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600
Arab Traders
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Period: 600 to 800
Arab Traders
Arab traders often trade here, south of modern Somalia. They would sail there with the northeast monsoon, and then they would return home with the southwest. They dubbed it Azania, meaning land of the Blacks, and it was known by this until the 10th century CE. Farther south, the head city was Rhapta, which is now buried in Tanzania. Tortoiseshell, rhinoceros horn, and ivory are all heavily traded. Iron weapons were commonly imported to Rhapta. Greek and Roman coins have been found. -
800
Building and Communities
The 9th century began a new period. The first building sites date to this time. It was divided into four areas: The Berber, Zanj, Sofala, and Waq Waq lands. Settlements often sprang up on islands. This makes sense, as the islands provided greater security, and reduced the chance of attacks. These people expanded the population of what is now Africa. They traded tortoiseshell, ivory, ambergris, and leopard skin, and many often came from the Persian Gulf. -
Period: 800 to 900
Kilwa
The ruins at Kilwa are on the Tanzanian coast and the ruins date from the 9th century. These ruins revealed a large pre-Muslim civilization, as it stands on the edge of what used to be the largest harbor. For many years, they lived in small lean-tos. However, by the 10th century, small stretches of wall were being built. These walls were built with masonry, using coral as bricks and the inhabitants of these ruins often traded with the people of the Persian Gulf, and there was more connection. -
Period: 800 to 900
Manda
There are many sites found from this period. One of the most significant and important is Manda, on the Kenyan Coast. It was established in the 9th century, and it has sewalls made of coral. These blocks weigh over a ton, and they are what distinguishes Manda, although there were some houses made of stone and other materials. They also majorly exported Ivory to the Persian Gulf. This shows a lot of trade, as they imported Islamic pottery, and, in the 10th century, Chinese porcelain. -
900
Kilwa
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900
Manda
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1268
The Rise of the Ethiopian Solomonic Dynasty
Established around 1270 by Yekuno Amlak, ruled Ethiopia. They had many events like when they overthrew the Zagwe dynasty, Which legitimized his rule, and a major struggle against the Muslim Adal Sultanate. Ultimately requiring the assistance from the Portuguese to defeat the invading kingdom of Ahamad Gran in the 16th century. During the Solomonic Dynasty, his rule was also called the House of Solomon. The Dynasty ended in 1974 when emperor Halie Selassie was deposed. -
1498
Arrival of the Portuguese
Arrival of the Portuguese. In the early 1500s, the Portuguese people established their presence in east African territory; this was primarily around the Indian Ocean. This was because of how they sought to take control over the East African position in the Indian Ocean trade routes. The importance of this event is how the control they established shifted the balance of trade. Overall, the Portuguese ended up controlling the major ports of trade in the areas that they wanted. -
1499
Portuguese explore East Africa
The Portuguese explorers were led by Vasco De Gama, who had arrived on the east African coast. Then they started to create/establish trading posts, they started to fortify the trading posts along the coast to take advantage of the Kingdoms. The east coast of Africa before was a huge part of the trade network. Largely driven by the gold of great Zimbabwe and going as long as great China. The Portuguese were focused on the spice trade so East Africa was a key stopping point on the route to india. -
1500
The Atlantic Slave Trade
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Period: 1500 to
The Atlantic Slave Trade
The start of the Atlantic slave trade significantly disrupted the African society, Causing European penetration into west africa, which led to the forceful removal of people from the interior of the continent to be sold as slaves, creating an unstable imbalances with the African communities. But before the 1600’s there wasn’t much slave trading from Africa to the Americas. European slave ships regularly took the triangle route of the Middle passage. -
Zanzibar Trade Hub
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Period: to
Zanzibar Trading Hub
During the 1600s Zanzibar became a slave trade hub. By the 1900s Zanzibar was considered the most important trading hub in the eastern region of Africa. This was due to the location of Zanzibar by the Indian Ocean. The last permanent slave trading place in Zanzibar was closed in 1873. For centuries Zanzibar was the major area for political and economic power in East Africa as well as the most notorious market for the slave trade. -
Omani Expansion Over Swahili
In the 1600’s the people of Omani started expanding into the coast of Swahili. They replaced the control that the Portuguese had over the area. They primarily wanted to expand their territory while taking control over multiple important trade routes. This expansion largely occurred in the 1800-1900’s. Omani rule led to much growth in their economy as they now had many trade routes at their disposal. The Omani rule is important because of how it facilitated the expansion of slavery in the area.