6.1 Ghana Controls Trade

Abby WeilEmily Dunsmore

Madison Cavanagh

Introduction (Just listen)

We last learned about Islam/ Muhammad, and how Islam spread through trade. Ghana controls tradeLocation= useful resourcesEmpire: Gets wealthier, stronger, and prosperousAchievements: Silent barter/ Growth of army Control of West Africa’s trade routes

Early Ghana

( Copy down in white)Soninke (farmers)Lived in separate familiesThreatened by nomadic herders= banded togetherFormed basis of Ghana’s peopleGained strength, new agricultural techniques, and weaponsPopulation increased= towns/ villages

Location ( Copy down highlighted)

West Africa along Niger River= Good farmingFarming leads to surplus= tools=weaponsBetween Sahara and forestSahara (salt) Forest (gold)Salt+ Gold = Good Trading

Benefits of Salt/ Gold/ Trade(Copy Down Highlighted)

People needed salt to survive and it made food tastyPeople admired gold for it’s beautyPeople had to keep gold mines secret; to this day we can’t find themSalt and Gold are main valuable resources

Silent Barter (Copy Down Highlighted)

Silent Barter=a way of exchanging goods without seeing the peopleCreated=peace and gold mines secretiveSalt trader leave goods, then back away, beat drums to signify trading timeGold traders come by boat and leave a fair amount of gold, then back awayIf unpleased= trading will continue

until both sides are happy

Military (copy down highlighted)

Trade growsRulers gain powerBuilds strong militaryMilitary takes control of tradeGovernment gains wealth=military strength increases

Conclusion (Just Listen)

As you can see, through trade Ghana became powerful and wealthy. The Empire’s army was very strong and trade was successful with the Silent Barter. This led to Ghana building an Empire.