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The history of West African Sudanese states and kingdoms dates back to ancient times, with the emergence of various powerful empires and states across the region. Some of the notable Sudanese states and kingdoms...
The Efik people are an ethnic group indigenous to the southeastern region of Nigeria, particularly in Cross River State. According to Efik tradition, their ancestors originated from a place called Usak Edet, which is...
Introduction The Sherbro/Bullom people are an ethnic group primarily located in Sierra Leone, West Africa. They are a mixture of the Sherbro people and the Bullom people, who are both indigenous to the area....
Introduction The Susu people, also known as Soso or Soussou, are an ethnic group that primarily inhabits the coastal regions of Sierra Leone, Guinea, and some parts of Liberia. They are believed to have...
Introduction The term “Loko” refers to an ethnic group in Sierra Leone. They are primarily found in the northern part of the country, particularly in the Loko chiefdom in the Port Loko district. The...
Introduction The Limba people are an ethnic group that primarily inhabits the northern region of Sierra Leone. They are one of the largest ethnic groups in the country, and their language, also called Limba,...
Introduction The Mende people are an ethnic group primarily found in Sierra Leone, West Africa. They are one of the two largest ethnic groups in the country, along with the Temne people. The Mende...
Introduction The Temne people are an ethnic group primarily found in Sierra Leone, West Africa. They are one of the largest ethnic groups in Sierra Leone, comprising about 30% of the population. The Temne...
Introduction The Bantu people are a group of several hundred ethnic groups in sub-Saharan Africa, primarily in Central, Eastern, and Southern Africa. The Bantu-speaking peoples are believed to have originated in West Africa and...
Introduction Northern Africa is a region that includes several countries such as Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, and Western Sahara. Berbers, also known as Amazigh, are an ethnic group indigenous to this region, who...
Introduction Axum (also spelled Aksum) was an ancient kingdom that existed in the northern region of Ethiopia, as well as parts of modern-day Eritrea, from around the 1st century AD to the 10th century...
Introduction The Swahili civilization refers to a cultural and commercial community that emerged on the East African coast, particularly in present-day Kenya, Tanzania, and Mozambique, starting around the 7th century CE. The Swahili people...
Introduction Borno, located in northeastern Nigeria, was ruled by a dynasty of Shehus, or kings, for centuries. The Shehu dynasty was founded in the early 17th century by Mai Idris Aloma, who expanded the...
Introduction Yorubaland in the 19th century was a complex and dynamic region located in what is now Nigeria. It was made up of several Yoruba city-states, each with its own ruler and system of...
Introduction The Kingdom of Benin, located in what is now southern Nigeria, was one of the most powerful and prosperous states in West Africa during the 19th century. At the beginning of the 19th...
Ghana, located in West Africa, was one of the most prosperous trading states in the region during the period AD1500-1900. Its economy was primarily based on trade, particularly the exchange of gold, ivory, and...
Introduction Sierra Leone in the 19th century was a time of significant political, social, and economic changes. The country was a British colony during this period, having been established as a colony for freed...
Introduction Sierra Leone gained independence from the United Kingdom on April 27, 1961. The country’s first prime minister was Sir Milton Margai, who served from independence until his death in 1964. He was succeeded...
Ghana, also known as the Ghana Empire, was a West African kingdom that existed from the 6th to 13th century AD. It was located in the area that is now southeastern Mauritania and western...
The Europeans began to arrive on the Ghana coast in the 15th century, with the Portuguese being the first to establish a permanent settlement at Elmina in 1482. The Portuguese were followed by the...
The Serahuli people, also known as Soninke or Sarakole, are an ethnic group that primarily inhabits parts of West Africa, including Senegal, Gambia, Mali, and Mauritania. According to oral tradition, the Serahuli people trace...
Origin Krio, also known as Aku, is a creole language spoken in Sierra Leone. It developed as a lingua franca among the descendants of freed African slaves, known as the “Krios,” who were resettled...
Nation-building in Africa is a complex and multifaceted process that involves a range of political, economic, social, and cultural factors. The term “nation-building” refers to the process of creating a sense of national identity...
The Jola people are an ethnic group mainly found in the West African countries of Senegal, Gambia, and Guinea-Bissau. They are also known as the Diola, Dyola, or Joola. The exact origin of the...
Origin Fula, also known as Fulani or Peul, is an ethnic group that is widely distributed across West Africa, particularly in Senegal, Guinea, Mali, Nigeria, and Cameroon. The origin of the Fula people is...
Origin of Mandinka Mandinka, also known as Manding or Mandingo, is an ethnic group from West Africa, primarily located in Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Guinea-Bissau. The...
Africa is a continent with a long and rich history that spans thousands of years, and the civilizations of the Horn, East and Central Africa have played an important role in shaping the region’s...
The patterns of colonial rule in Africa varied among the different European powers that established colonies on the continent. Here are some key aspects of colonial rule by some of the major European powers:...
Origin of Wolof people The Wolof people are an ethnic group that primarily inhabits Senegal, The Gambia, and Mauritania in West Africa. The Wolof language, also known as “Wollof,” is a Niger-Congo language spoken...
By 1880, the British had been well established along the coast of West Africa and began to advance into the interior. With the abolition of slave trade in Britain in 1807, the trade in...
The Europeans who came to Nigeria were the explorers, Christian missionaries, traders and merchants. These people included the following: The explorers were Mungo Park, Hugh Clapperton, Richard and John Lander. The traders and merchants...
During the Middle Ages, the Europeans could not travel far. This was probably the reason why their knowledge of the outside world was very limited. The Europeans could not travel far due to the...
Slavery was common and normal in West Africa as it was in all the early empires of history. Slavery was the end product of those that were captured in pre-colonial wars of conquest and...
For many centuries, the people of West Africa had engaged in trans-Saharan trade. This was a trade between North Africa and West Africa which had existed from the ancient times. There are evidences that...
The Origin of the Idoma The Idoma are located in the Niger-Benue confluence. The Idoma ethnic group. comprises the Igede, Agatu and other ethnic groups around the Niger-Benue confluence. This is the area of...
Igbo and its Origin Two major assumptions explain the origin of the Igbos. The first one claims that the Igbo originated from the East, probably from Israel or Egypt. The second, claims that the...
The Itsekiri tradition traces them to the migration of Iginua from Benin during the reign of Oba Olua. Iginua was said to have met people who inhabited the area before he and his party...
The Niger Delta can be divided into sections; these are the Western Delta and the Eastern Delta. The Western Delta The groups within the Western Delta include the Ijo, Itsekiri and Aboh who dwell...
The Efik are located in the Eastern Niger Delta within the Cross River area. According to tradition, they were believed to have migrated southwards from a location north of the River Cross in the...
According to Benin traditions of origin, the people of Benin migrated from the East. After a long period of wandering, they settled at lle-Ife, from where they finally settled at their present location. The...
The origin of the Yoruba tradition The Yoruba are located in the southwest of modern Nigeria. According to records, there are two major stories of origin attributed to the Yoruba. The first speaks of...
The Igala have linked their origin with a divine rulership of the Jukun. However, there were three sources to the evolution of the Igala. The first explained the transfer of sovereignty from an original...
The Nupe are located at the extreme west of Niger-Benue confluence area of Nigeria. The Nupe kingdom comprised eleven or twelve related groups. These were Benu, Beni Ebe, Gbedeje (Gbedegi), Kusopa, Dibo or Zitako...
Introduction The Kanuri Empire at its peak spread over an area which is today located between the Republic of Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Nigeria. It covered an area more than 300,000 sq. miles. It...
Introduction The word ‘Hausa’ does not refer to a race; rather, it refers to Hausa-speaking people. The word ‘Hausa’ refers to the mixed tribes who speak the Hausa language. The ‘Hausa live in the...
The Atlantic slave trade began in 1442 when African captives from the Senegal river were taken to the port of Lagos in southern Portugal and sold as slaves. After the Spanish reached the Americas...
The Europeans had frequented the coasts of West Africa since the fifteenth century and established settlements along the coast in order to facilitate trade, in particular the transatlantic slave trade. There was, however, little...
The connections of West Africa with the Mediterranean world is a very old one, which long predates the rise of Islam in the late 6th century CE. Several centuries before the rise of the Roman...
The land of West Africa consists of contrasting kinds of physical environment. The forest environment differs from the savanna environment, a mountainous area from a flat lowland area, riverine area from one away from...
Africa was the first continent, that Islam spread into out of Arabia in the early seventh century. Almost one-third of the world’s Muslim population resides today in the continent. It was estimated in 2002...