Bell Ringer

• How did Ghana control the trans-Saharan trade?

• Why were camels important?

• What is an oasis?

CH 8: Ghana- A Trading empire

Kingdom of Ghana• Started before 500 CE, and lasted until about 1200• Located in a semi-arid land (receives rain, but not

much)• Modern Day: Mali & Mauritania

• The first mention of the Empire of Ghana was from Arab Scholars, but it was a flourishing empire by that time.

• Ghana means “war chief”• Ghana was an important

empire as it was very important in terms of trade, and they controlled a large supply of gold.

Land of Gold

• Arab scholars described Ghana as a land of Gold.

• The King was the head of the military, which made him very powerful.

• The King taxed all gold that passed through the kingdom, and all gold found in the Empire had to be given to the king.

• The King used governors to help rule the Empire (he paid them, they obeyed)

Matrilineal Inheritance

• The royal inheritance was Matrilineal

• When the King died his Sister’s son would inherit the throne.

Trade

• Ghana benefited from its geography. North Africa wanted to trade with West Africa.

• Traders had to cross through Ghana, which taxed them heavily on their goods.

• Control of the trans-Saharan trade made the King of Ghana extremely rich.

History of Trade• Trade across the Sahara was

difficult in history.• However the introduction

of the Camel & Islam made trade easier.

• Invading Muslims introduced Camels, which were great for the Desert.

• Ghana also defeated the invading Muslims, who controlled West Africa. Their desire to trade benefited Ghana.

The Journey• Traders would use

caravans, or travel in groups.

• Traders would wait until after the rainy season, when water and grass could be found along the trade route.

• Traders would go from Oasis to Oasis.

• The entire trip took about 2 months to complete.

Gold & Salt

• Of the many items traded Gold & Salt were the two most important.

• Gold has long been considered valuable throughout the world.

• Salt is valuable as a part of people’s diet and for food preservation.

Wangara: Gold• A part of Africa known as Wangara had a large

supply of gold they were willing to trade.• Apparently no one knew where the gold was but

the Wangara people.• Stories state that miners captured by traders

would rather die then reveal the location of the Gold.

• One story says when a miner was killed the Wangarian people stopped trading for 3 years to prove a point

Taghaza: Salt• West Africans needed salt• In Taghaza salt was located

about 3 feet below the earth• The only thing in Taghaza

was salt, and without salt it would have never existed.

• Miners relied on Caravans to bring them food, if the caravans didn’t show up the salt miners starved.

Taxes

• Ghana had a complex system of taxes for traders going through their empires.

• Traders were taxed going into and out of Ghana.

• Most traders didn’t mind as the Army of Ghana secured the trade routes, and made traveling in their empire extremely safe.

• Traders would also sell some of their goods at the market place in Kumbi (Ghana Capital)

• One of the biggest markets in Africa, also had a slave market.

• Wood, Silk, Cotton, Dates, Figs, Grain, Leather, Gold, Salt

• Gold dust was the main currency

Ghana Falls

• Ghana peaked in about 1000 CE• Muslim Warriors would take control in 1076, and

the King would regain control in 1087• West Africa would fall (making Ghana less

important), & Ghana would deplete their resources.

• 1203 a rival took over Kumbi, and Ghana ended• Mali would become the next major empire in

Africa after the fall of Ghana.

Class Work

• Take 5-8 Minutes• Make Up 3 Multiple choice questions based

on Ghana.• Write out the full question and provide

multiple answers A-D (obviously one of them should be a correct answer).