Quatr.us experts wrote all of these simple, free articles. Click on any link to read the full article. Looking for Early Africa? Start with ancient Meroe and Aksum, or read about collecting wild honey and figs, or the domestication of donkeys, sorghum, and millet. There’s a whole long list of articles about ancient Egypt, too.
But also read about Hellenistic Egypt, where Eratosthenes figured out the circumference of the earth and Euclid developed geometry. Check out the pharaoh Cleopatra and Roman Africa, when many Africans, like Augustine and the Ethiopians, became Christians.
Go on to Islamic Africa – the Fatimids, the Almohads, Saladin, and Saladin’s great doctor, Maimonides. Read about the kingdoms of Mali, Djenne, and Congo. And then read about the crisis of the European slave trade and colonization, and how African countries like Mozambique and Angola are still recovering – and still being exploited – today.
History
- Ancient Meroe and Aksum – Early Sudan
- East Africa
- Egypt (a lot of articles)
- North Africa and Carthage
- Roman North Africa
- Central Africa
- West Africa
- South Africa: the Khoikoi and the San
- Medieval African history
- Islamic North Africa
- Fatimids
- Hafsids
- Almohads
- Marinids
- Medieval West Africa
- The Black Death
- Africa – colonization and independence
- Botswana
- Mozambique
- Kenya
- Sudan
- Chad
- Burkina Faso (coming soon)
- Mauritania
- Nigeria
- Ghana
- African enslavement – the Middle Passage
- Congo
- Angola
- Tanzania
Daily Life
- African Games
- Early African clothing
- Iron Age African clothing
- Medieval African clothing
- African clothing and colonization
- Early African food
- Medieval African food
- African food and the Columbian Exchange
- What is Eto? Something to eat!
- Where does palm oil come from?
- A West African recipe: Aloco
- Millet: a grain like wheat or barley
- Collecting wild honey
- Bees and beehives in ancient Egypt
- Where does coffee come from?
- Malaria
- Dengue fever
- Early African environment
- Medieval African environment
African Languages
African Religion
- The African god Bes
- Egyptian Gods
- The goddess Tanit
- Ba’al, Tanit’s husband
- Easter Eggs
- Christianity
- Gnostics
- Cyprian and the Decian persecution
- Donatists
- Augustine
- Islam
- Judaism
- African religions and colonization
Architecture
- Bronze Age architecture
- The Pyramids in Egypt
- Iron Age African architecture
- African buildings in antiquity
- Medieval African architecture: churches and mosques
- Kairouan’s Great Mosque
- Fatimid architecture in Egypt
- Almohad architecture in Morocco
- Great Zimbabwe
Economy
- Early African economy
- African ships and sailing
- Domestication of donkeys in Sudan
- Cattle
- Sheep
- Knitting
- Medieval African economy
- Salt Trade
- Gold trade
- Little Ice Age
- Early Modern Economy in Africa
African Art
- Pottery in early Africa
- African Music
- San Painting
- Art in ancient Egypt
- What is ivory?
- Medieval African Art
African Science
- Numbers
- Bow and Arrow
- History of Fire
- Stone Tools
- Obsidian
- Flint
- Science in ancient Egypt
- Ancient Egyptian medicine
- Eratosthenes – an astronomer
- Euclid – a mathematician
- Ptolemy – another astronomer
- Science in Islamic Africa
- Maimonides – a doctor
African Literature
- Ancient Egyptian poetry
- Epic of Sundiata
- Ibn Battuta
- Ibn Khaldun
- Anansi
- How Anansi taught people farming
- Anansi Sickness
- How Anansi gave us Stories
- Anansi and the Turtle
- And Anansi’s free dinner (more about the turtle)
- Anansi and the wisdom of the world
- African literature – colonization and independence
Government in African history
- Big Men
- Pharaohs in Egypt
- Early African Warfare
- War and battle in ancient Egypt
- Nubian mercenaries in Sudan
- Chiefdoms
- States
- Monarchy
- African warfare after colonization
Africa Projects
- How to play African Games
- African Cooking: Aloco recipe
- African map project – Al Idrisi
- Memorization
- Batik
- Tie Dye
- Rock Art
- African economy activity
- African languages
Bibliography and further reading about ancient Africa: