How to teach children history
Philosopher George Santayana (1863-1952) once said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it..”
Astronomy
Story of the oldest Deep Impact: the Vredefort Crater
Impact craters are referred to the circular depression caused on the surface of the earth, planetary body, or other solid bodies in the solar system, by a hypervelocity impact of a smaller body or a meteorite. The energy released during this impact is usually very enormous as the velocity ranges between 11 and 72 Kilometers …
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The Borana Calendar and How it works (Existing from 300 BC until Today)
Many non-Africans sometimes wonder, “Did Africa invent anything?” The unambiguous answer is yes: a lot of things. One of these inventions was a calendar system by Borana people of Ethiopia at a date as old as when Greece invented the Athenian calendar (an ancient calendar also known as the Attic Calendar). Unlike the Athenian calendar, …
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History of Ancient Egypt (4,500 BCE to 664 BCE in 10 mins)
Ancient Egypt is known for many things: its monuments, its inventions, and its extensive historical records. Its historical records are among the oldest top 2 in the world. MONUMENTS Five of the most visited monuments in Egypt are: The Great Sphinx The great sphinx is carved out of limestone, believed to be built over 4,000 …
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Africa’s Religions
One cannot generalize about the nature of African religions as he would be prone to making the mistake of homogeneity among all African cultures. Africa, in truth, is vast both in cultural diversity and geographical variation. This has brought about different languages and customs that have different belief systems. With the different histories associated with …
Alessandro De Medici, Duke of Florence, Sponsor of Michelangelo, Raphael, Donatello and Galileo
The history and accounts of the Renaissance is remembered by the public as a purely European phenomenon that was centered on a largely homogeneous ethnicity. At the same time, it reduced the presence of people of African descents to the role of servants or slaves. Neither of these two theories was true, for they both …
Eratosthenes: African and First Man To Measure The Circumference of Earth
More than 2000 years ago, a time when not even a calculator existed, let alone other technical devices that facilitate the research process, Eratosthenes calculated the spherical size of the Earth. He calculated it with considerable accuracy, obviously without the use of modern equipment but only by comparing the position of the Sun’s rays in …
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The Nri Kingdom (900AD – Present): Rule by theocracy
The kingdom of Nri, in the Igbo language called Ọ̀ràézè Ǹrì is a medieval Igbo[1] kingdom that originated around AD900 and presently still in existence, although its influence and territory have significantly waned. It is among the oldest existing monarchy in Nigeria[2] and had its capital at Igbo-Ukwu. Nri is an ancient Igbo town in …
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The Fatimid Caliphate: Contributions to Arts and Sciences
The Fatimid caliphate was an Islamic kingdom that stretched over North Africa from 909 AD to 1171 AD. The caliphate promulgated the Seveners (or Ismāʿīlism) branch of Shia Islam and its geography spread from the Red Sea (to the East) to the Atlantic Ocean (to the West). It covered a total area of 4,100,000 square …
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Papyri: Paving The Path To Innovation
Papyrus, from which the English word “paper” is derived, is the writing material of ancient times. The name comes from the aquatic plant Cyperus papyrus, also known as paper plant. This plant was indigenous of the Nile delta region in Egypt and it was collected mainly for its stalks. The central pith of those stalks …
Kingdom of Luba
The Kingdom of Luba was a large powerful kingdom which held the major power in Central Africa from the 15th century to the late 19th century (1585-1889). It was established in the 15th century, though the region of Upemba depression had been inhabited for almost 1000 years prior by fishing villages on the lake and …