Before beginning this section, our class refers to a world map, locates the African continent, and compares its size to other land masses noted thereon. Waters that surround the area and the location of Africa [north, south, east, and west] as compared to other continents are briefly examined. We subsequently begin our journeythis time through music and dance. (As a prelude to this portion of the unit, the children listened to More Drums of Passion, a recording of rhythmic African melodies created by renowned Ghanian percussionist Babatunde Olatunji. My students energetically danced over to our Shared Reading Nook.) Mirella Ricciardi’s photo essay, Vanishing Africa, serves as a photographic introduction to our study of African culture. During the days that follow, Maya Angelou’s Kofi and His Magic and My Painted House, My Friendly Chicken, and Me, Akihiro Yamamura’s Senegal, and Yosef ben-Jochannan’s Africa: The Land, The People, The Culture provide additional fascinating information and photographic images of the diversity and flavor of portions of the continent. The tone set, we begin our adventure.
Recommended Children’s Books for Shared Reading and Centers:
Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale
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Talk, Talk: An Asante Legend
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Why The Sky Is Far AwaySpider and the Sky God
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Masai and I+
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Joshua’s Masai Mask+
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Moja Means One*
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Ashanti to Zulu*
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Jambo Means Hello*
Storytelling was a means by which African culture, values, traditions, and history were handed down. Each of these works provides its reader with insight into the richness of African culture and the philosophy of being one with the universe.
+ These fictional works give all children an opportunity to understand the legacy of African culture and tradition.
*These beautifully illustrated works acquaint the reader with the uniqueness of African life and provide general information about the differing groups of people who live within the continent, their language, homes, and other aspects of African culture.
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Africa and Its People: A General View
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savanna
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plateau
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coastlines
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rasslands
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agriculture
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extended family
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Bedouin
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nomadic
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caravan
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arid
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temperate
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cassava
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maize
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durra
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mahogany
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Ashanti
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trade
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shadoof
It was a misconceived notion that Africa was a dark, jungle-filled continent, overflowing with savage inhabitants. This second largest land mass in the world is actually an immense plateau, and is rather a beautiful land, overflowing with dense equatorial forest, broadleaf evergreens of all varieties, as well as pockets of swamp land and savannas (grasslands). Divided by mountainous regions, and in some areas bordered by narrow coastal plains, the continent varies greatly in every direction. Many of its indigenous people dwelt in cultural centers found in ancient Mali, Timbuktu, and Egypt long before other civilizations had ever existed. As held true for Native Americans, the lifestyles of African people throughout the continent were affected by geographic and ecological factors.
To the north lay the Sahara, the world’s largest desert. The northern countries of Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Sudan are impacted by its limited rainfall and arid terrain. Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco are mostly arid with minimal fertile farmland. Oases fertile places sporadically located in desert areasprovide water, food, and farmland for their inhabitants. People who live on oases reside in adobe-type dwellings. Sun-dried mud, used to make thick walls and roofs, keep the inside cool and protect residents from the tortuous sun and desert heat. Camels and camel caravans are often used as a source of travel. Some people, known as Bedouins (nomadic people who reside in the desert region) live communally. Cattle raisers and traders of hand-crafted goods, livestock, and other merchandise, members of these nomadic tribes learned to survive the arid environs. Some ingeniously use water-filled ostrich-egg shells as canteens, strategically burying them beneath desert sands for use when needed. This practice is also embraced by those who reside near the desert areas like the Kalahari in southern Africa.
In Egypt, civilization flourished. Its people worked together, chose leaders (Pharaohs), and in time formed an organized civil government. Egyptians developed ways to nourish crops on otherwise infertile land. For thousands of years, they knew how to irrigate farms, weave flax and other fibers into cloth, and make fine pottery from clay. Adept in mathematics, they learned how to keep time by observing the position of the sun, moon, and stars. These African people also used that mathematical know-how to build the great pyramids. Made totally by human labor, these structures were used to house the bodies of the Pharaohs after death. Every stone used to build the pyramidal structures was accurately cut, hauled, and placed by hand. The great pyramids stood tall and today remain a mathematical wonder.
Egypt is mostly desert. Without the Nile, the world’s longest river, and a few oases scattered throughout the area, the land would be barren. The Nile River provides fertile soil and water for irrigation. During ancient times, and today in some areas, Egyptian farmers used a simple device called a shadoof to irrigate surrounding land with waters that flowed from the Nile. A bucket attached to the end of a long pole was operated by one man and used to lift water from the Nile. Water was subsequently poured onto land where needed.
In the eastern and central portions of the continent, crocodiles, and hippopotamuses live in tropical rivers and swamps. Chimpanzees and monkeys dwell in the forest. Flamingos, pelicans, and storks thrive along the eastern seaboard and southernmost parts. Cheetahs, hyenas, jackals, leopards, and lions are found throughout the grasslands. For centuries, people residing in these regions and throughout Africa have respected the environment and lived as one with their surroundings and the indigenous creatures therein. Strength, cunning, and mischievous attributes were evidenced in these animals. Their qualities were and continue to be often depicted through storytelling, ceremonial song and dance, and in artifacts that accompany these events.
In Africa, the needs of a region and types of materials used are directly correlated with the land. Near tropical forest, huts are often built of wood; walls and floors are covered with mats containing geometrical designs. Objects, often reflective of spiritual beliefs and familial/tribal significance, are hung on walls or placed somewhere within the home. Grassland homes are often made of adobe, adorned with symbolic carvings and decorative articles. Gourds and calabashes, baskets, and ceramic pots often consist of symbolic design and are used as functional, not decorative objects.
Most Africans depend upon the land for their living, and in most African societies the land belongs to the entire tribe or nation. Independently, land has no value: the work that its people put into it give the land its value.
The majority of the indigenous people residing in West and Central Africa are farmers. On western shores, fishing, mining, and weaving also flourish. Cocoa, coffee, peanuts, and palm trees are the main products. In Central Africa, corn, yams, and cassava are the major crops. For those who reside in East Africa, cattle raising is the major occupation, and the possession of cattle is a sign of wealth. The Masai are the most renowned of Africa’s cattle herders. The Masai, as have many indigenous people of Africa, capably use animal hides for clothing, footwear, drum skins, and a wide variety of leather goods.
Inhabitants of the southern region make their livelihood as both farmers and herdsmen. They grow corn, maize, millet and other crops. They live in large households, and the people use a common pasture for their herds. Very protective of their livestock, during evening hours men gather their animals and keep watch to protect them from other wild animals.
Only a small portion of South Africa is farmland: durra (a vegetable that resembles corn), sugar cane, cotton, tobacco, bananas, pineapple, and grapefruit are raised in this region. South Africa, rich in precious minerals such as gold, copper, diamonds, is today the continent’s largest producer of gold. Its indigenous inhabitants, past and present, have made use of these mineral resources in woodcrafts, metalwork, and adornment. Note that these resources are found in mines. Most of the diligent effort that goes into extracting these minerals is done by Africans. European and other countries have benefited from the mining industry, however, many Africans do not share in the enormous profits of the mining industry.
Overall, Africans are very communal people. Extended family is embraced throughout the continent. Everyone helps to care for the children. Terms of endearment like “mother, father, and aunty” are often bestowed upon friends of the family and others outside of what the western world identifies as the nuclear family. Elders are cherished and looked to for advice: the family as a whole helps members conduct social, business, legal matters, and other affairs. African dance, ceremonies, rituals, and artifacts reflect their beliefs, traditions, and customs.
Like the Native American, many Africans believe that everything has a living spirit: trees, animals, rivers... all have a powerful inner spirit. These spirits are believed to influence events in man’s day-to-day living, and the African acknowledges the presence and power of those spirits. For example, if a fisherman desires to obtain a bountiful catch, he will appease the spirit of the river through ritualistic giftgiving. If a woodcarver desires to sculpt a mask from a mahogany tree, the spirit of that tree is summoned, thanked and praised before carving begins. The philosophy that man is one with nature was and is prevalent throughout the continent.
The majority of people throughout Africa follow traditional African religions, most of which are monotheistic. In some religions, however, it is believed that God can be reached only through lesser gods. These forces take the form of either ancestors or spirits. Wood carvings, masks and related costumes, and other artifacts are carefully crafted to reflect these beliefs, traditions, and customs.
For many Africans, the world is comprised of the visible and invisible, i.e., people and things that can be readily seen, and also ubiquitous unseen spirits. Objects are said to become temporary homes for a spirit. Many Asante women, for example, wear a round-headed akuaba doll (fertility dolls) on their back to ensure a spirit of well being and the birth of fine healthy girls. Square-headed figures are toted to ensure the birth of fine healthy boys. This and other symbols of fertility are often depicted in African woodcarvings and metalwork.
The Asante:Up Close
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manioc
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plantains
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sekere
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sakura
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Asanthene
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akuaba doll
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agrarian
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cowrie
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The Asante were an agrarian people: their most important crops were plantains, yams, and manioc. They also cultivated millet, sweet potatoes, peanuts, and many fruits. A very communal people, they are indigenous to the area today known as Ghana. Ghana was one of the first great kingdoms of West Africa, and the Asante were the largest and most powerful ethnic group in that country.
According to African History Professor Dr. Ben Jochannan, the name of the Asante people was derived from a powerful, ancient empire called Ashanti. The ancestors of today’s indigenous residents once ruled that nation. Located in a part of present-day Ghana, Ashanti consisted of several states that united to engage in peaceful projects and military related matters. Ashanti, which remained a powerful nation until the British began their conquest of the area in 1873, was ruled by the Ashanthene, its king. He was considered to be divine, just as the Pharaohs of Egypt and other rulers of great African empires had been so designated. It was generally believed that divine power was bestowed upon the Asanthene from god, whose spirit was alleged to have dwelt in a golden stool that had come down from heaven when the Ashanti nation had come into being. The Asanthene stool was considered a sacred symbol, representative of faith, power, and authority. Today, the Ashanti stool is often depicted in sculptures, other woodcraft, and fabric designs. It continues to connote authority and royalty, power, and faith.
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Gold and ivory, once abundant in Ghana, was beautifully crafted by this indigenous group. Gold, in particular, was often used by some African countries as a medium of exchange. In the Ashanti kingdom, gold belonged to the king. Common people were allowed to use gold, but it was often held in trust by the king and primarily used for trading. These resources, along with copper and silver, were used in the metalworking arts, and the art of metalworking itself held mystical and spiritual significance. For many Africans, gold was synonymous with the sun and the king. Silver metals were often used to reflect the color of the moon and represented the queen. The Asante used these natural resources in wood carvings, ornamentation, and jewelry to symbolize wealth, power, and well being.
The Asante were and continue to be renowned for producing colorful kente cloth, an intricately woven fabric overflowing with symbolic colors and patterns. Like Native Americans in North America and other African peoples, the Asante contended that man was one with nature. They too believed that both animate and inanimate objects had a living spirit. Most embraced the concept that all animals, objects, and places had lives of their own. Woodcarvings and other crafted materials again often reflected those beliefs.