Mali became a site of cultural exchange because of its abundant amount of gold. This attracted people from all over Africa to purchase said gold, and Mail’s wealth grew and grew and attracted more and more people. A site of cultural exchange is where people from many different places come to meet peacefully and share ideas, technologies, and products with each other. This affected Mali in many ways. One way Mali was affected was that it became connected to Islamic trade routes, which in turn connected it to all of Africa, Europe, and Asia. It was one of the three medieval kingdoms that controlled Africa. The first one was Ghana, which was controlled by a Soninke king. Trade with the Arabs made Ghana’s merchants and rulers much richer. The …show more content…
This trade profited everyone and made everyone happy. The rulers of Ghana and Mali kept the location of their goldfields a secret, so that they would not have too much competition. A third effect was that Muslim scholars and travelers also came to Western Africa. They converted many people to Islam, such as the Berbers. During the 11th century, Muslim scholars called Awdoghast, Ghana “the Land of Gold” because of all of the golden items they saw there. Soon, Ghana’s power declined and some chiefdoms became independent. Later, in the 1200s, Mali rose. Its first ruler, or mansa, was named Sundiata. He took control of the smaller chiefdoms in Ghana as Ghana lost power, expanding his empire. He mixed together the traditional religions of West Africa with Muslim ideas. He created a nobility of horseback-riding warriors and craftsmen. He mastered the perilous symbols of hunters and blacksmiths, and expanded the size of Mali and its gold trade’s profits for 25 years. Mansa Musa was the ruler of Mali from 1312 to 1337. In 1324, he made a famous pilgrimage to Mecca. He was so famous and wealthy, that the cartographer who drew that Catalan Atlas drew Mansa Musa on West
He decided to improve the status of his land on his arrival from a pilgrimage from Mecca in 1324. Furthermore, he transformed his trading city of Timbuktu to a center of learning and religion and built a mass, which set a new style of architecture in West Africa. “Caravans of Gold” underlines the importance of Timbuktu because it concentrated on African scholarship, politics, teaching theology, and Islamic law. Timbuktu was a significant place in Africa during this time because it became a market right after and made a profit for the region. Likewise, it was a religious, cultural, and profitable center whose people traveled north across the Sahara through Morocco and Algeria to other parts of Africa, Europe, and Asia. According to The History of Africa, “Because of his devotion to Islam, Mansa Musa strengthened Islam and promoted education, trade, and commerce in Mali” (Asante, 2014, pg. 135). It was a successful center for the trans-Saharan gold and salt trade and grew as the center of Islam. This statement launches the truth that Timbuktu supported Islamic values and knowledge because it was a city most well-known for the education of important scholars whose backgrounds were of Islam. Asante supports the fact that Mansa Musa was effective in reforming the city of Timbuktu and the trade in that area. Asante also states that “Musa did not forget the control of the gold and salt; it was fundamental for the
The great Machiavelli once said, "Whoever wishes to foresee the future must consult the past; for human events ever resemble those of preceding times." Indeed, the study of history is important as history does seem to repeat itself. Many people in today's society learn about the past from textbooks and other books, as these are of easy access. Is this really the best way to learn about the past? The people of ancient Africa did not think so, as they had special people called "griots"who passed the people's traditions and history down orally from generation to generation. One such griot, Mamadou Kouyate, recalls the story of the most famous ruler in African history, Sundiata, in D.T. Niane's book Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali. This book has become an entertaining, yet scrutinized, source about the history of Mali and it's surrounding areas. Much scrutiny of this tale comes from those who question the validity of the griots, though Mamadou Kouyate is quick to point out that "[His] word is pure and free of all untruth; it is the word of [his] father...griots do not know what lying is" (Niane 1). If the context of the epic is true, then there are many valuable things to be learned from it including the traditions and customs of ancient Africa, and how Sundiata came to rule over such a large area. Based upon a reading of the text, it is easy to see that Sundiata's political power was not based soley on religion, as he used many conventional methods to gain and remain in power.
In the 1300s Mansa Musa, king of Mali took his holy pilgrimage to the city of Mecca as a devout muslim, traveling through scorching deserts and bustling cities, although there might be other reasons he took his religious Hajj. The pilgrimage of Mansa Musa traveled all across Northern Africa and Arabia, stopping in cities along the way where Mansa Musa gave out gold to all he saw. The journey from the Empire of Mali to the city of Mecca was not only a faithful religious journey to the holy city, but also to create a name for Mali as the wealthy and powerful empire it was.
As rich as people today may seem, nobody has ever been as wealthy as Mansa Musa, as his name translates to sultan of the wealthy. Mansa Musa ruled Mali from 1312 to 1337 BCE, and during his reign helped bring a golden age to his empire. Mali was known as the main source of gold in the world because if it’s tax on the gold that came in and out of the empire. Mansa Musa had managed to conquer 24 cities that he used for trade as well as lengthen his empire. (Empires of Medieval West Africa) But possibly the most well-known accomplishment of Mansa Musa was his hajj to Mecca, where he traveled through Egypt with an entourage of 60,000 men, with one fifth of them being slaves to carry his gold. (World Eras) Mansa Musa had a large impact on the Afro-Eurasian
Mansa Musa lived from 1280 - 1337 A.D. and ruled the West African Mali Empire from 1312-1337 for a total of 25 years. He redeemed the monarchy in the Mali Empire in the fourteenth century. The title “mansa” means king or lord. Not much is known about him before he gained the throne. His most notable achievement was his famous pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324 that brought great wealth to the Mali Empire. He extended the Mali Empire to make it so big that it was said to take a whole year to travel across. Mansa Musa was responsible for the expansion of the empire which is illustrated by his conquest of the Ghana empire. The Mali Empire reached half a million square miles. From east to west the empire extended from the Atlantic ocean to the bend in
Sundiata developed into a great leader of Mali through hardships, religion, and core/tributary/periphery relationships of states. The djeli who transmitted this information to the translators, is also a manifestation of an institution important in Sundiata’s epic, because without djelis these stories would be lost forever. Sundiata learned about the formation, running and maintenance of African states through interactions with the communities he was introduced to.
The first West African state of record was Ghana which had been ruled by over forty kings by the year 300 A.D. The early Ghanaians were a peaceful and prosperous people who developed an economy based on agriculture and...
In documents one and two they explain and evaluate the trading system and routes of the African empires, kingdoms, and cities. Document one shows the layout of the Aksum trade center and the routes which lead to and from it. Aksum is an empire located right by the Red Sea, its location made it an important international trading center. African trade centers mainly focused on the exchanges of salt and gold. Since the red sea ports are controlled by the rea sea and Aksum was located right by it, its locations made it the center of the trade center. However, in document two it describes the trans-Saharan gold and salt trade. The trans-Saharan gold and salt trade was controlled by the rich and powerful Ghana kingdom. The king had shields
African society used bodies of water such as the Nile, the Red Sea, and many more to transport goods across the continent and generate profit. For example, the city of “Aksum reached its height between 325-360. Aksum’s location made it an important international trading center.” After analyzing the map of trade routes in Document 1, it is clear Aksum was strategically built to have ties to the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. These two bodies of water give the city the freedom to import and export goods. Additionally, this work of trade did not come without reward. Cities who succeeded in the business became overly wealthy and had surpluses of gold and other riches. A king, Mansa Mansa, who expanded the Mali kingdom to be twice the size of Ghana, was not afraid to show his wealth as he showered other cities in riches out of generosity. In Cairo, Egypt, “there was no person, officer of the court, or holder of any office of the Sultanate who did not receive a sum of gold from him.” This is just one of the many examples of wealth in african cities and empires. What is impressive is the fact that before European trade became an influence, African people had already created a successful and very profitable system of
There was also a Kingdom called Mali that broke off from the Ghana Empire. At this time they had embraced the religion of Islam and had been under the great rule of Mansa Musa. This empire had the job of protecting the caravans or shipments carrying the goods, so that they can trade. They helped towards the function of trade so that both the importer and exporter gained something. In document 3 it explains how their wealth was great because of their trade. The document also talks about the fact that they had exhibited the characteristics of an advanced divination like sufficient food to feed its people, a strong army equipped with advanced weapons and income derived from taxes. Even though the Mali Empire had wealth there was very little corruption if there was with the ruler. He did not go mad with power but he was generous. In document four it states they there was no person who did not receive a sum of gold from him.
The pilgrimage to Mecca may be true and he may’ve carried 40 mules packed with gold with him, but this story should be questioned on its accuracy and reliability. The time lapse between when this was written and the time the pilgrimage took place is too distant. Also, Mansa Musa made this pilgrimage a business trip as well. Kankan Musa, formally known as Mansa Musa, was one of the most respected and well known rulers of the Empire of Mali. He was the head of this empire in the early 1300’s.
Another example of an empire benefiting from the trans-Saharan trade was the Mali Empire. Similarly, to the Ghana Empire, the Mali Empire also had large amounts of gold and traded for salt. However, instead of primarily trading with Arab merchants like the Ghana Empire, the Mali Empire traded with Egypt. Egypt had a surplus of salt but was lacking in
The Kingdom of Mali was an African hub of wealth, trade and education for over 225 years. Mali is an Arab version of the Mandinka word that means, “Where the king dwells”, and was vitally important in spreading trade, education, religion and culture along the Niger River. The rise of Mali into an Empire occurred in the early 13th century, when Sundiata defeated his enemies and won control of the West African gold mines. In 1312 Mansa Musa became ruler of Mali. During his reign which was known as Mali’s, “Golden Age”, he introduced Islamic beliefs to many communities along the Niger and enhanced education after his historic pilgrimage to Mecca. Mali’s rise was attributed to the Trans-Saharan Trade routes leading to and from Western and Eastern Africa. These trade routes contributed to the rise and fall of powerful African Kingdoms for hundreds of years, but for 250 years, Mali was the crown jewel of Africa.
Toure was Muslim and wanted to use his power to spread Islam through his empire. He replaced traditional Songhai administrators with Muslims in order to further spread Islam through Songhai (Ijebu,2002). The majority of the Songhai people, continued to follow traditional African religions. Muhammad Toure, like Mansa Musa, took a pilgrimage to Mecca in 1497 (Hine, Hine, & Harrold, 2014). During his pilgrimage, Toure established diplomatic relations with Egypt and Morocco.