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Who was at the bottom of the Songhai Empire's social structure? Who was at the top of the social structure?
Bottom: enslaved people, Top: king and nobility (these people had special rights)
What was the main goal of Askia Muhammad?
To spread the Islamic faith
Sunni Ali conquered the ___________ Empire.
Mali
How were the empires' geography similar/different?
Similar: all kingdoms were in West Africa. They all were near the Sahara Desert and the Niger River. They all had access to gold mines in the south and salt mines in the north.
Sunni Ali _______________ his army and navy to control trade on the Niger River.
deployed
Who posed stiff competition to the trans-Saharan caravan trade routes?
Portuguese merchant ships
Who does Askia Muhammad remind you of from the Mali Empire? Explain why.
Mansa Musa, both went on a pilgrimage to Mecca and wanted to spread the Islamic faith in their empires
Sunni Ali made the capital city of the Songhai Empire the city of __________
Gao
How were the empires' religion similar/different?
Similar: Ghana originally believed in animism (nature is sacred) but they converted to Islam. They were exposed to Islam through trade routes. Mali and Songhai increased the influence of Islam.
The Muslim army hoped to _____________ the Christians from taking the Holy Land.
thwart
What three factors weakened the Songhai Empire?
Internal conflict, drought, and disease
What inference can you make about Askia Muhammad based on the Tomb of Askia?
He was very honored and respected. The Tomb of Askia is the largest historical monument in West Africa.
Why did Sunni Ali deploy troops to the Niger River?
control travel and to expand the empire
How were the empires' economies similar/different?
Similar: They were all very wealthy. They all had a trade-based economy. They all controlled gold and salt trans-Saharan trade. Mali and Songhai had competition with Portuguese merchant ships. They used salt as currency.
The house was destroyed because it was in close ________________ to the tornado.
proximity
What happened to the Songhai Empire?
Morocco conquered Gao and Timbuktu. They could not control the whole empire, so the rest of the empire split off into smaller, independent kingdoms.
What were some of Askia Muhammad's achievements in regards to trade?
He increased trade with Asia and Europe, introduced a system of weights and measures for regulating trade, and created a currency system.
Ali Kolon was a Songhai prince who became chief of _________
Gao
How were the empires' social structures similar/different?
Similar: They all had slaves at bottom and king/nobility at top. The nobility had special rights. Slaves could become free.
absolute monarch
How could people move up in the Songhai Empire's social structure?
How did Askia Muhammad achieve his main goal of spreading the Islamic faith?
He built mosques, replaced ethnic Songhai officials with Arab Muslims, used Muslim judges and Islamic laws, and brought Arab scholars to the university in Timbuktu.
Who created the Songhai Empire? Who made the empire run efficiently?
Sunni Ali, Askia Muhammad
How were the empires' politics/achievements similar/different?
They all had strong kings that were absolute monarchs. Ghana's kings collected taxes from traders to make the empire wealthy. Mali had strong leaders like Sundiata Keita (strong, central government) and Mansa Musa (brought Islamic Golden Age to Mali.) Songhai had strong leaders like Sunni Ali (established and expanded Songhai Empire) and Askia Muhammad (made Songhai Empire run more efficiently).
Askia Muhammad set up an _______________ council to help him make decisions for the empire.
imperial