Geography
Name the three bodies of water that surround Africa?
Mediterranean Sea, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean
Describe the earliest community in West Africa?
Extended families including grandparents, aunts/uncles, and cousins
Name a good that came from West Africa?
Gold, leather, animal hides, ivory, enslaved people
Name a religious practice that Muslims adopted with the arrival of Islam?
The belief in Allah, prayer five times a day, fasting during Ramadan, giving 2.5% to charity, or going on a hajj to Mecca.
What is call and response singing?
The call is one leader who says something and the response is multiple people replying with the same line.
What desert runs through West Africa?
Sahara
Name a specific reason that villages formed?
For protection, mine for iron or gold, or control a flood
Why did West Africans want salt from North Africa?
They needed salt to preserve or season their food or even replace salt lost through their sweat.
Describe a place that West Africans were expected to speak in Arabic?
Government Building, School, Mosque, or Market
Griots are storytellers who remember information such as ancestry and battles.
Why was trans-Saharan trade difficult and what made it easier?
The Sahara is a vast desert but eventually camels came from the Middle East and made travel easier.
What allowed West African villages to grow into towns/cities?
Ironworking
Name one benefit and one con of being apart of the kingdom of Ghana?
Getting protection
Paying tribute to the king
How did the line of succession change with the arrival of Islam?
It used to be matrilineal but changed to a patrilineal system.
What is the most famous griot story of all time and what was the moral of the story?
The Story of Sundjata teaches young people not to judge a book by its cover and continue to overcome obstacles to achieve greatness.
How did the Niger River encourage trade?
It was used as a transportation route across Africa.
Why were blacksmiths so respected in towns/cities?
They made farming more efficient and allowed Ghana to become richer from the trade of surplus goods.
How did Ghana benefit from trans-Saharan trade?
The king collected taxes on every single good that passed through the kingdom.
How did the government change with the arrival of Islam?
Kings became more powerful adopting titles like sultan or shari'ah law was used alongside customary law.
What is a proverb?
A proverb is a short saying using imagery from everyday life to teach young people values.
What was once the capital of the kingdom of Ghana?
Kumbi
The kingdom of Ghana prospered for many years but eventually declined and became the Kingdom of...
Mali
Why did the Kingdom of Ghana ultimately fall apart?
Overpopulation put too much strain on resources and deforestation affected ironmaking.
Why did Islam spread easily into West Africa?
West Africans were still allowed to believe in their native religion which included spirits.
The balafon looks like a xylophone. The ngoni looks like a canoe. The kora is a harplike instrument that looks like a banjo.