Ancient civilizations in Africa that you may not have known!

Top 5 ancient civilizations in Africa that not everyone knows

Kingdom of Punt

Before ancient Egypt, the kingdom of Punt is said to have existed long before that. The Kingdom of Punt dating back to at least 3000 BC and originating in the vicinity of present-day Somalia, Punt was "the land of the gods" to the ancient Egyptians, according to the Encyclopedia of History. Ancient.

Punt is home to several major types of incense used in all sorts of Egyptian rituals.

Not only are gods and goddesses like Hathor said to have come from this super-rich and fertile kingdom, but so are all kinds of valuable trade goods. According to Ancient Origins, an important commercial expedition launched by the pharaoh Hatshepsut arrived here and returned, bringing back many spices and living plants, in addition to gold, leopard skin and a few live elephants.

As far as we can tell from the historical records of Egypt, Punt was home to several major incenses used in all kinds of Egyptian rituals. Accordingly, there were many great expeditions that regularly brought Egyptian goods such as tools and wood to Punt, and returned with precious luxuries.

But to this day, scholars have not been able to ascertain the location of the kingdom of Punt. because historical records and pharaohs kept it a secret.

Kingdom of Yam

Yam was extremely wealthy, supplying ivory, ebony and fur to the neighboring regions.

Historical researchers are still uncertain whether Yam really existed, because until now, no one has found any traces of this civilization. According to historical records, it dates back to around 2500 BC. Yam is mentioned in several ancient Egyptian burial texts and is associated with the Nubian-Kushite empire. According to David O'Connor, if it is real, it could be somewhere in present-day Chad or Sudan, and scholars suggest it is somewhere south of modern-day Egypt.

From inscriptions dating to 2200 BC, found in the tomb of Harkhuf, a governor of Upper Egypt, we know that Yam was quite potent - enough to pose a threat to Egypt. Egypt and that prompted Harkhuf to make several expeditions to decide whether to make war or trade with the kingdom. Like the kingdom of Punt, Yam was extremely wealthy, supplying ivory, ebony and fur to the neighboring regions.

Kingdom of Aksum

The kingdom of Aksum flourished from 100 to 940 AD.

Entering the Common Era, Africa's great civilizations continued to uphold their global reputation as immensely wealthy trading empires. Aksum, flourished from AD 100 to 940 and was also the site of major trade routes in Africa and the Middle East. If you wanted to transport goods between these two regions, you would definitely have to go through this kingdom (located in present-day Ethiopia and Eritrea).

Rome, the Byzantine Empire, the Indian trade magnates, the Arab caravans - all did business with Aksum. At the height of civilization in the third and fourth centuries, Aksum was considered one of the four great empires of the world. Although historical records suggest that the kingdom developed its own script, known as Ge'ez, archaeologists have yet to find any remaining records from the Aksum period. .

Ghana Empire

The ancient Ghana Empire was not really geographically linked to modern Ghana.

The ancient Ghanaian empire, known to the natives as Wagadu, is not really geographically linked to modern Ghana - it is actually located somewhere near Mauritania and Mali. This empire flourished from the 500s to the 1200s AD.

Wagadu was called "the land of gold" by Arab and European traders in the past, according to the Ancient History Encyclopedia. The Wagadu kings controlled all gold prospecting and processing in the area.

According to historical records, Arab merchants were particularly impressed with the wealth of this empire when they saw the amount of silver and gold jewelry that people wore. Even the king's dogs were given gold collars.

However, gold is not the only factor that makes Wagadu famous. Its capital, Koumbi Saleh, is home to 20,000 people despite being on the edge of the Sahara. But it is thought that the people of Wagadu had some pretty advanced agricultural and irrigation methods to help them prosper in such a harsh climate.

The Benin Empire

The Benin Empire in West Africa was a center of arts and culture in the region.

Much of what Westerners know about Africa in the past is based on the transcontinental slave trade. That terrible practice allowed the vast empires of Europe to get the job done with little to no local labor. But this also allowed the African kingdoms to grow and expand, as Black History Month admits, many African countries added the slave trade to supplement their economic resources - they carried out expanding, capturing neighboring territories to capture people and then sell them to other African or Arab and European countries, as Dr. Sandra Greene of Cornell University said.

The Benin Empire in West Africa was a center of arts and culture in the region and a notorious slave-trading country. They built their influence and wealth from the 1200s to 1897 selling whatever - or anyone - they got.