Culture
Culture is a big part of Africa, especially in the tribes. So I'm going to tell you about the tribes so that you can understand some of the culture in Africa.
Bobo
The Bobo people are a tribe in the western part of Africa, mainly in Mali. They have a population of slightly over 100,000. They have lived in Western Africa for centuries, dating back to 800 A.D. They have their own language known as Bobo or Mande. The Bobo produce interesting art and clothing. They create masks using leaves, fiber, cloth, and wood, and they also use these in their clothing. They use these in their rituals. the Bobo worship Wuro, who is the creator of the world. They believe that he puts everything into pairs that balance out, and mankind is responsible for the unbalancing of the pairs. They believe that they restore balance through offerings and sacrifices.
Chewa
The Chewa tribe lives in Zimbabwe, which is in the region of South Africa. They have existed since the first millennium , A.D. They speak in the language known as Chichewa or Banti. Most their money comes from slash-and-burn agriculture. The main crops that are grown are corn and sorghum. The Chewa people believe that all living things were created by Chiuta on a mountain named Kapirintiwa, during a thunderstorm. The mountain currently sits on the border between Malawi and Mozambique. The Chewa are very distinct from other tribes because even though they have been visited by many people they have managed to maintain their original beliefs and culture.
Afar
The Afar tribe lives mainly in Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, and Somaliacan. They have a population of over three million people, and they make up a third of the population in Djibouti.
The earliest record of Afar existence dates back to the 13th century. The Afar people speak the language of Afar. The Afar are divided into clans, and then into classes. The asaimara are the more politically dominant class, and the adoimara are the working class. The Afar are in tune with the environment and animals, sharing land and resources with animals and doing them no harm. The Afar people wear different clothing depending on their gender. When married, the women will wear a black headscarf called a shash or mushal.
Pygmy
Pygmy is a term used for ethnic groups worldwide whose height is unusually low. Anthropologists use the term to define any group whose adult males grow less than 150cm. The best known pygmies are those of Central Africa, the Aka, Efé, and Mbuti. The Pygmy people speak different languages, usually related to languages neighboring the Pygmy people. The Pygmy in Central Africa are forest dwellers, and know the forest well. They live by hunting and gathering plants. For them, the forest is a god that provides all their needs. However, the Pygmy people are in constant threat of deforestation. They are also not seen as equal citizens by the government, and are constantly deprived of their rights.
Berber
The Berber tribes have lived in Africa since the earliest recorded time. They date as far back as 3000 B.C. They are widespread across Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, and Egypt. Around forty percent of the Morocco population is Berber, thirty percent in Algeria, and one percent in Tunisia. They tend to live in desert regions such as the Sahara, and in the Atlas Mountains. The Berber tribes have over 300 closely related dialects, and some tribes have their own distinct language. The Berbers are traditionally Muslim. In traditional Berber culture, men take care of livestock and women take care of the family. The social structure in Berber culture is tribal, where one leader is chosen to command the tribe.
Here are some pictures of the tribes:
Bobo - http://www.uiowa.edu/~africart/Photos%20for%20BF%20web/DSCN0206.jpg
Physical Geography
The physical Geography in Africa has a lot of variety, So I will tell you about the most popular regions.
Sahara
The Sahara desert is the largest in the world. It stretches over 3.3 million miles across northern Africa. The Sahara was first explored by camel caravans looking for gold, salt, and slaves. To this day the Sahara still serves as a border between the black African south and the Arab influenced north. Even with its scorching heat and little rainfall, the Sahara isn’t falling behind the modern world. The Sahara hosts cities like Cairo, in Egypt. Cairo has 10 million people living in its boundaries. Trucks are replacing camels, and people are pumping out oil and gas.
Sahel
The Sahel is a narrow strip of land south of the Sahara that is used for farming and raising livestock. It has a semiarid climate, and it has boasted some of the most influential civilizations. The Region is now one of the poorest and most environmentally damaged places in the world, has heavy problems. The Sahel has been through drought and famine, killing nearly 200,000 people. It’s yet to rid it self of soil erosion, insufficient irrigation, overpopulation, and deforestation. Many people head to the urban areas to try and get money, because they can’t get it through farming or herding since the environment has been ravaged.
Ethiopian Highlands
Sometimes called “The Cradle of Humanity,” Ethiopia is said to be the birthplace of the first humans. Eighty percent of the highest mountains in Africa are in highlands of Ethiopia. The highlands have provided a geographical advantage, allowing them to drive off invaders and preserve a unique culture. Ethiopia is the only country In Africa that was not colonized. The Blue Nile courses through this region, proving life to many. It also boasts the Rift Valley at its center. However, this place is not without its problems. Famine has plagued Ethiopia, the worst in 1985. The land is tiring out after 7,000 years of agriculture.
Savanna
Africa’s savannas are full of sky and rolling grassland. The wildlife in this region is famous and has been the focus of filmmakers around the world. The Serengeti is the most famous of these regions. Humans came to the Serengeti around 2 million years ago. It is the only area in Africa where mass migrations of wildebeest and zebras still occur. For a long time the circle of life in this region remained untouched, but now with a cycle of droughts, soil erosion and overgrazing are bringing problems to this area. A lot of people are helping to maintain this area, and restore it back to life.
Swahili Coast
The Swahili Coast rests on the Indian ocean , and it is a center of trade. It connects Africa to southern Asia, allowing trade between Africa, India, and Arab nations. The monsoon winds of the Indian ocean have laid the foundation for one of the oldest and richest trading histories. Between November and March Indian and Omani ships would sail down to the Swahili coast for trade, and returned home on the northern winds between July and September.
Rainforest
The rainforest is host to half of Africa’s animal species. These rainforests contain lots of plant life and habitat a lot of animals. However, these rainforests are being torn down for farmland and roads. For a long time only scattered tribes disturbed the rainforests, but then 19th century explorers came in and colonized the area, and Europeans started to tear down the rainforest to make way for plantations. Today, countries are torn between whether they should save the rainforests or tear them down for much needed money. The governments seem to be leaning towards saving the rainforests, as they have passed forestry laws and have created national parks within the rainforests.
Great Lakes
The Great Lakes of Africa are some of the biggest and most diverse lakes in Africa. Eight lakes in this region are considered to be great lakes because of their size and depth. Lake Victoria is the second largest freshwater lake, the first being lake superior of the U.S. Lake Taganayika ranks as one of the deepest. The regions rich soil draws humans in like a moth to lights. Several million bantu-speaking people live within a 50 mile radius of lake Victoria. Fishing provides the main source of income near these lakes. However, pollution has taken its toll and is causing destruction of the lakes ecosystem.
Southern Africa
Southern Africa contains a colossal geographical formation, called the Kaapval Craton. It is over 2.6 billion years old and contains rich deposits of gold, diamonds, platinum, and more. In 1870, large deposits of diamonds were found, and then the world’s largest deposit of gold was found. The region boomed and everyone wanted a piece of it. The conflict between black and white grew and South Africa passed laws the restricted blacks to own lands and restricted the high paying mining jobs to whites only. This was the framework of the apartheid.
Challenges
There are a lot of challenges in Africa and I'm going to tell you about a few of them.
AIDS
AIDS is an pandemic in Africa. It can infect anyone, not matter gender or age. Acquired immune deficiency syndrome - That is what AIDS stands for. The condition progressively reduces the strength of the immune system, leaving the victim vulnerable to infections and tumors. AIDS kills many people around the world every day. This leaves families sad and possibly in financial troubles.
Conflict
There is a lot of conflict in Africa. The conflict is causing major problems and making countries very dangerous places to go to. One of the problems is the ethnic violence between the Hutus and the Tutsis. These factions kill each other every day, and there was a huge genocide in 1994 that killed over 500,000 Tutsis. Still, there are other problems in Africa too. Civil war and conflict have left some countries littered with active antipersonnel mines. Children are being forced into the army. There are wars for diamonds and gold, and there are slaves.
Urban Africa
Cairo, Egypt, is a thriving city. It has over 20 million residents. It is estimated that by 2020 half of Africa's population will be living in urban environments. Cities often provide a home for Africa's 25 million refugees. These refugees are attracted to townships, because they are cheap and largely unregulated. A lot of people in Africa are uninformed of what is happening in the world because they don't have the internet. Only 5 million people in Africa have access to the internet, although this number is growing.
Environment
A lot of Africa is stricken by drought and famine. People have to walk for miles just to get water. In other places people resort to other methods. In Libya, people are making a huge water pump to pump water up from under the Sahara. In Namib people use fog catchers to catch moisture in the air. However not everywhere is under threat of drought. Deforestation is a big problem in Africa, as it is cutting down animals habitats.
Women
Women are the workforce of Africa. They grow the crops, take care of the children, and some are even in the military. Women are estimated to account for 80 percent of the continent's agriculture. They are also supermoms, taking care of their children while working on a farm or other job. There are also many women doing other things. Some serve as spirit healers, and others running for president. There are some women though who are not in a good position. They are slaves, waiting to be bought by human rights groups. These people are in harsh conditions every day, and can only wait.
Here is a news article about poverty in Africa
http://ezinearticles.com/?Poverty-In-Africa&id=509042
