African American Studies
Geography & Migration
Kingdoms & Empires
Trade, Wealth & Religion
Culture & Society
Miscellaneous
100

This field uses multiple disciplines to analyze the history, culture, experiences, and contributions of people of African descent.

African American Studies

100

These two environmental regions supported important population centers in Africa.

The Sahel and savanna

100

This famous West African empire was ruled by Mansa Musa.

Mali

100

This natural resource was associated with wealth and luxury trade in ancient East Africa and Aksum.

Gold

100

These West African historians preserved and communicated community history.

Griots

100

African-descended communities in the Americas often blended indigenous African practices with these two religions.

Christianity and Islam

200

African American Studies challenges the misconception that African history before the Atlantic slave trade was this.

Unknowable, undocumented, or lacking cultural and political complexity

200

This language came into existence after 1000 C.E. as the direct result of trade between Bantu and Arabic speakers on Africa’s eastern coast.

Swahili

200

This Mali city became famous as a center of learning, trade, and Islamic scholarship.

Timbuktu

200

Trans-Saharan trade routes helped introduce this religion from North Africa into the Sudanic empires.

Islam

200

In early West and Central African societies, this system of family relationships helped form the basis of political alliances.

Kinship

200

This African state became the largest source of enslaved people in the history of the transatlantic slave trade to the Americas.

Kongo

300

African American Studies uses this type of approach rather than relying on a single academic discipline.

An interdisciplinary approach

300

This major population movement spread peoples and languages across large portions of Africa.

Bantu expansion

300

This South/East African kingdom became wealthy through trade in resources such as gold, ivory, and cattle and is known for monumental stone architecture

The Great Zimbabwe 

300

This 1375 Catalan Atlas demonstrates the wealth and influence of this ruler. 

Mansa Musa

300

This cultural process occurs when communities combine elements of different religious or cultural traditions.

Syncretism

300

By 1500, approximately this many enslaved Africans had been removed from Africa to work in Europe and on Portuguese-colonized Atlantic islands.

Approximately 50,000

400

This term describes the dispersion of people of African descent throughout the world.

The African diaspora

400

Africa's proximity to these three bodies of water helped foster connections beyond the continent.

Red Sea, Mediterranean Sea, & Indian Ocean

400

This ancient society was located near present-day Eritrea and Ethiopia and served as an intermediary between the Mediterranean and India

Aksum

400

The kingdom of ________'s conversion to _________ strengthened its trade relationship with _______, leading to the kingdom's increased wealth.

Kongo, Christianity, Portugal

400

These two African women leaders legacies demonstrate women's political leadership in African societies.

Queen Idia of Benin and Queen Njinga of Ndongo-Matamba

400

This terracotta sculpture demonstrates the advanced artistry and smithing, dating back to 1000 BCE of this ancient society.

Nok

500

African American Studies was created after this movement, demanding culturally relevant learning opportunities.

The Black Campus Movement

500

Africa's proximity to the Red Sea, Mediterranean Sea, and Indian Ocean helped early African societies establish these beyond the continent.

Global connections/trade networks

500

These Sudanic Empires were located in West Africa in the Sahel region south of the Sahara.

Ghana, Mali, Songhai

500

The coastal location of these East African communities connected Africa's interior with Arab, Persian, Indian, and Chinese trading communities.

The Swahili City-States

500

These are the three distinct architectural groups of the Great Zimbabwe.

The Hill Complex, Valley Complex, and Great Enclosure

500

This was a significant effect of Bantu migrations on the African continent.

It contributed to the development of diverse ethnic groups and languages.