Cairo, Egypt 1324 What Can You Learn About Mali by Observing Mansa
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Cairo, Egypt 1324 You are an Egyptian citizen witnessing Mali had a lot of gold. Mansa Musa brought the caravan of Mansa Musa, king of Mali. 80 camels each loaded with 300 pounds of He has traveled across much of Africa on gold. In addition, he had 500 slaves who a pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca. each carried a six-pound staff of solid gold. Why might Mansa Musa have brought What can you learn about Mali by so much gold with him? observing Mansa Musa’s caravan? WebQuest ClassZone.com 144 Chapter 5 West Africa Chapter 6 Central and Southern Africa Mansa Musa’s caravan included 60,000 people. About 12,000 of them were his personal servants. How would the arrival of 60,000 people affect the places they visited? Mali was a wealthy empire, but Cairo was the greatest city of Africa or Europe in the early 1300s. Around 500,000 people lived there, and it was an important trading city. Why might news about Mansa Musa’s caravan spread so quickly from Cairo? 145 20°W 10°W 0° 10°E 20°E 30°E 40°N Chapter West African Trade Routes and Empires, A.D. 1000–1500 Tunis West Africa Fez M MUSLIM e d i t e r r a n e a n S e a STATES 5 30°N Cairo S A H A R A Before You Read: Anticipation Guide In Salah Ghat Write “agree” or “disagree” next to each statement in Tropic of Cancer your notebook. After you’ve read the lesson, review the Taghaza statements and see if you have changed your mind. • West African kingdoms traded gold for salt. 20°N Tadmekka • Muslim learning influenced West African governments. Takedda Awdaghust Walata Sen eg a l Timbuktu Gao Big Ideas About West Africa R iv N e ig r e Economics Societies trade the surplus goods that they Koumbi Djenné r Lake Saleh Chad produce to obtain goods they lack. MapQuest.Com, Inc. Ri Kano ve The West African empires of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai grew r through trade. They were located between areas of goldMc andDou gal-Littell, 6th grade World History Program wh07pe-0305co-001 10°N salt production. They traded their gold for salt from the Muslim r Africa Locator ve Lake Ri empires to the north. Final date: 6/28/04 Volta Benue Benin Integrated Technology INTERNET RESOURCES Gulf of Guinea Ghana empire, 1000 • Interactive Maps Go to ClassZone.com for N • Interactive Visuals • WebQuest • Quizzes Mali empire, 1350 • Starting with a Story • Homework Helper • Maps W E Equator Songhai empire, 1500 0° • Research Links • Test Practice Trade route • Internet Activities • Current Events S Gold Salt 0 250 500 miles 0 250 500 kilometers 500s Trans-Saharan trade is increasingly 1076 conducted by camel caravans. Muslim forces ▲ (camel with saddle) conquer Ghana. 618 c. 1000 ▲ The Tang Dynasty is The Inca civilization established in China. (water develops in South container in the form of a duck) America. 146 Map Note: Added same-color drop shadowed band around PRINTED AT 85% MapQuest.Com, Inc. each empire to help distinguish along with the requested use of patterns. McDougal-Littell, 7th grade World History Program wh07pe-0305CO-002 West African Trade Routes and Empires, 1000-1500 Final proof date: 6/23/04 20°W 10°W 0° 10°E 20°E 30°E 40°N West African Trade Routes and Empires, A.D. 1000–1500 Tunis Fez M MUSLIM e d i t e r r a n e a n S e a STATES 30°N Cairo S A H A R A In Salah Ghat Tropic of Cancer Taghaza 20°N Tadmekka Takedda Awdaghust Walata Sen eg a l Timbuktu Gao R iv N e ig r e Koumbi Djenné r Lake Saleh Chad R iv Kano er 10°N r ve Lake Ri Volta Benue Benin Gulf of Guinea Ghana empire, 1000 N Mali empire, 1350 W E Equator Songhai empire, 1500 0° Trade route S Gold Salt 0 250 500 miles 0 250 500 kilometers 1312 1235 Mansa Musa 1591 Mali defeats becomes ruler Timbuktu falls to invading Moroccans Ghana in battle. of Mali. armed with gunpowder weapons. 1270 1566 England and France Suleyman the Magnificent, begin the last Crusade. sultan of the Ottoman ▲ (Crusaders traveling to Palestine) Empire, dies. 147 Map Note: Added same-color drop shadowed band around PRINTED AT 85% MapQuest.Com, Inc. each empire to help distinguish along with the requested use of patterns. McDougal-Littell, 7th grade World History Program wh07pe-0305CO-002 West African Trade Routes and Empires, 1000-1500 Final proof date: 6/23/04 Reading 3.3 Analyze characterization as delineated through a character’s thoughts, words, speech patterns, and actions; the narrator’s description; and the thoughts, words, and actions of other characters. Background: For centuries, West Africans traded gold for salt from North Africa. Traders from both regions usually had to transport their goods across deserts. They moved in groups called caravans. Camels were often used in caravans to transport goods. Camels could carry a lot of weight and could go without water for several days. The caravans from North and West Africa met at agreed-upon places to trade. Imagine that it is the 14th century. You are a West African trader camping for the night and waiting for traders from North Africa to arrive. ▲ Gold was an important West African trade good. 148 Starting with a Story ou are a trader from West Africa. This is your first trip with a caravan. Tomorrow the caravan will meet Saharan nomadic traders, called Y Berbers, from North Africa. You and your fellow traders are worried that you might not receive enough salt for the gold you brought. Getting salt is profitable for you and important for your king. West Africa has little salt, and people need salt to live. Around the campfire, the caravan master describes what he expects to happen tomorrow. “First will come the faint tinkling of the bells that are attached to the harnesses of the camels. The Berbers will lead in a long row of camels carrying slabs of salt.” The caravan master points to you and says, “You will help carry the bags of gold we will trade into the courtyard.” The next day, the traders inspect each other’s goods. As they do this, you see a Berber boy take something from one of his sacks and eat it. You wonder what it is. He notices you and gestures toward the sack. Bending over, you look in the sack and see that it is filled with a fruit called dates. You take one and eat it. It’s delicious! You then take a cola nut from one of your sacks and hand it to the boy. He takes it and smiles. Then something amazing occurs. As the goods are traded, one of the Berbers makes scratchlike marks on parchment. People say your own king has scholars who can record events by using similar marks called letters. But you have never seen it being done. What could these stranger’s marks mean? As the caravan packs up to leave, you remember all the interesting things that happened on the trip. What have you learned from your first trip with a caravan? 1. READING: Characterization How are the Berbers characterized in this story? Use examples from the text to support your answer. 2. WRITING: Persuasion Imagine you are a West African trader who wants to convince someone to invest in trade with North Africa. Write a paragraph describing why your trade with North Africa is important. Writing 2.4 Write persuasive compositions. 149 Lesson 1 MAIN IDEAS Culture Strong family relationships and agriculture shaped life for most people in West Africa. Government Powerful kings helped expand trading networks that included slavery. Culture Oral traditions preserved the history of West African village societies. TAKING NOTES Reading Skill: Summarizing When you summarize, you restate something in fewer words. In Lesson 1, summarize each of the main sections using a chart like the one below. Section Summary Village life in West Africa ▲ Ceremonial Pot This Trade and regional Nigerian pot depicts a commerce snake, a common element in this style of pottery. The oral tradition in West Africa Skillbuilder Handbook, page R3 7.4.1 Study the Niger River and the 7.4.2 Analyze the importance 7.4.5 Describe the importance of relationship of vegetation zones of family, labor specialization, written and oral traditions in the of forest, savannah, and desert to and regional commerce in the transmission of African history and trade in gold, salt, food, and slaves; development of states and cities in culture. and the growth of the Ghana and West Africa. Mali empires. 150 • Chapter 5 TERMS & NAMES kinship West African clan labor specialization Culture and griot Daily Life Build on What You Know Think about your society’s structure: its government, economy, and the role of family and friends. You might be surprised to learn that many of the same structures were important to West African societies too. Village Life in West Africa ESSENTIAL QUESTION What role did families play in West African society? From 300 to 1500, powerful empires controlled much of West Africa. However, the rulers of these empires did not greatly affect the daily lives of their people. In fact, most West Africans dealt with their rulers only for court cases and taxes. Many people felt a greater sense of loyalty to their village—and to their family. The Importance of Family Family relationships were important in West Africa.