Geography & Location
How did Ghana’s location between the Sahara Desert and the Wangara region help it grow powerful?
Ghana was located between North African traders with salt (from the Sahara) and West African miners with gold (from Wangara), allowing it to control and tax trade between the two regions.
What two goods were most valuable to Ancient Ghana?
Gold and salt
What was the ruler of Ghana called?
The King or Ghana
What religion spread to Ghana through trade?
Islam
What empire rose after Ghana’s fall?
The Mali Empire
What river was most important to trade near Ancient Ghana?
The Senegal River was the most important river to trade near Ancient Ghana. It flowed along the southern edge of the empire and helped connect Ghana’s capital to the Trans-Saharan trade routes that crossed the desert.
What system did Ghana use to trade without speaking?
Silent barter
What made Ghana’s king powerful?
He controlled gold mines and collected taxes
What were griots, and why were they important?
Storytellers/historians who kept oral traditions alive
Who invaded Ghana and weakened it?
The Almoravids (Muslim warriors)
How did geography help Ghana become wealthy?
It sat between gold mines in the south and salt mines in the north, controlling trade routes that crossed the desert.
Why was salt valuable to the people of West Africa?
It helped preserve food and replace minerals lost from sweat
How was the empire divided to make it easier to rule?
Into provinces or territories
What did most people in Ghana do for work?
They were farmers
How did overgrazing contribute to Ghana’s fall?
Animals destroyed farmland, making it hard to grow food
Why was it difficult but important for traders to cross the Sahara Desert to reach Ghana?
The trip was dangerous and exhausting, but reaching Ghana meant they could exchange salt for gold, which made the journey worth it.
What animal brought from Arabia helped merchants travel long distances across the Sahara Desert to trade salt and gold?
The camel, known as the “ship of the desert,” made long-distance trade between North and West Africa possible.
What did Ghana’s army protect?
Trade routes and the empire’s wealth
Who were the Soninke people?
The founders of the Ghana Empire
What internal problem made Ghana weaker?
Rebellions and civil wars
What modern countries are located near where Ancient Ghana once stood?
Mali & Mauritania
Who were the North African traders who brought salt to Ghana?
Berbers or Arab merchants
How did Ghana’s government grow rich from trade?
It required taxes on imports and exports
What was the capital city of Ghana?
Kumbi Saleh
Around what year did Ghana collapse?
By around 1200 CE, Ghana had weakened and been absorbed by new rising powers like Mali.