How Did The Mali Empire Influence West African Culture

In the new world, Europeans encountered indigenous plant foods cultivated by Native Americas. These plants were potatoes, beans, corn, tobacco, and cocoa. The potato is especially important because it’s known for one of the main foods for Ireland. The European’s influenced oats and barley etc. Domesticated animals as pigs, chickens, sheep, and ox were also brought to the Americas. Horses were also brought to the new world which was a new tool for hunting and used for military.

Chocolate wasn’t bad either.” (Document 6). Although the potato and corn were not cash crops, they quickly became apart of every European’s diet. Potatoes were affordable and could be used in many different ways. Although, the New World received livestock such as cattle, pigs and horses, they also recieved diseases.

WH9 Kaulike Jansen Africa DBQ January 6, 2016 Before the Europeans arrived to the empires, kingdoms, and cities of Africa, the African civilization flourished in many achievements with Art, political status, trade, and culture. The Africa we know today is not like the Africa we knew before the Europeans arrived in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Africa traders have used their skills to trade with other lands. Beautiful cities were built with an advanced political structure like the city of Kilwa. They even maintained a thriving culture.

How did a small band of chiefdoms, barely distinguished from countless others, rise to become a massive trading ground for not only gold, but tradition? The Mali Empire, founded in the 1200s by Mansa Sundiata, was a powerful, influential kingdom that inevitably housed the transfer of countless cultures. Since it was founded atop gold fields, the Empire of Mali quickly established control over trade in Africa. Although there were numerous causes why Mali was a place of cultural exchange, the Empire of Mali’s wealth was the main origin because it constructed the University at Timbuktu, raised the Great Mosque of Djenne, and nourished beneficial trade.

Some of the foods and animals that came from Europe to the Americas were bananas, coffee, cows, sheep, rice, horses, pigs, pears, wheat, turnips, lettuce, peaches, oranges, and lemons. Those are some of the foods and animals that came from Europe to the Americas. Some stuff that came from the Americas to Europe was, corn, cotton, papayas, peanuts, pumpkins, vanilla beans, marigolds, pineapples, and avocados. There are a lot more of food that came from the Americas to Europe.

The histories of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai are not well documented. Much of what we know is a mixture of legend, stories and secondhand accounts. North Africa has small coastal areas, some savanna areas, but it is mostly made up of the sahara desert. It is a very dry and hot region. West Africa has some desert areas, wet and dry grasslands, small rainforest, and long rivers, like the Niger River. It has some vegetation areas, but it also has some dry and hot areas. According to legend, Ghana started when a foreigner named Dhinga had to kill a goblin, and marry the goblins pretty daughters. Their offspring became ancestors of the ruling Soninke clans. After he died, his son Dyabe defeated his brother and founded the empire of Ghana somewhere

Along with the humans, animals made and were a key part to the Columbian exchange. Non domesticated and domesticated animals made an impact on the new world. When the Europeans brought horses, pigs, sheep, and cattle across the ocean it introduced a new means of transportation, a new labor form, and new food sources. For example, horses were very useful in battles and transportation. They carried people quickly from one place to another. In battles, horses allowed people to fight from a higher level or degree, thus giving them an advantage. As for pigs, another important animal, people ate them as a new food source. It says, “Pigs were also a key animals used during ocean travels because they could be dumped on the way to a country or place and then picked up and eaten on the way back. The horse, too, was also a very useful animals as it helped with battle; it allowed for faster travel, it allowed for the surprising of opponents, and

Besides the diseases and livestock brought to the Americas from Europe, Europeans also brought along new plants, including; grapes, peaches, oranges, melons, bananas, onions, radishes and a lot of green vegetables. In addition to these plants, Europeans also introduced cereal crops. With the introduction of wheat, Americans could not only feed themselves, but also export large amounts of grains throughout the world.

Even before Europeans came to Africa, the kingdoms in Africa were quite wealthy. As previously mentioned, Ghana was a very strong kingdom in which its people were also incredibly wealthy. Their government appeared to be wealthy as well, which assisted Ghana in being able to control the gold and salt trade. An Arab scholar, Al-Bakri, wrote about the king’s court and how basically everything that the court had was gold (Document 2). The point of view of this document was also positive, and that is because scholars are usually upper class, just like the king’s court. Al-Bakri thought very highly of the court, and explains in detail how every person has some gold on them and how their surroundings also possessed gold. Ghana had a strong army and an intelligent political counsel, which made other countries fear them. Nations around Ghana did not want to start problems and usually just maintained peace with Ghana (Document 3). Ghana was not the only successful kingdom, one of the leaders of Mali, Mansa Musa,

Africans had to trade with other societies so that they could improve their wealth. The Mongols didn’t trade, the went from town to town destroying it and causing everyone to fear them to expand their empire. The African kings were the richest people in the whole society because they had the most gold. Genghis Khan, the ruler of the Mongols for a period of time, controlled his empire because he the most power and force so that he could overtake other societies.

Changes in political and cultural traditions during the post-classical period occurred in Africa because of intensive Islamic contact. When Arab conquerors introduced the Islamic faith into northern Africa, they expanded the region of commerce. Muslim merchants established trading centers for copper, iron, salts, and cotton textiles. The newly established trade affected traditional social and religious beliefs. After 1000 C.E., the kin-based social structure experienced difficult challenges. Increased conflict between peoples led to the creation of military forces for both offensive and defensive use. This led to the formation of chiefdoms exhibiting more formal structures of governing such as in the kingdoms of Kongo, Ghana, and Mali. Because most traders were Muslim, many African societies converted to Islam to improve their relations with the

The gold abundance in Africa gave them great power and increased international trade. The main route of trade is the trans-Saharan route which was monopolized by the Ghana, Mali and Songhai empires creating great economic success. This route transported many different type of goods including gold exporting their good while importing foreign goods. Soon instead of using this route the Europeans began to start trading at the coast of West Africa. The coast known as the gold coast to European traders. This name did not for long being renamed the Slave Coast as the human trafficking market spread. The different kings of the African Empires were thought of as godlike, their spiritual views greatly influenced the politics in Africa. Believing their kings to have special abilities made religion a strong influence to those in power. Many different African cultures believed in religions that worshipped many gods and spirits that they believed lived in the earth. There was a great respect for their ancestors and great honor shown to their elders. The West African people also had gender based secret societies where the women celebrated their fertility. While the men are encouraged to have many children with their multiple wives. Monotheism also spread throughout Africa Islam spread being told by Muslim leaders and Arab merchants. Cities around the Niger River became places for learning Islam

During the time period from 1230 to 1670, the Empire of Mali became a site of cultural exchange because of the strong leaders they had, the resources they used around them, the gold and salt trade, the

For one, the empire of Mali was the first place to create glass, which could be made into very nice symmetrical art. Also, clay and sculpture making were big inventions during the 11th century Mali, a form of art that no other country had. And the military weapons and tactics put Mali as one of the most fierce armies. All of these reasons effected why so many people went to Mali’s cultural

The Mali Empire is one of the largest in west Africa influenced the culture of the region through spreading language, laws and customs along the lands near Nile river. They also developed there city because of gold and salt trading. They taxed everyone who passes their borders with gold, copper and salt.