Description
Interest in African history has increased in recent years. The focus has gradually shifted away from the invaders of Africa and on to the Africans themselves. The emphasis has also changed. The small rural cultures who used to take centre stage have largely given way to the major cyclopaean cities, the great merchants and mariners, the universities, and the men and women of learning. Africa has had all of these things, and much of this has already been documented in various volumes. One of the reasons for this recent change of focus has been the interest that Africans worldwide have taken in the subject. There is an increasing realisation among them of the importance of connecting the present to an authentic, solidly established past.
The history that we propose to introduce will touch on some themes in the early history of the Blacks, starting well before Africa came under outside influences and occupations. Our brief is to tell the story of the various experiences in state building across the continent, discussing the civilisations of the Nile Valley (including Ancient Egypt, Nubia and Makuria), the civilisations of North Africa (Carthage and Numidia), the civilisations of West Africa (Ancient Ghana, Mali and Songhai), the civilisations of the western coast (such as Benin and Kongo), the civilisations of the Central Sahara (Kanem-Borno and the Hausa States), the civilisations of East Africa (Axum and the Coastal States), and the civilisations of Southern Africa (such as Great Zimbabwe and Monomotapa). We shall also discuss the civilisations of early Asia that were founded by Blacks (including Elam, Arabia Felix and the Indus Valley), and African influences in Ancient America and Medieval Spain. We look at the rise and fall of these states, reflecting our view that the study of nations and groups is far more interesting than concentrating on great Black individuals dotted here and there.
