Vocabulary 4 Flashcards
Savanna
A savanna is a rolling grassland scattered with shrubs and isolated trees, which can be found between a tropical rainforest and desert biome. Not enough rain falls on a savanna to support forests. Savannas are also known as tropical grasslands.
Plateau
an area of relatively level high ground.
synonyms: upland, tableland, plain, mesa, highland, coteau
“a windswept plateau”
2.
a state of little or no change following a period of activity or progress.
“the peace process had reached a plateau”
synonyms: quiescent period; More
verb
1.
reach a state of little or no change after a time of activity or progress.
Sahara desert
The Sahara is the largest hot desert in the world, and the third largest desert in the world after Antarctica and the Arctic. Its area of 9,200,000 square kilometres is comparable to the area of the United States
Bantu
relating to or denoting a group of Niger–Congo languages spoken in central and southern Africa, including Swahili, Xhosa, and Zulu.
noun
1.
a group of Niger–Congo languages spoken in central and southern Africa, including Swahili, Xhosa, and Zulu.
Swahili
a Bantu language widely used as a lingua franca in East Africa and having official status in several countries.
2.
a member of a people of Zanzibar and nearby coastal regions, descendants of the original speakers of Swahili.
Subsistence farming
Subsistence agriculture is self-sufficiency farming in which the farmers focus on growing enough food to feed themselves and their families. … The typical subsistence farm has a range of crops and animals needed by the family to feed and clothe themselves during the year.
Mansa musa
Musa Keita I was the tenth Mansa, which translates as “sultan” or “emperor”, of the wealthy West African Mali Empire
Ghana
A country of West Africa, with its southern coastline bordering on the Atlantic Ocean; population 23,887,800 (est. 2009); languages, English (official), West African languages; capital, Accra. Former name (until 1957) gold coast.
Mali
A country of western Africa. The site of several powerful states, including the Mali (flourished 14th century) and the Songhai (flourished 15th–16th century), Mali became part of French West Africa in the 19th century and achieved independence in 1960. Bamako is the capital and the largest city.
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country in southern Africa known for its dramatic landscape and diverse wildlife, much of it within parks, reserves and safari areas. On the Zambezi River, Victoria Falls make a thundering 108m drop into narrow Batoka Gorge, where there’s white-water rafting and bungee-jumping. Downstream are Matusadona and Mana Pools national parks, home to hippos, rhinos and birdlife.
Timbuktu
Timbuktu, also spelled as Tinbuktu, Timbuctoo and Timbuktoo, is a historical and still-inhabited city in the West African nation of Mali, situated 20 km north of the River Niger on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert
Mohammed
Muhammad (Mohammed) The Arab founder of Islam, Muhammad is held by Muslims to be the chief prophet of God. He was born in Mecca. Muslims believe that the Koran was dictated to him by an angel sent from God.
Askia
Askia Muhammad I (ca. 1443 – 1538), born Muhammad Ture or Mohamed Toure in Futa Tooro, later called Askia, also known as Askia the Great, was an emperor, military commander, and political reformer of the Songhai Empire in the late 15th century, the successor of Sunni Ali Ber.
Sonni ali
Sunni Ali, also known as Sunni Ali Ber, was born Ali Kolon. He reigned from about 1464 to 1492. Sunni Ali was the first king of the Songhai Empire, located in Africa and the 15th ruler of the Sonni dynasty.
Matrilineal
of or based on kinship with the mother or the female line.
Oral traditions
Oral tradition is information passed down through the generations by word of mouth that is not written down. This includes historical and cultural traditions, literature and law.
Gold and salt trade
Camel caravans from North Africa carried bars of salt as well as cloth, tobacco, and metal tools across the Sahara to trading centers like Djenne and Timbuktu on the Niger River. Some items for which the salt was traded include gold, ivory, slaves, skins, kola nuts, pepper, and suga
Trans-saharan
Jump to: navigation, search. Trans Saharan Trade requires travel across the Sahara (north and south) to reach sub-Saharan Africa from the North African coast, Europe, to the Levant. While existing from prehistoric times, the peak of trade extended from the 8th century until the early 17th centur
Sub-saharan
from or forming part of the African regions south of the Sahara desert.
Songhai
noun
1.
a member of a people living mainly in Niger and Mali.
2.
the Nilo-Saharan language of the Songhai.
adjective
1.
relating to the Songhai or their language.
Griot
a member of a class of traveling poets, musicians, and storytellers who maintain a tradition of oral history in parts of West Africa.
Diviner
of, from, or like God or a god. "heroes with divine powers" synonyms: godly, angelic, seraphic, saintly, beatific; More 2. informaldated excellent; delightful.
Lineage
lineal descent from an ancestor; ancestry or pedigree.
ibn batuta
Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibn Battuta, was a Moroccan Muslim scholar and traveler. He is known for his traveling and going on excursions called the Rihla. His journeys lasted for a period of almost thirty years.