Module 5
Subsaharan Africa, North Africa, and Southwest Asia
a. Introducing the Realm
There is considerable variation with respect to how the regions of Subsaharan
Africa are delineated or identified on maps. The debate is not about what regions are in
Subsaharan Africa but rather about which countries are to be included within each region.
The regions have both similarities and differences. The cultural geography varies widely
from country to country and from one ethnic group to another, but at the same time, there
are shared cultural patterns across all Subsaharan African regions. For example,
colonialism has been a major historical factor in the shaping of the countries. Families are
large, and rapid rural-to-urban shift is occurring in all regions. Every region has large
urban centers—often port cities that act as central core locations supported by a large
peripheral rural hinterland.
Globalization has entered into the dynamics connecting these once-remote regions
with the rest of the world. Advancements in communication and transportation
technology have created networks connecting Africa with global markets. Subsaharan
Africa has a young population that is on the move, seeking to gain from any opportunities
or advantages it can find. The political arena is dynamic: changes in political leadership
through coups or military takeovers are common, as is authoritarian rule. Subsaharan
Africa is home to some of the poorest countries in the world. Poverty is evident in the
countryside and the urban districts with poorly-constructed homes without public services
in the large cities. Bitter civil wars are a part of every region’s history. Violence and
conflicts continue in some areas, while other areas exhibit political stability and thriving
economies. The diversity in human geography is the most noteworthy dynamic in
Subsaharan Africa. The variety of ethnic groups along with the multiplicity of languages
and religious affiliations create strong centripetal and centrifugal forces that interact in a
thriving sea of cultural diversity.
Most of the population lives an agrarian lifestyle, but there are people who are
developing the skills necessary to adapt to the rapid globalization wave that is importing
new technology and new ideas to the continent. The urban core areas of the continent are
the main focus of the global trends in technology and communication. These urban core
areas exhibit the typical dynamics of the coreperiphery spatial relationship. Subsaharan
Africa has many core areas and many peripheral areas. The core urban centers have
political power because of the social elites who have connections to the global economy
and often dominate political activities.
These core urban areas are often magnets for people from large families in rural
peripheral areas seeking employment. Millions of people in Africa who seek employment
are willing to migrate to the cities or even other countries to find work. The rural
immigrants are often not of the same ethnic group as those in power, which sets up the
basis for discriminatory policies that disadvantage the many minority groups that are not
affiliated with the government. These dynamics can fuel protest activities with a goal of
overthrowing the powerful elite. Various ideas have been proposed to help level the
socioeconomic playing field. One of the more prominent options is the implementation of
political reforms, where most of the people have a stake in electing those that hold
positions of leadership and power.
Broad patterns and dynamics of people and places are replicated throughout the
Subsaharan realm. The regions share common demographic trends of larger family sizes,
agrarian lifestyles, and lower income levels. The patterns of an economy based on
agricultural production and mineral extractive activities as well as disruptive changes in
political leadership are common throughout the continent. Each region has diverse ethnic
groups and an array of different languages. South of the African Transition Zone, the
most prevalent belief systems are Christian based and animist, while north of the
zone,Islam is widespread. Division and civil unrest can occur where the different
religions meet and compete for political control. These concepts will bear repeating
throughout. The cultural mosaic of Subsaharan Africa is vast and complex, and this will
outline the basic trends and patterns with specific examples that will help place it all in
perspective.
The African Transition Zone divides North Africa from the rest of Africa because
of climatic and cultural dynamics. Cultural conflicts and desertification are common in
the zone. Dry, arid type B climates, common in the Sahara Desert, are dominant north of
the zone. Tropical type A climates prevail south of the zone. Global climate changes
continue to shape the continent. The shifting sands of the Sahara are slowly moving
southward toward the tropics. Desertification in the zone continues as natural conditions
and human activity place pressure on the region through overgrazing and the lack of
precipitation. Type B climates resurface again south of the tropics in the southern
latitudes. The Kalahari and Namib Deserts are located in Southern Africa, mainly in the
countries of Botswana and Namibia.
For a continent as large as Africa, Subsaharan Africa does not have extended
mountain ranges comparable to the ranges in North or South America, Europe, Asia, or
Antarctica. There are, however, on the Ethiopian Highlands the Ethiopian Plateau that
reach as high as 15,000 feet in elevation. East Africa has a number of well-known
volcanic peaks that are high in elevation. The tallest point in Africa—Mt. Kilimanjaro in
Tanzania near the border with Kenya—is 19,340 feet high. Nearby in Kenya, Mt. Kenya
is 17,058 feet high. The Rwenzori Mountains on the Congo/Uganda border reach more
than 16,000 feet in elevation and create a rain shadow effect for the region. Permanent
glaciers exist on these ranges even though they are near the equator. On the western side
of the continent, Mt. Cameroon in Central Africa is more than 13,000 feet in elevation.
South Africa’s Cape Ranges are low-lying mountains no higher than about 6,000 feet.
The continent of Africa consists of basins and plateaus without long mountain chains.
The plateaus can range more than 1,000–2,500 feet in elevation. The only continuous
feature is the eastern rift valleys that run along the tectonic plate boundaries from the Red
Sea through to South Africa.
West Africa was home to a number of large empires that shaped the culture and
people of presentday Africa. Gold, salt, copper, and ivory were important early trading
commodities. Mining and acquiring these items brought enormous wealth to the region.
Slavery became a component in the warfare between groups, as the winner usually took
the captives to serve as servants or enslaved people. The Ghana Empire (790–1076 CE)
was responsible for one of the early consolidations of power in West Africa. Though its
power and wealth were vast, it was only the first of a number of empires to arise in the
region.
After the Ghana Empire came the Mali Empire (1230–1600 CE), which was
known for its wealth and size. The empire held major mining operations including gold,
copper, and salt. Expanding along the Niger River and to the Atlantic coast, the Mali
Empire extended over an area the size of Western Europe. Originally a federation of local
groups, the empire incorporated many smaller provinces or kingdoms and had a major
influence on the region’s laws and cultural heritage.
One of the Indigenous states that evolved out of the Mali Empire was that of the
Songhai people, who were located to the east of the main Mali Empire. The Songhai had
been based around the city of Gao for centuries, and in the fifteenth century, they
established the Songhai Empire, one of the largest empires in African history. The city of
Timbuktu became prominent during this period as an urban center, and its educational
institutions became well known. In the end, the Songhai Empire was defeated by
Moroccan Berber forces that splintered the empire into many smaller kingdoms and
ethnic clans.
South of the empires of the Niger River were coastal kingdoms, including the
Ashanti and the Dahomey, which flourished during the colonial era. The local African
groups had to contend with the colonial European traders and invaders, which had
superior weapons and different technology. Besides the mining resources of gold, copper,
salt, and ivory, the slave trade was a driving force that attracted trade ships from various
European countries.
Wherever you go in the world, you cannot escape the impact of European
colonialism. Subsaharan Africa was broadly affected by colonial activities, the legacy of
which can be recognized to this day. Colonial powers of Europe ventured into Africa to
claim colonies. In the discussion on Brazil, there is a segment on slavery and the Trade
Triangle of the North Atlantic. Slavery impacted Africa in other ways. Many African
groups were instrumental in capturing and holding enslaved people to trade with the
European merchants. These African groups were involved with the supply side of the
slave trade while the European merchants and the American colonialists were involved
with the demand side. The consequences of the displacement of millions of enslaved
people continue to be felt in the social and cultural fabric of countries on both sides of the
Atlantic
By 1900, European colonial powers claimed most of Africa. Only the Kingdom of
Ethiopia and the area of Liberia, which was established as a home for formerly enslaved
people, remained independent. In 1884, Otto von Bismarck of Germany hosted the Berlin
Conference, which to a great degree determined how Africa was colonized. This
conference included fourteen colonial European countries and the United States, and its
purpose was to divide Africa and agree on colonial boundary lines. Germany had few
claims in Africa; Bismarck was hoping to benefit by playing the other countries against
each other. At the time, more than 80 percent of Africa remained free of colonial control.
On a large map of Africa, claims were argued over and boundary lines were drawn
according to European agreements.
The transition from European colony to independent state has not necessarily
been a civil transition for African countries; likewise, independent African countries have
struggled to create stable governments or peaceful conditions—though stable
governments and peaceful conditions have been established in some cases. In nearly all
cases, removing the colonial powers from Africa was only half the battle toward
independence. The other half was establishing a functional, effective government.
Though each country has taken a slightly different path, most former colonies
have endured civil unrest, conflict, or warfare in their push for stable governments.
Coups, fraudulent elections, military regimes, and corruption have plagued the leadership
in a number of African countries. Civil unrest usually precedes a change in leadership:
political power regularly changes hands by a military coup or an overthrowing of the
current leader.
b. Human Geography of Subsaharan Africa
The demographic data for each country in each region of Subsaharan Africa
indicate the region’s human geography. Urban percentages, family size, income levels,
and the other data that can indicate the lifestyle or development level are acutely helpful
in understanding the trends in Subsaharan Africa. The index of economic development
illustrates the dynamics and conditions that exist in the realm. The data indicate the
consistency of economic and development trends across Africa. The data does not,
however, indicate differences in cultural dynamics and uniqueness in the ways that local
people live. The interesting part of studying Subsaharan Africa is the many ethnic and
cultural groups in each country that bring to the surface a wide array of global diversity in
our human community. Within each and every country are microcosms of human
societies that hold particular customs that may be thousands of years old. Globalization
and technological advancements challenge every cultural group to adapt and innovate to
make a living yet provide continuity in their heritage. The remote cultural groups of
Subsaharan Africa are most susceptible to the volatile nature of globalization, which
threatens their current way of life.
The socioeconomic data illustrate well the conditions for people in Africa in
comparison to the rest of the world. African countries are at the lowest end of the
statistics for development prospects. The larger cities are showing promise for
advancement into the higher stages of development. Family sizes in the rural countries
are some of the largest in the world. The average fertility rate for Subsaharan Africa was
4.6 in 2019. [2] In 2020, Mali had a fertility rate of 5.6 and a fertility rate of 6.9 in Niger.
In Botswana, for example, the fertility rate was about 2.4 and declining. One-third to half
of the populations of these countries are under the age of fifteen. Children make up most
of the population in many areas—an indication that heavier burdens are placed on
women, meaning that women are not easily able to get an education or work outside the
home.
The populations of West African countries are increasing rapidly and will double
in about thirty years at the current rate. This trend places an extra burden on the economy
and on the environment. It is fueling one of the fastest rural-to-urban shifts in the world.
West Africa is now only about 40 percent urban, and Burkina Faso and Niger are less
than 30 percent urban—clear indications that agriculture is the largest sector of their
economies and that most of the people live in rural areas or small villages. Personal
income levels in West African countries are among the lowest in the world; as far as
standard of living is concerned, these are poor countries. Few economic opportunities
exist for the millions of young people entering the employment market.
Subsaharan Africa covers a large land area more than 2.3 times the size of China
or the United States. Thousands of ethnic groups are scattered throughout the realm.
There is immense diversity among the billion people in Subsaharan Africa, and within
each country are cultural and ethnic groups with their own histories, languages, and
religions. More than 2,000 separate and distinct languages are spoken in all of Africa.
Forty are spoken by more than a million people. Many local languages are not written
down and have no historical record or dictionary. Local languages without a written
history are usually the first to be lost as globalization affects the realm. Nigeria, with
more than 219 million people, is the most populous country in Africa. It is about the size
of Venezuela, or Texas and Oklahoma combined, and the African Transition Zone cuts
through the country’s northern portion. More than 500 separate languages are spoken in
Nigeria alone. Three of the six dominant languages in Subsaharan Africa—spoken by at
least 10 million people or more—are spoken in Nigeria: Hausa, Yoruba, and Ibo. The
three remaining major languages of Subsaharan Africa are Swahili, Lingala, and Zulu.
Before the monotheistic religions from the Middle East were even in existence,
the people of Africa followed traditional animist beliefs. The diffusion of Christianity and
Islam to the African continent convinced many African people to abandon their animist
beliefs. However many did not, or they mixed their newfound Christian beliefs with their
traditional faith. African religions spread with the slave trade and became a part of the
African Diaspora. Examples can be found in the Santeria religion in Cuba, Umbanda
followers in Brazil, and Vodou practitioners in Haiti. Many of these examples indicate a
high rate of mixing between traditional religions and Christianity, something that is not as
well accepted within Islam.
The current religious trends in Africa follow the pattern of the African Transition
Zone. The majority of the population north of the zone follows Islam, and a majority of
the population living south of the zone follows Christianity. Large percentages of people
south of the zone follow a wide array of traditional or animist beliefs. For example, as of
2017, more than 50 percent of the people of Togo still followed local religions not
affiliated with Christianity or Islam. Only about 29 percent of the population claimed to
be Christian, and even fewer claimed to follow Islam.[4] West Africa, for example, has
millions of followers that incorporate Vodou beliefs into their faith even though
Christianity is prominent.
Subsaharan Africa is home to thousands of ethnic or traditional groups. Each has
a separate identity and history, and often one group is in conflict with another. The slave
trade and the establishment of colonial political boundaries or policies exacerbated
historical ethnic hostilities. Major civil wars have been fought throughout the history of
throughout Subsaharan Africa and continue at the present time. Central Africa has
endured ongoing brutal conflict in the past decade, with no solution in sight. More than 5
million people have died as a result of the civil war in the D.R. Congo (Zaire). Fighting
continues between various factions over political control or control over natural
resources, such as diamonds or gold. Civil wars are devastating some African countries.
Many other countries, such as Zimbabwe, Chad, and the Central African Republic, have
also suffered economic disintegration as a result of severe political unrest.
Rwanda’s Tutsi-Hutu conflict has been historic in its violence and in the senseless
killing of innocent people. In 1994, the centuries-old conflict erupted into violence of
unprecedented proportions. Hutu militias took revenge on the Tutsis for years of
suppression and massacred anyone who did not support the Hutu cause. Tutsi rebels
finally gained strength, fought back, and defeated the Hutu militias. More than a million
people were killed, and more than a million defeated Hutus fled as refugees to
neighboring countries, where many died of cholera and dysentery in refugee camps.
In recent years the medical world has been confronting the coronavirus pandemic,
which has also been serious in Subsaharan Africa. For decades before the COVID-19
outbreak, Subsaharan Africa was coping with high numbers of people infected with HIV
and AIDS. From South Africa to Kenya, there is a line of countries with some of the
highest percentages of people infected with HIV in the world. The HIV virus has infected
up to one-fourth of the adults in parts of Southern Africa. Some villages have lost an
entire generation of adults to AIDS. The AIDS pandemic has become a major health
crisis for Subsaharan Africa. Up to half a million people die of AIDS in Subsaharan
African each year. Up to a million new cases occur on an annual basis. It has been the
leading cause of death in many places before the COVID-19 pandemic arrived. Fifteen
million people have already died of AIDS in Africa. According to the World Health
Organization, as many as 35 million people in this realm are infected with HIV.
It’s possible to live with HIV for years before dying of AIDS. Individuals infected
with HIV can pass the virus to others without knowing they have it, and millions of
people die of AIDS in Subsaharan Africa without ever knowing they were infected. The
lack of education, HIV testing, and medical services hinder progress toward stopping this
deadly disease. Prevention is an ideal and a cultural dilemma. Many people do not want
to be tested out of fear of rejection by their families and friends if they are infected. AIDS
will surely kill millions more in Africa before a solution is found. The COVID-19
pandemic shifted much of the medical attention away from HIV and AIDS which could
escalate the number of deaths from AIDS in spite of those dying from COVID-19.
Individuals suffering from a compromised immune system from HIV could also be more
susceptible to the COVID-19 virus.
Subsaharan Africa has great potential for economic development in a number of
sectors. One of them is tourism. Tourism is considered a postindustrial activity with
mixed income opportunities. If Africa can manage its resources and provide a safe
environment for travelers, tourism will have a strong impact on Africa’s economic
growth and will play a significant role in its future.
Tourism was a growing sector of the global economy before the COVID-19
pandemic. Travel and tourism jobs were increasing worldwide. Africa as a whole has
attracted less than 5 percent of total world tourists and accounts for only a small
percentage of international tourism income. Given the region’s slim share of the tourism
market and the expected dynamic growth of the sector worldwide, Africa can expect to
substantially increase its share of global tourism activity.
c. West Africa
The region of West Africa includes the southern portion of the bulge of the
continent, which extends westward to the Atlantic Ocean. This region is bisected by the
African Transition Zone, which borders the southern edge of the Sahara Desert. The main
physical features include the Sahara Desert and the Niger River. The Cameroon
Highlands are located on the eastern border between Nigeria and Cameroon. At 4,100
miles long, the Nile River is the longest, while the Congo River is Africa’s second
longest at 2,922 miles in length. The Niger River is Africa’s third-longest river and
extends more than 2,600 miles from the Guinea Highlands through Mali, Niger, and
Nigeria before reaching the Atlantic Ocean in the Gulf of Guinea.
Some geographers include the country of Chad or portions of it within the region
of West Africa. In this textbook, Chad is listed with Central Africa. The portions of Chad
located north of the African Transition Zone share similar characteristics with North
Africa. Off the coast of Mauritania are the Cape Verde Islands, which are united as an
independent country associated with Africa. Cape Verde was once a Portuguese colony
but received its independence in 1975. Western Sahara has been in conflict with Morocco
over independence and is most often associated with the region of North Africa because
of the influence of Islam and because of its connection to Morocco.
The former French colony of Niger is landlocked, with the Sahara Desert making
up its largest portion. Niger is a land of subsistence farmers, and most of the population
lives in the southern regions. The country is less than 20 percent urban. Other economic
activities include uranium mining, which is the country’s main export. The world demand
for uranium has not been strong in recent years. Oil exploration has begun and
international oil corporations have garnered contracts for drilling.
The Sahara Desert is moving southward, and the agrarian culture at the base of
Niger’s society is often plagued by drought and famine. The Niger River flows through
the southwestern region and provides fresh water, but the northern region is mainly the
Sahara Desert, and large portions are covered with sand dunes. The country has extreme
demographics. Niger has one of the highest fertility rates (6.62) in the world, and half the
population is under the age of fifteen, causing a population explosion that taxes the sparse
natural resources and brings even more poverty to a country at the bottom end of the
index of economic development. Infant mortality rates in Niger have been one of the
highest in the world.
To the west of Niger is Mali, another landlocked Muslim country dominated by
the Sahara Desert. Mali was home to various ancient empires. Wealth was historically
gained from the mining of gold, salt, and copper. The Niger River flows through the
entire southern region, providing a means of transportation and fishing as well as fresh
water. The ancient city of Timbuktu, once a port on the Niger River, was a center of
commerce and trade for the region and was used by the Tuareg as early as the tenth
century. Timbuktu has played an important role as an educationalfocal point for many of
the peoples of the region. The University of Timbuktu is noted for its educational
activities and comprises various colleges and madrasas (Islamic schools of learning). At
one point in its early history, it claimed to hold the largest library collection of books in
Africa. The capital city of Mali is not Timbuktu but Bamako, which is located in the
southwest. Timbuktu has become a major tourist destination.
Mali has been recovering from an armed conflict with rebel groups in the northern
regions that included Timbuktu (2012–2015). Anti-government rebel groups formed and
organized to create an independent Tuareg homeland in northern Mali. In 2012, the rebel
groups took over the major cities and surrounding areas in the north. Various Islamist
groups entered the conflict including elements of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb. After
military intervention, with the aid of the French and African Union, the Malian
government regained the territory. A peace agreement was worked out with the Tuareg
resistance in 2015, but sporadic attacks still occur between rebel groups and the Malian
military.
Mauritania is also dominated by Islam and the Sahara Desert. Niger, Mali, and
Mauritania are the largest of the West African states and together would cover the area of
the United States east of the Mississippi River. The term “state” refers to countries with
independent governments. Mauritania’s access to the Atlantic coast provided a shipping
connection to the rest of the world. For years the country fought over control of portions
of Western Sahara but relinquished those areas in 1975.
The country of Senegal is named for the Senegal River that creates its northern
border with Mauritania. Located on the Atlantic coast, Senegal totally surrounds the
independent country of The Gambia. Senegal was a French colony until 1960, while The
Gambia was a British colony until 1965. The Gambia is an enclave of Senegal and
extends on both sides of the Gambia River for about 186 miles. The Gambia is the
smallest country on the mainland of Africa and is about the size of the U.S. state of
Connecticut. The two countries of Senegal and The Gambia were united into the
confederation of Senegambia from 1982 to 1989 when it was dissolved. They have kept
separate political identities ever since.
Freeing itself from the grip of Portuguese colonial rule was a hard-fought battle
for Guinea-Bissau, which became independent in 1974. The political upheaval that
followed up to the present has resulted in various coups, military rule, changes in
leadership, and the assassination of their president in 2009. Without political stability, it
is difficult to develop a growing economy. Economic corruption of those in power and
civil war have devastated the country’s infrastructure and hindered its economic
development, making it among the poorest nations in the world. The country has to
depend on outside aid to supply its basic needs.
Sierra Leone is a small country on the Atlantic coast with over sixteen different
ethnic groups, each with their own language and traditions. With a Muslim majority and a
Christian minority the country has opted for English to be their official language. In this
case, religion has not been a source of conflict, and a high level of religious tolerance has
been demonstrated within the country. For example, most religious holidays are public
holidays.
To fully understand where Liberia is today as a country and as a people, one has
to understand its background and its geopolitical history. Liberia has a unique
background in that it was not a European colony and was not included in the Berlin
Conference of 1884 as a country up for grabs in the scramble for control of African
territory. The conference of colonial European powers who divided up Africa did
establish borders for the majority of African countries. Liberia, which means “Land of
the Free,” was a destination for formerly enslaved people from the United States. In
1847, Liberia became an independent country patterned after the U.S. government, even
naming its capital Monrovia after President James Monroe, the fifth U.S. president. Many
of the formerly enslaved from the United States returned to Africa and relocated to
Liberia. The slavery experience in the United States gave returning Africans a different
culture and history from those Indigenous to the African continent. Assimilation between
the two groups was difficult. The division between the Americanized settler communities
along the coast and the Indigenous Africans of the interior continued to widen over the
years.
The former French colony of Ivory Coast is often referred to by its French name:
Côte d’Ivoire. Before independence in 1960, Ivory Coast was one of France’s most
prosperous West African colonies. During the 1960s and 1970s, the economy grew, and
its production of cocoa beans became the largest in the world. Its coffee production
became the third-highest in the world after Brazil and Colombia. Ivory Coast is the
leading exporter of palm oil and pineapples in Africa. The potential for economic
prosperity remains but has been diminished over the past two decades because of the
economic downturn in commodity prices and political instability that resulted in a
devastating civil war.
Named after the former Ghana Empire, the region of the Gold Coast was home to
the Ashanti kingdom, which thrived on the slave trade. Many of the European colonial
powers had sought to build fortified beachheads on the coast and profit from the lucrative
trade in enslaved people, gold, and ivory.In the end it was the British that dominated the
region and established the Gold Coast colony. The push for independence came in 1957.
Ghana was the first European colony to gain independence in Subsaharan Africa.
Upstream on the Volta River is the former French colony of Upper Volta. In
1960, the former French colony attained full independence, and its name was changed in
1984 to Burkina Faso, meaning “the country of honorable people.” Burkina Faso is a
landlocked nation without a port city. The country lacks natural resources and has few
industries. Subsistence agriculture is the main economic activity for about 90 percent of
the population. Droughts and desertification continue because of overgrazing of the land
and the natural southward shift of the Sahara Desert. Rainfall varies from forty inches in
the south to only ten inches in the north. This is one of the poorest nations on Earth.
Both Togo and Benin were French colonies at the time of independence. The
Berlin Conference in 1884 accepted Germany’s control over the coastal region that
became Togoland in 1905. After World War I, Germany lost this colony and the territory
was administered between the British and the French. The French colony of Dahomey
eventually became independent in 1960 and changed its name to the People’s Republic of
Benin in 1975.
Togo and Benin are both elongated countries with major port cities on the Gulf of
Guinea along the Atlantic coast. Benin is about the same size in area as Liberia or the
U.S. state of Kentucky. Benin is twice the size in physical area as Togo. The south is a
few degrees cooler than the north, where the scrub forests and grasslands of the savanna-
type landscape can be more arid, as it is closer to the African Transition Zone. A nature
reserve and a national park in Benin’s northern portion attract tourists to see big game
animals such as elephants, lions, and hippos in their natural environment. Both countries
have a poor economy with most of the people working in agriculture. The political
dynamics are similar to other West African states.
Africa’s most populous country is Nigeria. The exact population has been difficult
to determine, but 2021 estimates report the population to be about 220 million. This is a
country of more than 250 different ethnic groups with twice that many separate languages
or dialects. English is the official language, along with Hausa, Yoruba, and Igbo (Ibo), all
of which are spoken by 10 million people or more. The distribution of the major ethnic
groups is illustrated by the different regions of the country. Hausa groups are found
mainly in the northern region, Kanuri groups in the northeast, Yoruba in the southwest,
and Igbo (Ibo) in the southeast. Ethnic division has also caused serious confrontations
and violence. In 1967, a separatist movement in the eastern Igbo region created the
independent nation of Biafra. This sparked an all-out civil war that lasted more than two
years and resulted in more than a million deaths. Political divisions did not end even after
the two sides reconciled and the country was united under the same government in 1970.
Political instability in Nigeria has resulted in an almost endless number of military coups
and government leaders being removed from office.
d. Central Africa
Central Africa covers a large physical area that can range from desert conditions
to the north in Chad to tropical rainforests and mountains in the equatorial region of the
basin of the Congo River. The entire region is roughly the same size as the western
United States. The countries included in the region vary with different organizations or
geographic perspectives; in this textbook, the countries include Cameroon, Congo, Chad,
the Central African Republic, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, the D.R. Congo (Zaire),
Rwanda, and Burundi. Located off the west coast of Central Africa is the small twin
island country of São Tomé and Príncipe. Burundi and Rwanda are often included in the
region of East Africa, but their connection to the D.R. Congo makes them more relevant
to the Central African region for the purposes of this textbook.
The equator runs through the middle of Central Africa. Type A climates are
dominant in the region, complete with tropical rainforests and jungle environments. In the
north is the African Transition Zone, which runs through Chad and along the border of
Sudan and South Sudan. In Chad, the arid region of the Sahara Desert transitions into the
humid tropics. Central Africa usually only includes portions of Subsaharan Africa south
of the African Transition Zone. Southern Chad exhibits qualities similar to Central
Africa, and the northern areas exhibit qualities similar to North Africa or the northern
regions of Niger, Mali, or Mauritania.
The two landlocked countries of Chad and the Central African Republic have
endured unstable conditions in their transitions to independent, stable democratic states.
In the 1990s, Chad was in dispute with Libya over the Aozou Strip bordering their two
countries, an area deemed rich in minerals and uranium, but in 1994, Chad was awarded
sovereignty over the Aozou Strip by the United Nations (UN) International Court of
Justice. Chad is a temporary home of more than 370,000 refugees from the ethnic
cleansing campaign in the Darfur region of the Sudan.[7] Thousands more from the
Central African Republic have sought refuge in Chad. Meanwhile, Chad’s government
has been plagued with corruption and mismanagement, a state of affairs that has
hampered its efforts to offer humanitarian aid to its refugees. Similarly, the Central
African Republic is troubled by a history of unstable and short-lived democratic
governments. Military coups and transitional governments are frequent. Civil unrest
erupts into chaos. Rebel groups control large parts of the countryside. It is difficult for the
people to access reliable public services such as health care, education, and transportation
systems when the government is not functioning adequately.
Sports and entertainment seem to be a universal human activity. Football
(American soccer) is the dominant sport in the Central African states. Football can be
found in even the poorest areas. The low-cost sport is accessible to most citizens of each
country. Other traditional sports include wrestling, archery, and track-and-field events. In
Chad, for example, a type of freestyle wrestling in which the wrestlers wear animal hides
and cover themselves with dust to prepare for the match is widely practiced. Canoe
racing can be seen in Cameroon. Board games such as mancala, a count-and-capture
African stone game, are also common. Western-style sports such as basketball, baseball,
and cricket are played in many of the urban areas. Olympic sports are practiced in
countries as skill, ability, and funding provides.
Women’s issues remain a concern in Central Africa regarding social equality,
economic development, and population growth. The treatment of women reflects the
attitudes and traditions of a society. Attitudes and traditions vary with location and with
the cultural heritage of an ethnic group indigenous to a given area. Most of the Central
African countries are male dominated, a trend that can be witnessed in local activities or
sports, in the construction of the government, or in the gender ratio of the business sector.
With an average family size of four or more, few opportunities exist for women to break
out of their traditional roles within their culture and receive a secondary education or
enter a professional field of employment. Traditional gender roles have been changing
with advances in technology and a globalized economy.
e. East Africa
East Africa is a region that begins in Tanzania in the south and extends north
through the great grasslands and scrub forest of the savannas of Kenya and Uganda and
then across the highlands of Ethiopia, including the Great Rift Valley. The region also
comprises the countries of Somalia, Djibouti, and Eritrea, which are located in the
African Transition Zone between North Africa and Subsaharan Africa. Rwanda and
Burundi are physically in East Africa but are covered in the lesson about Central Africa
because of their border activities with the D.R. Congo. The world’s secondlargest lake by
surface area is Lake Victoria, which borders Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya. (Lake
Superior, on the border between the United States and Canada, is considered the lake
with the largest surface area.) Lake Victoria provides fish and fresh water for millions of
people in the surrounding region. The White Nile starts at Lake Victoria and flows north
to the city of Khartoum in Sudan, where it converges with the Blue Nile to become the
Nile River. The source of the Blue Nile is Lake Tana in the highlands of Ethiopia.
The highest mountain in Africa, Mt. Kilimanjaro (19,340 feet), is located in
Tanzania near the border with Kenya. The second highest peak, Mt. Kenya (17,058 feet),
located just north of the country’s capital of Nairobi, near the equator, is the source of
Kenya’s name. Both mountains are inactive volcanoes and have permanent snow at their
peaks. They provide fresh water, which flows down their mountainsides, to the
surrounding areas. Mountain ranges in the Western Highlands of the D.R. Congo have a
greater effect on climate than these two massive peaks. For example, the Rwenzori
Mountains on the D.R. Congo-Uganda border have permanent snow and glaciers and
reach elevations of more than 16,000 feet. These ranges create a rain shadow effect that
cuts off moisture for the region from the westerly equatorial winds.
The Great Rift Valley provides evidence of a split in the African plate, dividing it
into two smaller tectonic plates: the Somalian plate and the Nubian plate. The Great Rift
Valley in East Africa is divided into the Western Rift and the Eastern Rift. The Western
Rift runs along the border with the D.R. Congo. A series of deepwater lakes run along its
valley. On the western edge of the Western Rift are the highlands, which have a series of
high-elevation mountain ranges, including the Rwenzori Mountains, the highest in the
series. The Virunga Mountains on the D.R. Congo–Uganda border are home to
endangered mountain gorillas. The Western Rift includes a series of deepwater lakes,
such as Lake Tanganyika, Lake Edward, and Lake Albert. Lake Victoria is located
between the Western Rift and the Eastern Rift.
The Great Rift Valley and the surrounding savannas in Kenya and Tanzania are
home to some of the largest game reserves in Africa, with a broad variety of big game
animals. One of these large regions is the vast Serengeti Plain, located in northern
Tanzania and southern Kenya. The governments of Tanzania and Kenya maintain
national parks, national game reserves, and wildlife sanctuaries in their countries, most
notably in the Serengeti Plain. Legal protection for as much as 80 percent of the Serengeti
has been provided. The protections restrict hunting and commercial agriculture and
provide protection status for the wildlife. The word Serengeti means “Endless Plains.”
Germany gained control of the region of what is now Tanzania in their scramble
for African territory in the late 1800s. Germany relinquished the colony to Britain after
World War I. Off the coast of East Africa is the island of Zanzibar, which has been an
island trading post for centuries that attracted the shipping trade from the Middle East,
India, and other parts of Africa. The spice trade attracted European ships throughout
colonial times. During British occupation, the mainland region was called Tanganyika,
named after the large lake on the eastern edge. In 1960, the colony gained independence
from Great Britain, and four years later Zanzibar and Tanganyika came together to form
the country of Tanzania. Zanzibar remains an important travel destination; major tourism
infrastructure has been developed there. The coastal city of Dar es Salaam is the primate
city of the country and acts as the capital. In 1996, Dodoma was declared the official
capital. Dodoma is a type of forward capital, because the declaration of Dodoma as the
official capital was intended to move the political power inland, toward the country’s
center. The parliament meets in Dodoma, but major government offices remain in Dar es
Salaam, making Dar es Salaam the de facto capital of the country.
During colonial times, the British considered the land area now called Kenya to
be a Crown Protectorate area. The coastal city of Mombasa has been an international
shipping port for centuries and is now the busiest port in the region. Persian, Arab,
Indian, and even Chinese ships made port in Mombasa during its earliest years to take
part in the lucrative trade of enslaved people, ivory, and spices. Portugal sought early
control of the trade center but eventually lost out to Britain. Arab and Middle Eastern
shippers brought Islam to the region; Europeans brought Christianity. Hinduism and
Sikhism from India found their way into the country with workers brought over by the
British to help build a railroad to Uganda. Kenya gained independence in 1963 and has
worked throughout the latter part of the twentieth century to establish a stable democratic
government.
Uganda is a small, landlocked country on the northern shores of Lake Victoria.
The Western Rift borders it on the west, forming both high mountains and deep lakes.
Lakes Albert, Edward, and George are three of the larger bodies of water. The Nile River
flows out of Lake Victoria through Lake Kyoga and Lake Albert on its way north,
providing an abundant fresh water supply and a transportation route. The Rwenzori
Mountains and the Virunga Mountains shadow the country from the west. Mountain
gorillas, an eastern gorilla subspecies, inhabit this region. They are extremely
endangered: only about 800 mountain gorillas live in Africa. One of the two main
populations of gorillas lives in the national parks of the Virunga Mountains in Rwanda,
Uganda, and the D.R. Congo. The second population is found only in a national park in
Uganda. The lowland eastern gorilla population is also threatened; their population
continues to decline. Poaching, habitat loss, disease, and warfare have devastated their
populations in the past century.
Ethiopia’s population was estimated to have exceeded the 110 million mark in
2020, and is the second-largest population in Africa; Nigeria has the largest population.
Ethiopia was never colonized by the Europeans in the scramble for Africa, but during
World War II, it suffered a brief occupation by Italy (1936–41). From 1930 to 1974,
Emperor Haile Selassie ruled the country until he was deposed in a military coup. Many
Rastafarians in Jamaica consider Selassie to be the second coming of Christ and a
messiah for the African people. According to Rastafarian tradition, Ethiopia was the
biblical Zion. After Selassie was deposed, the government shifted to a one-party
Communist state. Successive years in Ethiopia were filled with massive uprisings, bloody
coups, and devastating droughts, which brought about massive refugee problems and
civil unrest. Famine in the 1980s caused the deaths of more than a million people. The
Communist element in Ethiopia diminished when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.
The country’s first multiparty elections were held in 1995.
Eritrea was an Italian colony before joining with Ethiopia in a federation in 1952.
Since declaring independence in 1993, Eritrea has had a difficult time balancing positive
economic growth with its border dispute with Ethiopia. The border war with Ethiopia
drained this small, poor country of economic resources and destroyed valuable
infrastructure. Unrest continued until 2018 when a more stable peace agreement over the
border was agreed upon by both countries. This agreement opened the door to wider trade
and more positive international relations within the region.
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, between the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea, separates
Africa from Asia on the southwestern tip of the Arabian Peninsula. The Bab el-Mandeb
Strait is a narrow strategic choke point for international shipping transferring cargo from
Europe to Asia through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. On the African side of the strait
is the small former French colony of the Republic of Djibouti. Formerly a sultanate
following Islam and then a French colony, Djibouti has transformed itself to become a
highly urban state located on a vital international location. Natural resources within the
country are sparse, and the republic depends on its relationship with countries such as the
United States or its former colonizer France to augment its financial status, keep the
region stable, and protect valuable shipping in the nearby waterways. The United States
has an important military base in Djibouti, which is the only major U.S. military base in
Subsaharan Africa. The French also have a major military base located in Djibouti. The
significance of the Djibouti’s location means it is a critical place for monitoring both the
war on terrorism and incidences of piracy off the Horn of Africa. A main objective of
having European and U.S. military bases in Djibouti is to insure safe passage of oil
tankers through the strait providing European countries and the United States with
petroleum from the Persian Gulf states.
The country presently called Somalia resisted the forces of European colonizers
scrambling for African land in the 1800s. The various kingdoms and their powerful
leaders that controlled the region kept the colonial forces out well beyond World War I.
Somalia’s close vicinity to the Arabian Peninsula and the prevalence of Arab trade
provided a direct connection through which Islam was quickly diffused from Arabia to
Africa. Political alliances were fused between the Somalian kingdoms and the Ottoman
Empire. The leaders of the Horn of Africa used Islam as a centripetal force in uniting the
people against outside forces.
The average family size in East Africa is about 4.9, which is typical of other
regions in Africa and translates into exploding population growth. In many areas of
Africa in general and East Africa in particular, most of the population (as much as 80
percent in many areas) makes its living off the land in agricultural pursuits. Large
families in rural areas create the conditions for the highest levels of rural-to-urban shift of
any continent in the world. The large cities—with expanding business operations
complete with communication and transportation systems that link up with global
activities—are an attractive draw for people seeking greater employment opportunities.
In East Africa, each of the three largest cities—Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, and Addis Ababa
—is more populous than Chicago, the third-largest U.S. city. These cities are all riding
the worldwide wave of globalization and are core centers of economic activity for the
business sector and corporate enterprises.
f. Southern Africa
Southern Africa includes both type B and type C climates. The Tropic of
Capricorn runs straight through the middle of the region, indicating that the southern
portion is outside the tropics. The Kalahari Desert, which lies mainly in Botswana, is an
extensive desert region with an arid mixture of grasslands and sand. When there is
adequate rainfall, the grasslands provide excellent grazing for wildlife. Precipitation
varies from three to ten inches per year. The Kalahari is home to game reserves and
national parks. Large areas of dry salt pans stretch over ancient lake beds. The salt pans
fill with water after heavy rainfall but are dry the remainder of the year. The Namib
Desert, found along the west coast of Namibia, receives little rainfall. Moderate type C
climates are found south of the Kalahari Desert in South Africa, where conditions are
suitable for a variety of agricultural activities, including fruit orchards and an expanding
wine industry.
The largest country in Southern Africa is Angola. Located on the west coast of the
continent, the country includes the small exclave of Cabinda to the north, which borders
the Congo River and is separated from the main body of Angola. Cabinda is a major oil
producer and remains a foothold for rebel groups seeking greater control over oil
resources. Offshore oil activity has increased in the northern region of Angola and has
attracted international oil companies from many countries. In 2007, Angola was the
largest oil exporter to China, which has become one of Angola’s largest financial
supporters. Oil revenues have helped Angola rebuild after a bitter civil war (1975–2002)
devastated the country and its infrastructure. Angola is also burdened with thousands of
refugees seeking safety from the civil wars in the D.R. Congo.
Namibia is a dry, arid land with less than 3 million people. Its population density
of about eight people per square mile in 2020 was the second-lowest in the world after
Mongolia. The physical geography of this large country is dominated by arid plateaus and
desert regions with changes in elevation between them. The Namib Desert, characterized
by enormous sand dunes, runs along the entire west coast. It meets up with the Great
Escarpment, which is a sharp rise in elevation of as much as a mile high toward the
interior. A central plateau dominates the north-south interior, and the Kalahari Desert is
to the east. Natural resources are abundant: uranium and diamonds are the major export
products, and lead, zinc, tin, silver, copper, and tungsten are also mined. The coastal
waters support a substantial fishing industry. Namibia’s constitution contains language
that addresses environmental conservation and the protection of wildlife habitat. The
country has created nature conservancies, which have advanced the activities of
ecotourism, a source of national wealth promoted by the government. The Namib-
Naukluft National Park is the largest game park in Africa and one of the largest in the
world—larger in area than the European country of Slovakia or the U.S. state of
Mississippi.
Malawi is a landlocked nation that became independent in 1964. The British
controlled the region in 1891 and named their colony Nyasaland after Lake Nyasa, a
large lake in Malawi; the lake is also called Lake Malawi. The lake serves as the eastern
border of the country. Another name for Lake Malawi is Calendar Lake, named so
because of its physical dimensions, which are 52 miles wide and 365 miles long. Lake
Malawi is a deepwater lake with depths reaching 2,300 feet. The great depths of the lake
are caused by the Great Rift Valley, which created the depression the lake rests in. The
lake provides for the livelihoods for millions of people who live along its shores and
depend on it for resources of fish and fresh water. The country is nicknamed "The Warm
Heart of Africa" because of the friendliness of its people who seem always willing to
share their beautiful country with visitors. The country has established five national parks
and four other wildlife or game preserves along with other protected areas to help protect
the environment which has suffered from past neglect and exploitation.
Before colonial Europeans arrived in the region of Mozambique along Africa’s
east coast, the Bantu people of a number of ethnic subgroups were the dominant
population, and they still make up more than 99 percent of the country. Portugal had
claimed the region as a colony as early as the sixteenth century. Portugal strongly resisted
releasing its claims to Mozambique but did so after much opposition; the country became
independent in 1975. The transition from colony to independent nation was a struggle for
Mozambique. The rebel groups that had been instrumental in fighting a guerilla war for
independence against Portugal remained active after 1975 and fighting continued after
independence. The country fell into a violent civil war from 1977 to 1992. Central
elements in this war were involvement or influence by Zimbabwe and South Africa on
one side and Marxist support from the Soviet Union on the other. More than a million
people died in this brutal war, which also devastated the country, destroyed valuable
infrastructure, and created more than a million refugees who sought sanctuary in
neighboring countries. At the same time, most people of Portuguese descent left because
of safety concerns. A peace agreement was finally reached in 1992. Since then, the
country has had to struggle to create a stable government and provide a safe environment
for its people.
Zimbabwe experienced similar colonial activity to that which befell Zambia, its
neighbor to the north. Britain arrived in the late 1800s, and by 1923 they called their
newly controlled colony Southern Rhodesia, after Cecil Rhodes, who headed the British
South Africa Company, a mercantile company that broke new ground in the region. The
British were able to quell any resistance to their activity and consolidated their holdings.
After Zambia become independent, Southern Rhodesia was renamed Rhodesia. In 1965,
the white-dominated leadership of the Rhodesian government unilaterally declared its
independence, but Britain did not recognize this action. The UN issued sanctions against
the white leadership; the response was an internal guerilla uprising to fight for free
elections that would include Bflack Africans. Independence was finally granted in 1980,
and the country’s name was officially changed from Rhodesia to Zimbabwe.
g. Muhammad and Islam
Located in the mountains of western Saudi Arabia, the city of Mecca (also spelled
Makkah) began as an early trade center for the region and a hub for camel caravans
trading throughout Southwest Asia and North Africa. Mecca is about forty-five miles
from the Red Sea coast at an elevation of 531 feet. South of Mecca, the mountains reach
more than 7,200 feet in elevation. According to Islamic tradition, the patriarch Abraham
came to Mecca with his Egyptian wife Hagar and their son Ishmael more than 2,000
years before the birth of the Prophet Muhammad (born 571 CE). When Hagar died,
Abraham and Ishmael built the Kaaba (or Ka‘ba), a rectangular shrine that included a
special stone, in Mecca. The shrine was destined to become one of the holiest sites for
nomadic groups in Arabia. Abraham later died in Palestine in what is now the country of
Israel. Centuries after Abraham’s death, the Kaaba and the rituals associated with it
deteriorated and mixed with other local traditions.
The traditional groups in the region of Arabia were polytheistic and worshiped
their own gods. By the time of Muhammad, Mecca is said to have been a center of
worship to more than 360 deities or gods; the greatest of these was Allah (meaning “the
god”). Allah was known as the chief of the Meccan pantheon of gods and was worshiped
from southern Syria to Arabia. Mecca was full of idols, temples, and worship sites.
Tradition states that the god Allah was the only god without an idol; he would become
the sole entity of Muhammad’s new Islamic religion.
Muhammad, born in Mecca 571 years after the birth of Christ and about 100 years
after the fall of the Roman Empire, was orphaned at an early age, and was employed in a
camel caravan when he reached his teens. His life and what has been reported about it
changed the Middle East forever. Muhammad traveled throughout the region with the
camel caravans. He was fortunate to have been able to live as he did, because most
orphans in the region did not have many opportunities in life. His travels introduced him
to many people, places, and ideas. His situation changed when Muhammad and a
merchant’s widow many years his senior were married. Muhammad became a merchant,
the leader of a camel caravan, and a respected member of his community. He was
reported to have been intelligent and a respectable businessman.
The spread of Islam was accomplished through trade and conquest. Mecca was a
center of trade. When camel caravans left Mecca, they carried Muhammad’s teachings
with them. Islam diffused from Mecca and spread throughout the Middle East and into
Central Asia and North Africa. The geographic principle of spatial diffusion can be
applied to any phenomenon, idea, disease, or concept that spreads through a population
across space and through time. The spatial diffusion of Islam outward from Mecca was
significant and predictable.
The basic tenets of the Five Pillars of Islam create the foundational structure
ofIslam for the majority of Sunni followers. Prayer is an important part of the religion.
For many Muslims, prayer must be offered five times a day: before sunrise, at midday, at
midafternoon, after sunset, and in the early evening. During prayer, Muslims face toward
the compass direction of Mecca. Before clocks and time were well established, a mosque
leader would climb a minaret (a tall tower next to the mosque, their place of public
worship) and call the faithful to prayer at the required times of day. Muslims gather
together for common prayer on Friday, which is a time to unite the community of
believers. Mosques sprang up after Muhammad died, and they became the center of
community activities in the Islamic world. These five tenets may vary within the many
divisions of Islam. Some groups have expanded their tenets to seven pillars, or ten
practices. Some groups only require prayer three times a day instead of five.
Muhammad died in Medina at the age of sixty-two. He never claimed to be a god
or anything other than a mere mortal. His tomb is located in Medina, the City of the
Prophet. No provision was made to continue Muhammad’s work after he died. One
division thought his successor should be a blood relative. This division led to the Shia (or
Shi’ite) branch of Islam, which today makes up about 10–13 percent of Muslims
worldwide. Others felt that the successor should be a worthy follower and did not need to
be a blood relative. This branch became known as Sunni, which today makes up about
84–90 percent of Muslims. Other smaller branches of Islam also exist, such Sufi, which
approaches the Islamic faith from a more mystical and spiritual perspective. There is also
a small Ibadi branch, mainly located in Oman. These designations are most prominent in
the Middle East or where fundamental Islam is more prevalent. Overall, about one-fourth
of Muslims in the world are nonsectarian with no direct affiliation with a single branch or
division.
Islam has a code of law with the Koran called the Sharia criminal code, which is
similar to Old Testament law. The Sharia dictates capital punishment for certain crimes.
For example, if a person is caught stealing, his or her arm would be severed. For more
serious offenses, he or she would be beheaded or stoned to death. Some countries use the
Sharia as the law of their country. Countries are called religious states (Islamic states in
this case) when religious codes take precedence over civil law. States in which people
democratically vote on civil law based on common agreement are called secular states.
Whereas secular states attempt to separate religious issues and civil law, religious states
attempt to combine the two. Iran is a good example of an Islamic religious state, and
Turkey is a good example of a secular state. When the United States invaded Iraq in 2003
and Saddam Hussein was removed from leadership, the country entered a transitional
period in which they had to decide if the country would develop into an Islamic state with
the Sharia or move to a democratically elected government with civil law. The debate on
these issues continually surfaces in many of the countries in North Africa and Southwest
Asia whenever transition occurs.
The cultural forces of democratic reforms and Islamic fundamentalism have been
pushing and pulling on the Islamic world. Democratic reformers push for a more open
society with equality for women, social freedoms for the people, and democratically
elected leaders in government. Islamic fundamentalists pull back toward a stricter
following of Islamic teachings; they oppose what they consider the decadent and vulgar
ways of Western society and wish to restrict the influence of liberal, nonreligious
teaching. A rift between militant Islamic fundamentalists and moderate Islamic reformers
is evident throughout the Muslim world. Militant leaders strive to uphold the Sharia
criminal code as law. Moderate reformers work toward a civil law based on democratic
consensus. This rift adds to the conflicts that have been occurring in this realm. Islamic
fundamentalists push for a more traditional and conservative society and express
opposition to outside intervention in the realm. The Muslim world will continue to
confront such arguments over the future direction of Islam in a globalized economy
