of the continental plates, stretching over 4000 miles from Jordan in Southwest Asia to Mozambique in Southern Africa

Southern Africa and Madagascar• Everything south of Democratic Republic of Congo• Major Physical Features

• Madagascar- 4th largest island in world• Kalahari Desert and Namib Desert• Victoria Falls, located on Zambezi River

• Climate varies – Most of region is temperate, deserts are hot

• Economy based on natural resources– Minerals, copper, gold, etc

Escarpments– Steep slope

with a nearly flat plateau on top

– Marks edge of the continent’s plateau in Southern Africa

Climate and Vegetation• The Sahara is the largest desert in the world and

stretches across northern Africa• Sahel – a narrow band of dry grassland, running east

to west on the southern edge of the Sahara, that is used for farming and herding

• Serengeti Plain – a large, grassy area that provides an ideal natural habitat for Africa’s wild animals

Today’s Activity

• Use atlas to complete map!– Your maps are due tomorrow!!

Reasons for Colonization

– Spread God• Most people in Sub-Saharan Africa

practiced animism– Worship in animals and

environmental features– Gain Gold

• Lots of resources available, not just gold

– Get Glory• Surge of nationalism- nations wanted

to prove they were the best!

Colonialism

• Muslim traders crossed the Sahara Desert as early as 1000 C.E.– Traded salt for gold

and slaves– Instill the Islamic faith

around the Sahara and the Sahel region

Colonialism

• Europeans started moving into the region during the 1400s

• Once there, they discovered that not only could they get resources, but also cheap labor

Rise of the Slave Trade

• With Age of Exploration (1400-1600), Europeans started looking for laborers to take to ‘New World’ with them

• Different tribes would sell members of other tribes to the Europeans for very small prices– Introduction of guns

Age of Imperialism

• European nations started fighting to gain as much territory as possible.

• 1700-early 1900s• Reasons for Colonizing

– Economy- resources– Military- bases for navy– Humanitarian- help under-developed culture; spread

religion– Racial superiority to the indigenous people of Africa

Age of Imperialism

• European nations had a desire to not only colonize Africa, but also make it part of their global empires.

• This means:– Replacing local government with their own– Controlling all land and trade– Substituting their culture in place of local culture

Age of Imperialism

• European Countries and their World Possessions• 1800 55%• 1878 67%• 1914 84%

Pre-Imperial (1870) Africa

The Berlin Conference 1884-85

• 15 European nations met to ‘partition Africa’ or divide Africa

• No indigenous people were present

1914 Africa Looked Like This

Age of Imperialism

• European nations took complete control over nations in Sub-Saharan Africa

• Change occurred in all facets of life– Government– Religion– Economy– Technology

• Some changes were positive, some not

Life in Africa under Imperial Control

• Ethnic tension– Between Europeans and indigenous tribes– Between tribes grouped together by

borders

Life in Africa under Imperial Control

• New Technology – Modes of transportation– Industries– Stronger cloth– Mines – Weapons

Life in Africa under Imperial Control

• Exploitation of Indigenous People– ‘Cheap labor’– Illegal sales of goods/people

Life in Africa under Imperial Control

• New Institutions– Access to Westernized schools– Hospitals with vaccines and new medical

procedures– Courts to determine laws/crimes

Life in Africa under Imperial Control

• Removal of Resources– Land drained of natural resources

• Gold• Diamonds• Minerals• Lumber

– Massive exports

Life in Africa under Imperial Control

• Access to New Religious Beliefs– Spread of Islam in the North– Spread of Christianity in Sub-Saharan

Decolonization

• When WWI and WWII started the Europeans had to focus more on their own nations, and less on their colonies.

• Decolonization of Africa occurred during the mid- to late- 1900s.