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Underdevelopment In Africa
Did women have rights in ancient civilizations
Underdevelopment In Africa
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The sub-Saharan Africa developed into a prosperous society with a social hierarchy, political administration, population growth, various distinct cultural religions, and economic trade networks. Because the African community did not heavily emphasize patriarchy in its society nor restrict the women’s rights, women were able to gain higher roles in sub-Saharan Africa. Some women actually held powerful authority, took part in solving public matters, actively traded with others, and even participated in the military. Therefore, this led to an increase in freedom and status in women, which resulted in a step closer to gender equality and less of a patriarchal society.As an abundant amount of kin-based societies began to face internal and external problems around 1000 C.E., the Bantu society organized military forces that helped establish the political structure of chiefdoms in sub-Saharan Africa. The chiefdoms were organized by creating a kingdom of several districts that fell under the authority of the conquering chiefs. The frequent bitter disputes between different chiefdoms led to the emergence of larger kingdoms with a more centralized government, which in turn influenced the political aspect of the succeeding African societies. In 400 B.C.E., Africa originally consisted of only about 3.5 million people; however, it grew up to 22 million people by 1000 C.E. As a result, this strong presence of the Bantu led to many near forest peoples engaging in the agricultural production or trade with their Bantu neighbors, and the Bantu community to become more urbanized. The merchants in the thriving overland and maritime trade of the sub-Saharan Africa influenced the spread of Islam in these states. Although Islam was a new foreign religion to the African society, the Africans gradually adapted this cultural belief to fit their own needs and interests. For example, they continued to maintain the almost equal relations between genders in the African society even though the traditional Muslims believed in male dominance. Islam was able to attract many converts in sub-Saharan Africa especially with merchants and members of the upper class because it led to an enhanced commercial relationship with Muslim merchants. The population pressure due to the rise in population of the Bantu society led to them further expanding and settling down in the coasts of east
In Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, the theme of perceived masculinity is prominent and portrayed as a critical characteristic which has the potential to shape clans, families, and the safety of others. Because of the emphasis placed on masculinity, women are widely disregarded and downplayed, as they are seen as property. In African culture men are revered due to their warrior-like natures that can uphold the functionality of a clan, but frowned upon when deemed as weak; the result of this fear of weakness led to the dominance of men over women.
Religion was and remains a vital part of the lives of most Africans. For some it encompassed their entire existence. It substantiated and explained their place in the universe, their culture, and their relationship to nature and humankind. It also dictated their roles in the community and society at large. Religion among most African ethnic groups was not simply a faith or worship system, it was a way of life, a system of social control, a provider of medicine, and an organizing mechanism.
The African Kingdoms of the Lozi and Zulu, people had rich and historic backgrounds, quite similar to the Industrial Revolution. These African Kingdoms, and the Industrial Revolution all had a well structured, civilization, and a similar outline, but eventually, had different outcomes. For example, all three civilizations shared the traits of having social classes, a centered religion, a written language, and a fairly stable economy, but lack similarities when it comes to monumental architecture, and the development of cities. These civilizations were able to be successful, due to their structure to uphold their society, in many different ways.
Moroccan traveler, Ibn Battuta, is well-known for being one of the greatest travelers of his time. Battuta’s descriptive account of his travels to East and West Africa in the fourteenth century provides important insight into African Islamic life at that point in time. Although Battuta and the peoples in black Africa shared the same religion, he comes to realize that sharing a religion is not enough to completely relate to a different group of people. The story of Ibn Battuta in Black Africa illustrates the difficulties he faced in relating to these peoples due to the non-traditional role of women, different religious customs, and frequent misinterpretation of situations.
In the great empires of Africa they developed many things. In the Axum (Aksum) Empire (Ethiopia, in present time) they developed a trade route that stretched of Asia to Africa and back. Document one, states that people in the trade route traveled along the Red Sea. This affected the Axum Empire in many ways. They (Axum people) had gained wealth because it was a great trade point and from it, it was introduced to religions, Christianity and Islam. Another empire is called the Kingdom of Ghana in Western Africa. They became one of the richest civilizations due to commerce. In document two, it states that the amount of wealth was visible because of what the pages were wearing. They had on gold. Even the dogs guarding had on silver and gold.
European colonization had an impact on the government of Africa. One day, a white man came to the African council and told them that they now had a king. The King of Europe was now their king and Africa was his land. A new council was made in the town of Nairobi, in which acted for their King and was Africa’s government. The council made laws for the Africans to follow (Doc.
The Hausa Kingdoms were a grouping of west African states that were located between Lake Chad to the west and the Niger River to the east. The African ethnic group which populated these kingdoms and the area in general from 700 AD are known as the Hausa people with one of the oldest kingdom being Daura located in modern-day northern Nigeria. The Hausa Kingdoms included Kano, Katsina, Zazzau, Gobir, Rano, Daura and Biram and were founded in 1000 AD. The kingdoms are also known as ‘Hausa Bakwai’ which means ‘Seven True Hausa States’. The language utilized by these Africans is also called Hausa. The written record of the Hausa people is contained in a document called the Kano Chronicle which focuses primarily on the Kano Kingdom. In addition to the seven primary Hausa Kingdoms there were a further seven satellite states named Kebbi, Yauri, Gwari, Nupe, Kororofa, Yoruba and Zamfara. The
The largest religion in Africa is Islam, followed by Christianity. Religion in Africa is multifaceted and has been a significant influence on art, culture, and philosophy. All spiritual systems practiced traditionally by Africans, whether native or mainstream, are organized religions. The rituals of Voodoo, Orisha, Serer, etc are all highly organized and
The history of Nigeria before the 1900’s is critical in exploring the effects of colonialism. During the pre-colonial era, Nigeria was mainly divided into three tribes: Igbo, Yoruba, and Hausa Fulani. A female’s role differed according to kinship structure of the tribe and the status of the woman in the economy. Neither new nor peculiar, women have long been regarded as the “subordinate” class in Nigerian culture. However, Nigerian women were able to achieve high statuses by lineage or marrying into ruling class families. Under customary laws, a woman’s purpose was to be fertile and able to bear children. Tribes expected their women to marry into Igbo, Yoruba, and Hausa Fulani patrilineage and bear sons to guarantee the future of the tribe. A wife’s position improved as she gave birth to more children and gained approval from elder members. Women who could not were scorned just as M...
Eze also caught the point right that pre-colonial Africa was essentially an agricultural society.162 The socio-economic evolution that in many cases followed primitive communalism introduced hierarchical relations in respect of sex, age and political organizations. Political and social relations tended to be vertical. African traditional laws tended to reflect these
We must understand the differences in the African and European political experience in order to understand the difficulties faced by African leaders. In Herbst’s book States and Power in Africa, First I will give an overview of the differences between the African and European advances toward becoming a nation state. Next the reasons why these differences are important to understanding the difficulties faced by African leaders will be discussed. Finally I will give an overview of possible alternatives to the current system of states in Africa.
In Africa, the interests of various individuals and groups have transformed the possession of power into nightmarish dimensions due to the flaws in the political structures of the societies. Although some of these degenerative weaknesses have been explained by historical experiences, there still remains the fact that the progressive development of any society depends on a conscious pruning of flawsin the organizational structure of the society by those with the power to provide guidance and direction. Moreover, this burden of leadership could elicit either patriotic parasitic tendencies in the utilization and exercise of power. (Ehling 23-25)
The earliest inhabitants of the present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo are most likely Pygmies, who lived in the north and northeast portions of the forest that occupied the land. Towards the end of the first millennium B.C., a small group of Bantu-speaking people entered from the northwest (from the areas that are now called Nigeria and Cameroon). They established their home in the savanna regions of the south, and they arrived with profound knowledge of iron technology and agriculture. Their skill with iron technology and agriculture helped propel them to migrate to other parts of the Congo and Africa. With their expansion also came the development of new, related languages. Beginning approximately A.D. 700, the Bantu-speaking people worked the Copper deposits of Southern Katanga, and then traded these minerals over wide areas. The Bantu had settled into most of the Congo by about 1000, which consequently reduced the area utilized by the Pygmies. By the early parts of the second millennium, the number of Bantu occupants in the Congo were rapidly increasing and beginning to merge into states. Some of these states had governing power over vast areas and were complemented with multifaceted administrative structures. A majority of these states were governed by monarchy, and even though they had considerable authority, it was moderated by a council consisting of high civil servants and elders. Some of the most notable of these states included the Kingdom of Kongo, the Lunda Kingdom of Mwata Yamo, the Kingdom of Luba, and the Lunda Kingdom of Mwata Kazemba. The Luba and Lunda Kingdoms were somewhat intertwined, and as a result, the Luba transmitted political ideas to the Lunda. Additionally, many small Luba-Lunda sta...
In the early thirteenth century, they expanded from the Niger River basin, into what is known today as the West African coast, to obtain better land for agriculture and conquest. (“Culture Mandinka”; "Mandinka Gambia"). Their religious beliefs were dominantly animist until a 99% conversion to Islam during the 18th Century ("Mandinka Gambia").
So without women there towns would be possied and have demon babies . This strong input on cultural roles in the african people probably have the biggest role, only a some are picked not all .Although women play an important role in African society, they suffer legal, economic and social constraints. some laws still treat them as a little kid . That show how wrong they treat beautiful african queens . ‘Women are known to grow 80% of food in Africa, and yet few are allowed to own the land they work on. It is often more difficult for women to gain access