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Pre-colonial indigenous Development, underdevelopment from the slave trade

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Pre-colonial Indigenous Development

Africa: home of Adamu Agricultural and Iron Revolutions Bantu Migrations or Diffusion? Eastern African Empires Western African Empires Southern African Empires Other forms of pre-colonial society and

governance: Nigerian Ibgo, Kenyan Gikuyu Contemporary pride in pre-colonial Africa

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Africa: home of Adamu

First humans came from eastern Africa 200K years ago Human cultures and socialization

began in Africa First sophisticated stone tools

developed in Africa First human colonization of the rain

forest began in Africa

Iron Revolution in Africa

500 BC in (Nubia present day Sudan) Also developed at Nok in ceneral Nigeria Eastern African Iron making centered just

west of Lake Victoria Diffused from these centers Iron making peoples expanded their territory

at the expense of stone tool users (map 103)

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Agricultural Revolutions

8000-4000 BC evidence of pastoralism in “moist” Sahara with domesticated goats, sheep, and cattle

3000 to 1000 B.C. sedentary farming well established with grains in the Savanna and “tubers’ and bananas in forest regions

Africa’s “agriculture hearths” Ethiopian Plateau West African Savanna West African Forest Savanna boundary in west central Africa Egypt

Crops and Agriculture “diffused” from these hearths Frequent exchange between African and Middle East

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Agricultural Revolutions: continued

Plants domesticated by Africans Cereals: teff (Ethiopian), millet, bulrush millet, sorghum,

African rice Roots and tubers: yams Oil Crops: oil palm, castor oil, shea butter Starch and sugar plants: enset Vegetables: Okra, garden eggs (African egg plant) Fruits: watermelons, tamarind Stimulants: Coffee, kola Fiber plants: Cotton

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Agriculture and Columbian Exchange Many African Staple foods are of

Native American origin Cassava Beans Maize (Corn) Pineapple Peanuts

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Agriculture and Columbian Exchange Common American foods from

Africa Rice Okra Watermelon Citrus Fruit Bananas Coffee

But more than just food was exchanged between the Americas and Africa; Slaves and cultures

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Bantu Migrations or Diffusion? 450 distinct Bantu languages Bantu peoples expanded from southeastern

Nigeria to dominate almost all of eastern and southern Africa

Some scholars believe Bantu peoples migrated with advanced agricultural and iron working technology and conquered “less advanced” societies and those societies were absorbed into Bantu people

Bantu Migrations or Diffusion?: Continued

Other scholars say the “Grand theory” diminishes indigenous people and that Bantu peoples simply migrated in multiple migration waves

3rd theory states that Bantu people migrated because of population pressures expanded and were incorporated into local societies where Bantu languages and technologies became dominant.

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African Empires 3000 year old history of empires in Africa Presence of African empires undermines the notion

that development began with colonization Colonial and modern denial of African civilizations See map 104 Eastern African Empires Western African Empires Southern African Empires Regions not ruled by empire does not imply no

civilization

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Eastern African Empires

Kush: in present day Sudan asserted independence from Egypt 1000

BC, and By 8th century BC Kush conquered Egypt Collaspsed 300 AD because of

agricultural soil exhaustion and overexploitation of forests for charcoal

Egypt is also an African empire

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Eastern African Empires(Christian empires) Nubia:

established in Sudanese Nile River Valley 6th century AD,

Made up of three Christian Kingdoms Isolated from other Christian centers by Islamic

expansion and expired in 15th century Auxum

Northern Ethiopian Highlands 1st century AD First political state to embrace Christianity Predecessor to Ethiopian or Abyssinian empire Ended 1974 when Haile Selassie deposed in

military coup04/12/23 14

Swahili City States Established between 8th and 19th century AD Kilwa, Lamu, Mombasa, Mogadishu, and Gedi

Ruins Originally thought to be built by

Arab/Persian/Asian, but evidence now points to African origin of cities with foreign merchants serving guest roles

Importance of Islam, trade, establishing written Swahili language

Cosmopolitan cities served coastal indigenous people, inland migrants, and truly global migrants

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Western African empires Ghana

Kingdom located in persent day Mali and Senegal

9th to 11th century AD Became Islamic empire

Mali Mid 13th century upper Niger and Senegal

valleys Built on Gold Universities of Timbuktu and Nenne centers

for foreign scholars in middle ages04/12/23 16

Western African Empires Yoroba States in Southwestern

Nigeria with Kingdom of Benin Based on trade in Kola nuts, ivory

and gold First states in forest zone

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Central and Southern African Empires Great Zimbabwe

13th to 15th Centruy AD Skilled metal workers, miners, craftspersons, and copper

workers Traded with India and China Famous walled city

Luba, Lunda and Kongo empires 14th to 18th centuries in southern DRC northern Angola Agriculture, metalworking, trade in food stuffs, metals and

salt Portuguese Slave trade destabilized and later collapsed

Kongo in 16th century04/12/23 18

Other forms of pre-colonial society and governance:

Nigerian Ibgo Iron working technological advanced society “No Chief” or King

Kenyan Gikuyu Advanced Agricultural techniques Private property Indigenous “Democracy” through council of

elders But no Kingdom or empire or chief

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Contemporary pride in pre-colonial Africa

Gold Coast renamed Ghana even though not a geographical match

Mali and Benin named after pre-colonial empires Rhodesia renamed Zimbabwe after the great

Zimbabwe Pre-colonial African roots in spirituals, gospel,

blues and rock’n’roll

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The Slave Trades and underdevelopment Trans-Saharan Trade East African Trade Trans-Atlantic Trade Inter-African Slave trade Underdevelopment from the slave

trade Social Construction of Blackness

from the slave trade

Trans-Saharan Trade

Began 7th century AD with “ship of the Sahara” Books, textiles and beads from Islamic areas

exchanged for gold, ivory and slaves from African Savanna

9.4 million slaves stolen from 650AD to 1900 Many died on the way 2/3 young women to be concubines or house-girls Males employed as soldiers or courtiers and some

in powerful positions in the Islamic world

East African Trade Followed Swahili trading routes linking Africa to

Arabia, Oman, Persia, India and China Early century AD->grew 8th cent AD->peaked 18th

and 19th cent. Like trans-Saharan trade most slaves were

women and children to become household servants and concubines

http://intl-programs.uiowa.edu/academic/crossingborders/cb_projects_indiafrica.htm#hyderabad

Trans-Atlantic Trade Largest slave trade ever in the world with 10 to 15 million

stolen First purely capitalist profit driven slavery First purely race based slavery Entire economy of Africa’s western coast between 16th

and 19th century organized to facilitate the capture, Transportation and sale of Slaves

English, Danes, Dutch, Swedes, French, Spanish, and Portuguese establish slaving castles through the coast

Only Portuguese in Angola established direct slaving, where most Europeans relied on African intermediaries

Trans-Atlantic Trade: in the Americas

In Americas slave labor crucial in plantations for sugar, tobacco, indigo, and cotton

Africans taken because of resistance to European diseases unlike native Americans.

Africans desirable as slaves for more than just labor as many skilled agriculturalists, iron makers (blacksmiths), and in knowledge of mining skills that European indentured servants lacked

African slaves taken to Americas also had special knowledge of tropical climates that was necessary for the European colonization of parts of Americas

Auction posters listing skills of slaves

Underdevelopment from the slave trade

West African kingdoms waged war for the sole purpose of raiding for slaves

While Africa lost much of its skilled educated productive and young labor, Africa’s elite only gained cheap manufactured goods and nothing to encourage further development

Some estimates say that population cut in half 10 to15 million arrive in Americas Many more died in transit, famine, or disease Although in some slaving regions population increased due

to the buying of female slaves taken into those societies as concubines

Insecurity disrupted agriculture, manufacturing, and trade The slave trade expanded power of elite at expense of

other African classes

Inter-African Slave Trade Slavery traditionally not permanent and slaves had

rights in African context As export slavery increased internal continental

slavery changed Women and children often taken locally Rights and slave customs diminished as slavery

became commoditized African plantations develop using slave labor Slavery integrated Africa into the European capitalist

system and changed local production to view slavery as economic rather than customary especially on Atlantic and Indian Ocean coasts

So ingrained in local economy that colonizers fear disrupting local slavery.

Social Construction of Blackness from the slave trade

Prior to trans-Atlantic slave trade Africans took “blackness” for granted (Mazrui)

Slavery socially constructed “blackness” Fostered development of racist stereotypes and

myths in Europe portraying Africans as shiftless slaves and to enslave them was to rescue them

To enslave Africans Europeans had to de-humanize them

Trans-Atlantic Slave trade initiated social construction of race (race is not biological)