Unit 2 Chapter 1 - The Empire of Ghana

Three important centers of trade in West Africa include ______, ______, and ______.

Ghana, Mali, Songhai

What was West Africa's next great empire?

Mali

What role did the domesticated camel play in the growth of Ghana's wealth?

The domesticated camel made it possible to carry goods over long distances in the desert.

Gold was traded for ________.

salt

What physical characteristics of camels make them particularly well suited for long trips across the hot desert?

Camels have board splayed feet that let them walk over hot sand without sinking. They also can go for days without any water or food.

Greater contact between Africa and surrounding cultures lead to the spread of ________ and ________.

Christianity, Islam

What weakened the Ghana empire?

Conflicts with other people along with weather patterns and climate changes weakened the Ghana empire.

How specifically did the kings and kingdom of Ghana become so wealthy?

Ghana became wealthy from taxes collected from merchants passing through the kingdom. Gold also made the king and the kingdom wealthy. The king kept any gold nuggets that were found in the mines, but the traders were allowed to keep the gold dust.

How did the king of the Ghana Empire help the kingdom's economy?

Ghana became wealthy from taxes collected from merchants passing through the kingdom. Gold also made the king and the kingdom wealthy. The king kept any nuggets that were found in the mines but allowed the merchants/ traders to keep any gold dust.

In addition to gold and salt, what else was traded along the African trade routes?

Iron, ivory, spices, textiles (cloth), and enslaved people were also traded along African trade routes.

Many people from West Africa converted to ________ when Muslim people from North Africa traveled to West Africa.

Islam

Enslaved people were sold at markets in _________, _______, and _______.

North Africa, Europe, Asia

Traders came to Ghana from _______, _______, and _______ to exchange goods for gold.

North Africa, Europe, Asia

What was important about the location of Ghana?

Salt mines lay to the north in the Sahara and gold mines lay to south.

Why was salt valuable?

Salt provided an essential nutrient and was used to preserve food.

What did the king do in exchange for taxes collected from traders/ merchants?

The king made sure the trade routes were protected so the traders could travel.

Why were traders willing to risk crossing the dangerous Sahara?

The king protected the trade routes. Even though the trip was dangerous, the traders could become very wealthy from trading the goods they gathered.

What types of problems did traders/ merchants encounter while traveling around the Sahara desert?

The trip is long and dangerous and there is a risk of sandstorms.

How did improved iron working skills help the empire of Ghana grow?

They learned how to make better weapons which were used to win new territories through war.

________ was the original religion in Ghana.

animism

In addition to gold and salt, _______ were sold on the trans-Saharan trade routes.

enslaved people

________, _______, _______, _______, and _______ traveled the trade routes with the traders/ merchants?

teachers, clerics, poets, musicians, artists