ancient african social structure

Oral traditions and Muslim and European records suggest that large-scale famines occurred every 70 years or so, and were often accompanied by epidemic disease. Only the driest and coolest regions escaped this disease. There were high levels of polygamy throughout Africa in some societies perhaps two-thirds of women were in polygamous marriages. Perhaps the highland areas which have had most impact on the history of Africa have been the Ethiopian Highlands, which have sheltered Africas only historic Christian state; and the highlands of southern Africa, which have played a key role in that regions history. The more high-status and long-distance traders, however, were men. Such traders were men, and they ranged from single itinerant traders with perhaps a donkey to carry his goods, to those in charge of caravans of donkeys or, in the desert, of camels. Such famines were usually caused by drought, but plagues of locusts or unseasonably heavy rains could also devastate crops. Weaving with the loom seems to have come late to sub-Saharan Africa, introduced by Muslim traders into West Africa towards the end of the first millennium AD; and probably separately to eastern and southern Africa, also by Muslim merchants via the Swahili ports. At a much higher level, some kingdoms gave high status to female members of the royal family. They then had no option but to throw themselves on the mercy of others by begging, a very common fate in traditional African society. Oratory, debate, story-telling, poetry and conversation were all held in high esteem, and were developed into a highly sophisticated art at the royal courts of African kingdoms and chiefdoms. This tradition of West African sculpture arose in a much broader context of mask-making and statuary in wood and ivory, which covered much of sub-Saharan Africa. Other states were built around sacred shrines and their custodians, who enjoyed a concentration of religious authority which they were able to convert into political power. If a kinship group fell below a viable size it ceased to be able to protect itself properly and became extremely vulnerable to being absorbed, often brutally, by more fertile rivals. The greater number of people such a community embraced, the better it meant greater security for all, and more labour for the back-breaking work of keeping the bush at bay and clearing more land. Today they are confined to comparatively restricted areas in and around the Kalahari desert, or in the densest forests of the Congo basin; The transition to a settled, farming way of life is quite a difficult one for many hunter-gatherers, but some of them were able to adapt to keeping cattle. 1. This would normally be a cluster of households. It further summarizes some of the key social, economic, political, and religious groups and divisions in Classical Athenian society and how these interacted with each other and with questions of belonging and identity in the polis. There are also some large mountain ranges, such as the Ruwenzori mountains in Uganda (the Mountains of the Moon). It has therefore been comparatively isolated from the influences which have cross-fertilized and enriched historical societies elsewhere. Slavery It is inhabited by the San hunter-gatherer people who have adapted their lifestyle to this forbidding environment over 20,000 years. - africa's social structure forms political nations that will help people from violence. They were now in a position to acquire wives and found their own family lines. Similarly, belief that spiritual power came only through dead ancestors was common amongst herding societies. Caste systems in Africa are a form of social stratification found in numerous ethnic groups, found in over fifteen countries, particularly in the Sahel, West Africa, and North Africa. The most productive salt mines were located deep in the Sahara desert, and the miners lived isolated lives working in appalling conditions. All these diseases were, despite higher levels of resistance in indigenous populations to foreign ones (West Africa in particular would become known as the The White Mans Grave) were all widespread killers. NTlmYTU5OWZlYjIyNzk0NmRkZjAxMGZiMTRhMzBkYWViYTY4ZmNjYjlmNDMz Diving into that variation, a new analysis of 180 indigenous Africans from a dozen ethnically, culturally . In most patrilineal societies womens status tended to be less favorable. In line with the pragmatic nature of African thought, the test for religious practices and practitioners was whether they worked, especially in relieving human misfortune or securing fertility of womb or field, prosperity, health and social harmony in the world. These operated as almost military organization, and required large investment to fund. These factors have acted as constraints on population growth right up to modern times, and historically sub-Saharan Africa has remained an under-populated region. In East, Central and Southern Africa, the mix of staple crops varied from place to place according to environment, but normally included yams and sorghum, later supplemented by plantain. Men who were spared death were set to work as laborers, miners or porters; or, if they had suitable skills, as craftsmen. Difficulties in transport encouraged local self-sufficiency, and most trade consisted of purely local exchanges, for example at river banks where fish was bartered for vegetables, or where forest and savannah met, where the products of the two zones were exchanged. They required widespread international contacts to be successful. This crosses the content from its west coast to the east coast. One of the biggest threats to harmony within society was witchcraft. In general, work was divided equally among all people (other than slaves). Some states were created by rulers of village clusters who, through military prowess, were able to use their manpower to conquer other clusters. In forest regions, away from lakes and rivers, human porterage was the only means of transport as the presence of tsetse fly meant that animals could not be used; this was by definition very labour intensive and meant that agricultural produce could travel only short distances. J. Clyde Mitchell, The Yao Village: a Study in the Social Structure of a Malawian Tribe. In Africa, trade and industry were constrained by underpopulation. Underpopulation meant that disgruntled people could always seek new land beyond the reach of royal authority. Most involved a keen belief in spirits of different kind; of the afterlife; of a spiritual dimension to the land; and of evil. All Africans believed in spiritual beings. OTZhNjdjMmQ4MzVlNTAyODMzY2ZjOTFlOWE3NjJkOGI5NjVmODQ2NGRhN2Y2 There were, however, networks of long-distance trade criss-crossing the continent from an early date. There were many African societies which have been classified by political historians as stateless or de-centralized. The Bantu, a large group of related peoples, originated along what is now the border between NIGERIA and CAMEROON and spread throughout central and southern Africa. Social mobility In southern Africa the kingdom centered on Great Zimbabwe was situated on a gold trade route. Religious and medical knowledge was interwoven, and was mysterious to the community at large (except in so far as the healing properties of many plants were commonly appreciated). The donkeys also were domesticated independently in the Ethiopian and Somalian region, but the majority of the domesticated animals came there from the regions around . Facts about Ancient Africa 1: the great civilization Africa is the home to some great civilizations. In large settlements religion and healing was in the hands of professionals, whose interests naturally lay in keeping such matters out of the reach of the general populace. In West Africa, the slow multiplication of population concentrations laid the basis for further expansion. As a result of these factors, throughout Africas premodern history, locations where densely-populated farming societies could emerged, and in which urban civilizations could be built, have been fewer and more scattered than most other regions of the world. African societies never really ceased to be colonizing societies, and this profoundly influenced all aspects of African culture. ZGEzYzEwNGE3M2M4NDVjZWFiNDg4OTE5MzljZGNmY2UyN2ViOTc1YTZmMTRk YjE4NWI3ZjI1ZTFlNDUxYmJhY2U0N2E1ODZjNzFmOWJlM2FkMzA2OGZkN2Q4 The contemporary political history of Africa is marked by imperialism, the expulsion of foreign powers and settler elites, and the post-independence travails of its roughly fifty states. All climate zones in sub-Saharan Africa were characterized by a highly uneven settlement pattern. It has captivated visitors since it was built as a royal burial chamber some 4,500 years ago. Metalwork held a special place in African culture. Indeed, in some areas, particularly where grassland and forest met, all three modes were practiced locally, resulting in a particularly fruitful exchange of produce. Taking captives was a major objective in war, with most of the individuals thus enslaved being women or children. There was constant tension between the generations, which could spill over into real violence. YmNlZWRhOWNhNTAxYjRmYjc3ZWNhZDYyMGMyNGVhMjMyYjYyODYzMmMxZTQ1 They were willing to put down tools and stop work when they felt their independence was being threatened. From a wider communal viewpoint, wives and children were needed to build up a lineages numbers and so help it survive into the future. Except in favorable locations, especially where fishing, or gathering aquatic resources, could supplement diets, hunting and foraging groups needed a large area of land on which to sustain themselves. Ancient Grains Market Global Research Report 2023 is a comprehensive business study on the current state of industry which analyses innovative strategies for business growth and describes . Equality was very important in these tribes and all people were treated equally. Popular culture. Some owed their rise to the wealth gained from long-distance trade. In West Africa, the climatic zones aligned in a series of east-to-west belts Sahara desert, desert-grassland margin (the Sahel), savannah grassland and tropical forest. Slavery was widespread in traditional African societies. Their impact on West African society, where trade networks were strongest, and along the East African coast, with its maritime links to the Middle East, was enormous. On the whole, though, anthropologist have emphasized the rational, experimental nature of African medicine. This was a strategy to counter a shortage of population, embarking on war and raids with the deliberate intention of taking captives to build up a concentration of unfree farmers under direct royal control. eyJtZXNzYWdlIjoiYTQ3YTllNzM5MzNhY2U5MTg3MDQzZTY2YzI0NGNiOTQx Many captives were sold on to other peoples; there was an active slave trade in Africa. Even in West Africa, and certainly for Africa as a whole, salt was probably the most traded commodity, being an essential part of peoples diet, especially for those in regions where meat was hard to come by. One other consequence of African underpopulation was the prevalence of the polygamy (see below). Age sets were the mark of militarized, mobile societies which lived by cattle-keeping, but also by cattle-raiding and territory-taking. Gradually, the hunter-gatherers were squeezed off the best lands by the incoming pastoralists and cultivators, who were able to live in larger groups. The continent of Africa covers several broad climatic zones. The forests are very difficult to cut down, and it was only with the coming of iron implements, in the later first millennium BCE and the early first millennium CE, that people could properly start clearing areas of forest for agriculture. ODI0YWEwOGYyOTY5ZGVhNjEzMWUzOTFjMGEzYTA3ZjUzZjNkM2EyNDZhODVk Its flora consists of a mix of scrub, grassland and woodland. This categorization was not hard and fast. This The Call of the Wild by Jack London Middle School reading unit and novel study is exactly what you need to teach your . Environment and population, Village society Suspects were often the victims of mob violence. Whole slave villages were established. From the 17th century, European contact have brought new crops from America, such as maize, cassava and sweet potatoes, and these were beginning to provide additional nutrition and a significant boost to numbers all over Africa. ZWFhZmI1NmY5ZjVhZjJjNjYxYTFjNzUxMjgzZTE4MGZhOWIyODQyZWE4ZGIz In due course he would probably be accepted back into his community through paying a fine to, or offering to work for, his wifes father. They also had a reputation for being independent-minded. Social Structure - Ancient Africa - Kingdom of Axum Social Structure There was not very much information on this particular topic, but this is what I did find. Camels were employed in the long-distance trans-Saharan trade, and donkeys were the normal mode of transport in the West African savannah. In some places, groups of skilled craftsmen had their own chiefs. Such pragmatism made for an open attitude to ideas and practices from outside: if something worked it was acceptable, wherever it came from. Other common maladies were hookworm anaemia, yaws, leprosy, smallpox and endemic syphilis (though not the more lethal venereal kind, which was only introduced into sub-Saharan Africa in the 16th century, after Europeans arrived). This article looks at the societies and cultures of sub-Saharan Africa in pre-modern history. MjU3ZDQ3NDE0ZGRiM2NlMTZjMmE3NTQ0ODIxMzVlMzExZDc3ZTk0NDYyNGQ4 The effects of disease were compounded by diets amongst crop-growing peoples low in animal protein and vitamins, in milk for infants, and, for many places, restricted access to clean fresh water. So too could warfare or misrule. - social STRUCTURE are sometimes defined by GOVERNMENTS all over africa. African ritual experts learnt thousands of verses of religious and wisdom poetry, and expounded the appropriate one to guide kings and ministers as they resolved disputes; Rememberers treasured the traditions and histories of the kingdoms; and traders astonished early European travelers with their powers of recall. This article looks at the societies and cultures of sub-Saharan Africa in pre-modern history. Pastoralist and farming communities have therefore lived in close proximity, which has been a major factor in state formation in these regions.if(typeof ez_ad_units != 'undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'timemaps_com-leader-2','ezslot_11',177,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-timemaps_com-leader-2-0'); Pastoralist communities are more dispersed, and much more mobile, than agricultural ones, as they follow their flocks and herds around in the search for good grazing. Fear of witchcraft was particularly virulent in concentrated settlements where interpersonal tensions could be high. This was almost universal throughout Africa, and was a painful, even traumatic ceremony by which boys entered adulthood. When one society was conquered by another, it was the mediums and priests, as well as others in the community with high religious status such as iron workers and herbalists, who often put up the stoutest resistance to alien rule. However, populations of pygmies also inhabited large tracts of tropical forest which covered much of equatorial and western Africa. Here, captives of both sexes were settled in royal estates and set to work there, effectively as serfs. Many studies have been mostly about political centralisation. But humans also were traded: it has been estimated that from the mid-second millennium CE perhaps seven thousand captives a year were taken north across the Sahara from the south, to the slave markets of North Africa and the Middle East. Much craft work in Africa, as in all pre-modern societies, was done on a part-time basis by farmers, particularly women. The beginning of the Atlantic slave trade in the late 1400s disrupted African societal structure as Europeans infiltrated the West African coastline, drawing people from the center of the continent to be sold into slavery. social structure, in sociology, the distinctive, stable arrangement of institutions whereby human beings in a society interact and live together. First adopted by Western scholars, the notion of caste in West Africa refers to a form of hierarchical social classification of individuals into . Everyone on the community would take part, but the central roles were reserved for the mediums with their trance-dancing. The specifics of the caste systems in Africa vary among . One other consequence of African underpopulation was the prevalence of the polygamy (see below). This was a form of draughts, and was played in private rather than in public. To the Western mind, at least, this aspect of religion was indistinguishable from magic, and was in the hands of mediums, priests, diviners and healers. Ironically, this attractive landscape posed a barrier to the spread of traditional farming southward, as sub-Saharan agriculture had adapted itself to tropical conditions. The earliest kingdoms we know of in West Africa, such as Ghana and Mali, were located at strategic points in the trans-Saharan trade network. NDJiMmE4NmUzM2JjYWVjMzMwOGIyMzIwMTJjODRhNTY1YjBiYWE5ZTA5NTIx All women married, as early as possible. Together with drought, famine, epidemic, violence, and an unforgiving food-producing environment, it is easy to see how African populations struggled to grow. They sought to bring shrines and cults under their authority through a mixture of threat and patronage. The environment of sub-Saharan Africa is one of the hardest environments for human populations to thrive in. Heredity counted for much, as in most societies, premodern and modern; passing status down from father to son was an important dynamic. MWI3NWQ1OWEzZmIwYTEzNDljYTRjZTRiNTE5OTBiMjQ1YTI5NDk3ODM0ZDY5 They have used a wide range of techniques, building up the productivity of the land through manuring, terracing, and digging channels to lead water from stream to field, sometimes across wooden aqueducts. Rice was grown on particularly well-watered areas such as along the banks of the River Niger. Interesting Facts about Traditional Religions of Ancient Africa The people of the Mali Empire believed in a magical force called "nyama." The religious beliefs of Africans impacted all aspects of their everyday lives including their food, work, and family life. With the growing emphasis on cattle herding, infant survival must have profited from increased milk supplies, especially when cattle-keeping enabled their owners to colonize the malaria-free highlands which cover much of eastern and souther Africa. Of the outlying settlements, only the more successful ones would survive. This was greatly feared, as it could spring up in communities and tear them apart. Originally, there were two Egyptian kingdoms. Not only so, but the general health of the population was regularly weakened by famine. These colonizing pioneers would clear the forest or scrub, and divide the new fields between themselves as hereditary property. Men were usually killed, perhaps as ritual sacrifices. But it was ancestors with whom these people directly interacted, and approaching them with sacrifices of cattle. He therefore possessed both religious and secular authority within his community. Learning support for teachers and students. African societies were often fluid from one generation to another, however. The sparser population of eastern, central and southern Africa, compared with western Africa, reduced the scale and impact of commercial activity. Africa was not just the birthplace of humanity but also the cradle of early civilisations that made an immense contribution to the world and are still marvelled at today. Just south of the narrow band of temperate climate in North Africa is the largest desert in the world, the Sahara. This process started to happen at different times according to region. The Discipline of International Relations (IR) has been broadly Eurocentric since its inception about a century ago. New findings from a study of 12 diverse groups in Africa shed new light on the origin of modern humans, ancient . One way in which the older generation could impose its control on the younger was through initiation. The 25th dynasty was a line of pharaohs who originated in the Kingdom of Kush that reigned in part or all of Ancient Egypt for nearly a century, from 744 to 656 BC. The geography of Sub-Saharan Africa poses severe challenges to the rise and spread of pre-modern civilization.

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