African art predates written history. From tens of thousands of years before recorded history people in Africa have been creating various works of art utilizing different materials. This is not particularly surprising given that the modern homo sapiens originated from Africa. The oldest art in the world was a shell necklace found in the Cave […]
Africa’s art materials Read More »
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
Africa’s Religions Read More »
INTRODUCTION Africa, the second largest continent in the world and second most populous continent on earth, is blessed in manifold ways; in language, culture, art, monuments, vegetation, religious ideas, physical quality, natural resources, and many more areas. Though there have been many concepts and definitions regarding the idea of diversity, the indigenous ideas of Africans
Africa’s Diversity Read More »
The Zulu kingdom of the 19th Century was ruled by a monarchy and extended along the coast of the Indian Ocean from the Tugela River in the south to Pongola River in the north. It had an estimated population of 250,000. It covered 30,000 square kilometres (11,500 square miles). Its main currency was cattle. The
What is a day? Many would think the answer is obvious. Many would say 24 hours. But the scientific truth is you have ask a particular question first, “On what planet?” You see: on Venus a day is 5,832 hours; a day on Mercury lasts 1,408 hours; on Mars a day is 25 hours; and
African exports: the origin of the 365-day calendar Read More »
Granite statue of Queen Hatshepsut It is common knowledge that Pharaohs of ancient Egypt excelled in building incredible monuments and temples both for the gods they worshipped and for themselves as a display of power and to ensure that they would be remembered forever throughout the Egyptian Pharaonic Empire. Today, tourists from all parts of
THE START OF CHRISTIANITY IN AFRICA Abu Yemata Guh is an ancient church located in Ethiopia, the only African country that was never colonised by the Europeans. The roots of the Ethiopian states date to as far back as the 10th century BC[1] with the rise of the D’mt Kingdom before the more popular Aksumite
(Architecture Series) Abu Yemata: The Church in the Sky Read More »
On the eastern bank of the Nile River, about 200 km north-east of Khartoum, Sudan, resides the archeological site that contains remnants of a once flourishing civilization that left behind remains of royal palaces, temples, residential areas, manufacturing areas and even impressive pyramid fields. This archeological site unravels the mysteries of the ancient city of
KINGDOM OF MEROE: Modern approach by “Ancient” AFRICANS Read More »
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
The Nri Kingdom (900AD – Present): Rule by theocracy Read More »
Religion formed a vital part of the ancient Egyptian society and temples were thus, an important part in the daily life of Egyptians. The ancient Egyptians believed that the temples were homes of the gods and goddesses. Every temple was dedicated to a specific god or a goddess, and he or she
The role of temples in Ancient Egyptian cities Read More »
As of 2018, by some, the continent of Africa is seen as lagging behind, trying to catch up and full of poor countries. In 1895 BC, this wasn’t the case. In 1,895 BC, towns and cities could be built up at will and infrastructural projects fully funded. The city of Kahun (a town by modern-day standards) was built overnight and in a planned format 4,000 years ago. It even had a vet. What did it look like?
Construction Of Kahun: A look at a planned city in 1895 BC Africa Read More »
When his nephew Emperor of the Ming dynasty Zhu Yunwen started eliminating rivals and demoting his uncles, Zhu Di, was “forced”, provided wonderful pretext, to rebel and depose his nephew and become the emperor himself. To add legitimacy to his rule, he did something very unusual and had one his best fleet admirals sail to the East Coast of Africa to get Giraffes. These were labelled the first re-appearance of one of the 4 benevolent animals in Chinese mythology, the Qilin. Where did they go to? What was the role of the Sultanate of Mogadishu, present-day Somalia, in the medieval world?
During 3,000 BC – 525 BC, there was a medical school in Egypt that trained both male and female physicians. The leading physicians of this institution, the Temple of Sais, were sometimes special advisers to the House of Pharoah. Discover the story of Pesehet, Lady Overseer of Female Physicians 2,500 BCE, and the function of the Temple of Sais.
Temple of Sais: African medical school 3000 – 525 BCE Read More »
Although, the civilisation of Rwanda dates back to 2020 BC, the earliest date for the start of centralisation under one monarch is between the 10th and 11th century. Rwanda was a landlocked kingdom situated in east-central Africa, on the south of the equator, with Nyanza as its capital. The development of the society may be
The Rwandan Civilization (2000 BC – 1960 AD): Iron and Soundwave Technology Read More »
The word “polyglot” comes from Greek. “Poly” means “many” and “glot” means tongue. Greek was the first European language to use vowels. It is an Afroasiatic language written right to left originally like Hebrew. Almost every word that starts “ph” in English comes from Greek, along with 12% of all English words – 150,000 words. There are 600,000 words in English, 120,000 words in Yoruba, and no-one has ever counted the number of words in Latin or Greek. Within six years of banning the slave trade, a former slave had the opportunity to produce a bible fully translated into Yoruba, a guide to grammar for Nupe, Igbo and Yoruba, a Yoruba version of the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, receive a Doctor of Divinity from Oxford between 1861 and 1881, to become a polyglot, and become the first Anglican African bishop.
Samuel Ajayi Crowther: from slave to Polyglot & first African Anglican Bishop Read More »
A fallacy about African history is often repeated that political institutions were introduced by either Europeans or Arabs. With one 1,000 year old kingdom still in existence, we demonstrate that African stories are available to turn into documentaries, education and entertainment material from the Kingdom of Buganda.
Kingdom of Buganda: Uganda’s 1000 year old Kingdom Read More »
Some civilisations sacrificed a work-life balance, art and architectural brilliance to focus on winning wars. One African dynasty found time to fight the Mongol empire and build insane works of beautiful architecture at the same time. “Mamluk” comes from the Arabic “owned” or slave. The Mamluk sultanate was created by slave soldiers and administrators that took over Egypt from the Ayyubid dynasty.
Over the span of thirty years, an empire emerged and grew supporting the rising religion at the time, Islam. This period witnessed a spectacular expansion of territory and religion during the Rashidun Caliphate which translates to “The Rightly-Guided Successors” under the leadership of four caliphs covering an area of 6,400,000 km2 and including a population of 21,400,000.
The Rashidun Caliphate: international spread of Islam Read More »
THE HAUSA ETHNICITY The Hausa people are one of the largest ethnic group in Africa. The old Hausa ethnic locations before the Fulani jihad were known collectively as Hausa Bakwai and Hausa Banza, where “Bakwai” was a term used for the original seven Legitimate(Bakwai) Hausa states: Biram, Daura, Gobir, Rano, Katsina, Zaria (Zazzau), and Kano.
The Hausa States: The Pre-Islamic Confederacy Read More »
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
The Fatimid Caliphate: Contributions to Arts and Sciences Read More »
The Abbasid Caliphate came after the Umayyad caliphate, in 750 CE, lasted 5 centuries and was one of the largest Empires in the world at its peak.
The Abbasid Caliphate: The Golden Age of the Islamic Civilization Read More »
Makuria was successor state to the Nubian kingdom. The kingdom of Makuria comprised of a region along the Nile River; encompassing the area between today’s Aswan in southern Egypt and Khartoum in central Sudan. The kingdom existed between 500 AD to the middle of the 14th century and had its capital as Dongola which was
Makuria: Humanity’s Longest Observed Peace Treaty, The Baqt Read More »
If a person wanted to hold (or retain) a political role and wanted the masses to hold a particular point of view, how would they go about spreading their message and proving that they are qualified for such a role? Surely, they would want to appear at their best, bringing out all their finest qualities
The Birth of Propaganda: King Den’s Sandal Label Read More »
The kingdom of Punt is described in great detail in ancient Egyptian texts as the “Land of the Gods” – Ta Netjer. The history of Punt is connected intimately with the ancient Egyptian kingdoms and was a valuable trading partner of the kingdoms. In pre-dynastic era (c6000 – 3150 BC) signs of trade had already
Kingdom of Punt: When Ancient Egypt Envied Somalia Read More »
Universities today invoke a certain image. They are considered institutions of higher education, helping students develop mastery in any one of many diverse fields of liberal arts, science, engineering and medicine. Typically, it tends to be the alumni of prestigious universities that become the administrators and leaders of government bodies, political parties, not-for-profit organizations, the military,
The oldest university in the world is not Bologna! Read More »
Are wealthy countries more generous? Should wealthy countries be more generous? Do religious populations give more? As at 2017, Australia had a population of 25 million people, 7.7 million square kilometres of land of which only 0.8 million square kilometres of land was habitable (10%), 25,760 kilometres of coastline and 25,460 square kilometres of irrigated
Is Kenya more generous than Australia? Read More »
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
Papyri: Paving The Path To Innovation Read More »
