Transcript The Cultures of East Africa

The Cultures of East Africa
Africa
Living Along the Indian Ocean
• Most people speak more than one
language
– Ethiopia 70+ languages are spoken
• There are many ethnic groups which is the
result of location
– Many ethnic groups have migrated to E. Africa
from other regions of the continent.
– The ocean connects people of E. Africa to
people living across the ocean to the east.
• Arabs, Indians, and other Asians
Living Along the Indian Ocean
• Arab traders first made the link to E. Africa
when they settled in the coastal villages
approx. 2,000 years ago.
– They brought Arab culture into E. Africa
where it mixed with various African cultures.
The mixture produced Swahili
Swahili Culture
• Swahili are Africans who have mixed
African and Arab ancestry
• Live along the east coast of Africa from
Somalia to Mozambique.
• Language is called Swahili (a Bantu
language)
• Swahili is just one of the hundreds of
ethnic groups in E. Africa
Swahili Culture
• Swahili is the first language of about
49million people worldwide
• Second language of millions of E. Africans
• Official language of Kenya and Tanzania
– Tanzanian children are educated in Swahili
through the primary grades—later they learn
English as well
A Mixture of Religions
• Islam and Christianity
• Islam
– Introduced into E. Africa by Arab traders
• Christianity
– Introduced by the Romans into the North
African territories, and later it spread to
Ethiopia
– 1800s Europeans pushed into Africa and
spread Christianity farther.
Changing Ideas About Land
• Prior to the 1800s Africans did not own land
• Families had the right to farm plots of land near
the village
• Extended families farmed the land to produce
food for the whole group
• Men cleared the land and broke up the soil
• Women planted the seed, tended the fields, and
harvested the crops
• Men also herded livestock or traded goods
• This division of roles still exists in many parts of
Africa today.
Changing Ideas About Land
• Owning land was introduced by European
settlers
• In parts of E. Africa the British set up
plantations (a large fram where cash crops
are grown)
• When many African countries became
independent, they broke up the old
colonial plantations. They sold the land to
individual Africans.
Changing Ideas About Land
• There is still available land in E. Africa
– Much of it is poor farm land where few people
live
– In Ethiopian Highlands and the Rift Valley land
for framing is scarce.
• Many people live in these areas where the farm
land is fertile
– In densely populated countries, such as
Rwanda and Burundi, conflicts have
developed over land
Where is home?
• Traditionally Africans feel a loyalty to the
area where they grew up.
• E. Africa is becoming urban, yet many
people do not call it home.
– Most Africans will identify their village as
home
– Most people consider their stay in the city as
temporary.