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DEscribe major attriibutes of west african culture prior to the beggining of
- Thread starter aruiz44
- Start date
Mr. Bitter
New member
It's almost impossible to describe West African Cultures prior to the start of the New World Slave Trade.. Those Cultures did not have any written languages so they produced no records.
All the primary documents used by historians to describe West Africa were written by Europeans who visited the area. (and found a thriving slave trade)
There were only a few decades of trade between the Europeans and Africans before the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Started.
The contacts were limited because diseases like Malaria and Yellow Fever made it very hazardous for the Europeans to stay for long periods of time. They quickly learned to keep their visits as short as possible for health reasons. As a result, the majority of Africa would remain unknown to the West until the late 1800's.
But it is pointless, to bring this up with your Professor. (First rule of success in college, do not point out gaps in the Phd's knowlege)
"The Slave Trade" by Hugh Thomas is an great book on the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.
It will give you a good overview of how the slave trade developed, it's economics, and how it was eventually stopped.
PRO-TIP.. When you find one great source for a paper, go through the bibliography of that book. You can find other sources this way.
I hope you enjoy researching the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. I did my thesis on it back in the day. What you discover will surprise you.
If you have the courage to go against the grain, I suggest writing a paper argueing against the "Musket/Slave Cycle" theory of the formation of the slave trade.
It is often taught to students, that the Europeans traded muskets for slaves (and only slaves) and that African kings had to participate in the slave trade or be at an extreme military disadavantage against the kings who did.
This is not true.
First of all, for the first century and a half of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, the Portuguese had the monopoly on providing slaves for the New World Colonies. The Portuguese Government forbid it's merchants to sell muskets to Non-Christians. Portuguese Catholic missionaires had very litte success in Africa. There just weren't Christian African Kings to trade muskets with.
Secondly, Early gunpowder weapons were extremely unrealiable and ineffective in the African Climate. The frequent rains and high humidity of the tropics often rendered them useless. (This is another reason why Europeans would not colonize Africa until the 1800's.)
Even after the Dutch took control of the Portuguesse trading routes. (The Dutch were willing to sell guns to anyone) Muskets were not the most popular trade items.
The West African Kingdoms did not have currency, so the slave trade was alway conducted through barter. Luxery items for the ruling class were the dominant trade goods. Alcohol, tobacco, jewelry, and fine cloth were the most popular items.
I hope this gives you a good start.
All the primary documents used by historians to describe West Africa were written by Europeans who visited the area. (and found a thriving slave trade)
There were only a few decades of trade between the Europeans and Africans before the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Started.
The contacts were limited because diseases like Malaria and Yellow Fever made it very hazardous for the Europeans to stay for long periods of time. They quickly learned to keep their visits as short as possible for health reasons. As a result, the majority of Africa would remain unknown to the West until the late 1800's.
But it is pointless, to bring this up with your Professor. (First rule of success in college, do not point out gaps in the Phd's knowlege)
"The Slave Trade" by Hugh Thomas is an great book on the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade.
It will give you a good overview of how the slave trade developed, it's economics, and how it was eventually stopped.
PRO-TIP.. When you find one great source for a paper, go through the bibliography of that book. You can find other sources this way.
I hope you enjoy researching the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. I did my thesis on it back in the day. What you discover will surprise you.
If you have the courage to go against the grain, I suggest writing a paper argueing against the "Musket/Slave Cycle" theory of the formation of the slave trade.
It is often taught to students, that the Europeans traded muskets for slaves (and only slaves) and that African kings had to participate in the slave trade or be at an extreme military disadavantage against the kings who did.
This is not true.
First of all, for the first century and a half of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, the Portuguese had the monopoly on providing slaves for the New World Colonies. The Portuguese Government forbid it's merchants to sell muskets to Non-Christians. Portuguese Catholic missionaires had very litte success in Africa. There just weren't Christian African Kings to trade muskets with.
Secondly, Early gunpowder weapons were extremely unrealiable and ineffective in the African Climate. The frequent rains and high humidity of the tropics often rendered them useless. (This is another reason why Europeans would not colonize Africa until the 1800's.)
Even after the Dutch took control of the Portuguesse trading routes. (The Dutch were willing to sell guns to anyone) Muskets were not the most popular trade items.
The West African Kingdoms did not have currency, so the slave trade was alway conducted through barter. Luxery items for the ruling class were the dominant trade goods. Alcohol, tobacco, jewelry, and fine cloth were the most popular items.
I hope this gives you a good start.
Vampires are not real
New member
Tribal. Non-nomadic cattle herding. Basic agriculture. Shamanistic religious beliefs. Mud huts. Basket weaving.