And like most kingdoms before them on any continent, they were invaded and in the end destroyed. The empire grew rich from the trans-Saharan trade in gold and salt, but then lost its power in the 11th century.Īdditional kingdoms developed across the continent, including those in Benin and Mali.Both became rich by trading in gold, horse salt, and of course, slaves. One of the first kingdoms was Ghana, located in what is now southeastern Mauritania and western Mali. Soon kingdoms emerged in Africa they traded with the Arabs using gold plus a valuable commodity - slaves. The Arabs were Muslims, and most of North Africa converted to Islam Ethiopia was the exception. In 698-700 they invaded Tunis and Carthage and soon controlled all of coastal North Africa.

The then-growing Roman Empire continued to expand its influence, and in 30 BC Egypt became a province of Rome Morocco the same in 42 AD.īefore the Middle Ages began, the Roman Empire collapsed and the Arabs quickly took their place on the continent. Meanwhile, the Egyptians continued to spread their culture across Northern Africa, and kingdoms were created in Ethiopia and Sudan. In 814 BC, they founded the city of Carthage in what is now Tunisia in north Africa only to be destroyed by the Romans in 146 BC. The Phoenicians were an enterprising maritime trading culture from Lebanon who spread across the Mediterranean from 1550 BC to 300 BC. In short, the Egyptians left a lasting legacy upon the world.Īround 600 BC the use of metal tools spread across small population bases and farming groups in North Africa, and their use gradually spread south into what is now called South Africa. They also pioneered the building of massive pyramids and temples.Įgyptians also developed mathematics, an innovative system of medicine, irrigation and agricultural production techniques, writing and the first ships. In 3200 BC the Egyptian culture emerged along the lower reaches of the Nile River it was among the earliest civilizations and their tools and weapons were made of bronze. During that time the Sahara Desert was a fertile area. By 5000 BC farming was somewhat common in the northern areas of Africa, as people were growing crops and herding livestock. One of the most important developments of primitive man was the creation of stone tools. There is also clear evidence that they had control of fire, lived in caves, as well as open-air structures of stone and vegetation. The Neanderthals arose some 200,000 years ago and inhabited regions in northern Africa and across parts of southern Europe. They became aggressive hunters, lived in caves and used fire and their ability to create stone tools just to survive. African History African Origin of Modern HumansĪs for Africa, scientists have formerly concluded that it is the birthplace of mankind, as large numbers of human-like fossils (discovered no where else) were found on the continent, some dating back 3.5 million years.Ībout 1.75 million years ago, early man spread throughout parts of Africa.

Detailed map of middle east