Geography of Africa by Karyme Iniguez https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a 5 regions of Africa en-us 2017-04-18 05:58:58 UTC 2017-04-19 20:03:01 UTC hello@padlet.com North Africa 349575 https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166677923 Historical facts:
~Around 3000 BC, the Sahara became a desert due to climatic change. The Sahara is also a barrier that separates the Mediterranean coast and North Africa from the rest of the continent.
~The empire of Carthage involves many other Phoenician settlements along the African coast, but does not penetrate far into the interior. This is occupied by the Berbers, nomadic tribes whose origin is not known but who are believed to have been in the region from at least 2000 BC. 
~ From about 300 BC the north African coast has, in Alexandria, one of the most brilliant cities of the Mediterranean world. The entire region soon falls under the control of Rome, which destroys Carthage in 146 BC and annexes Egypt in 30 BC.
Culture:
~Some languages spoken are Arabic, Somali, and Berber.
~Their music includes different types of instruments such as the drums or bongos that make their beats unique.
~The spread of Islam in North Africa came with the expansion of Arab empire under Caliph Umar, through the Sinai Peninsula.
Economy:
~Leading producer of coal which is used in energy production.
~Iron and copper; used in construction.
~Nickel is used for steel.
Society:
~Children were considered adults at the age of 12.
~Girls married at about 12 or 13 years old and their dad's chose their husbands.
~The farmers of the Mali Empire were part of a respected caste of society called the horonnu. Farmers also fought in the military and participated in the local government.
Physical landscape:
~The Sahara desert extends across 3.3 million square miles. North African is mainly all of the Sahara desert.
~The Atlas mountains stretch about 1,600 miles across Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia.
~The Nile River has a length of about 4,160 miles, it starts in North America and its a huge water source for Egyptians.
]]> 2017-04-18 06:05:02 UTC https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166677923 South Africa 349575 https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166683103 Historical facts:
~Among its holidays, South Africa celebrates Human Rights Day on March 21, Freedom Day on April 27 (to celebrate the first majority elections in 1994), National Women’s Day on August 9, Heritage Day on September 24, and Day of Reconciliation on December 16.
~Change occurred slowly in the Early Stone Age; for more than a million years and over a wide geographic area, only slight differences existed in the forms of stone tools.
~ The rich archaeological deposits of Klasies River Mouth, on the Cape coast west of Port Elizabeth, have preserved the first known instance of shellfish being used as a food source.
Culture:
~The great mixture of cultures makes for a wide variety of food choices in the country.
~African food is centered around vegetables, with maize (corn) as an important staple.
~Many popular South African arts represent a fusion of cultural influences, such as township jazz and pop music, religious choral music, and so-called “traditional” dances performed competitively by mine workers in decidedly in traditional settings.
Economy:
~ As the government struggles to expand the economy in order to provide equally for all citizens, great disparities continue to exist. 
~The economy of South Africa was revolutionized in the late 19th century when diamonds and gold were discovered there. 
~In the years since World War II, the country has established a well-developed manufacturing base, and it has experienced highly variable growth rates.
Society:
~ Patterns of daily life in South Africa are conditioned by social class, ethnicity, religion, and residence.
~South Africa’s political development was shaped by its colonial past and the implementation of apartheid policies by the white minority.
~The roles of women were to either work or stay home and take care of the children.
Physical landscape:
~The Kalahari desert is a large semi-arid sandy savannah in this region and stretches 350,000 sq. miles covering much of Botswana, parts of Namibia, and regions of South Africa.
~The Vaal River is the second largest river in South Africa, the largest being the Orange River.
~ South Africa occupies the southern tip of Africa, its long coastline stretching more than 2,500km from the desert border with Namibia on the Atlantic coast, southwards around the tip of Africa, then north to the border with subtropical Mozambique on the Indian Ocean.]]> 2017-04-18 06:56:54 UTC https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166683103 East Africa 349575 https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166683518 Historical facts:
~About 1900 the first of these problems erupted in Somali-inhabited regions, under the leadership of Sayyid Maxamed Cabdulle Xasan. The rebellion was directed at the British, Italians, and Ethiopians, whom Maxamed regarded equally as oppressors and infidels.
~Despite the defeat at Adwa, Rome had not abandoned its dream of an Ethiopian empire. To this end, it worked hard at economic penetration but was invariably frustrated.
~The Italians left Somaliland with an administrative infrastructure, communications, and towns, and the southern centers became incubators of pan-Somali ideas, which were quickly transmitted to their northern compatriots.
Culture:
~Eastern Africa is populated by 160 different ethnic groups or more,  but the largest ethnic group in eastern Africa are the Oromo.
~Today, the continent's various populations and individuals are mostly adherents of Christianity, Islam, and to a lesser extent Traditional African religion.
~Some languages spoken here are Arabic, Somali, Berber and Yoruba.
Economy:
~The East African Community (EAC) is an intergovernmental organisation composed of six countries in the African Great Lakes region in Eastern Africa: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.
~Rely on cash crops, such as coffee, tea, sugar
~Tourism is one of the main economic activities, especially wildlife parks
Society:
~Women often had more power in African families than they did in other parts of the world, 
~Ancient African society did not involve the huge differences between rich and poor people that plagued Europe and Asia.
~Family was very important to African social networks. Many trades were done through networks of cousins and second cousins and even more distant relatives.
Physical landscape:
~Associated with the rift valleys are vast savannas such as the Serengeti Plain, large lakes, high mountains, and the highlands of Ethiopia.
~East Africa is almost completely plains and plateaus.
~The physical geography of East Africa is dominated by the Great Rift Valley, which extends through the middle of the region from north to south.
]]> 2017-04-18 06:59:01 UTC https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166683518 West Africa 349575 https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166683766 Historical facts:
~West Africa is primarily a political and economic designation and compresses all the areas considered here except Cameroon, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, and the Saharan parts of Mali, Mauritania, and Niger.
~ The logic of the situation in western Africa had led France and Britain to take the political initiatives of creating formal European colonies in Senegal, in Lagos, and in the Gold Coast.
~Europeans had colonized western Africa in the later 19th and early 20th centuries confident that their civilization was immensely superior to anything Africa had produced or could produce.
Culture:
~The people of the region belong for the most part to one of three major language families; Nilo Saharan languages, NIger-Congo languages, and Afro-Asiatic.
~Africans love a good story and a good storyteller.  They are primarily an oral people (their stories are not written down, but told verbally), and are often created to be performed with music and dance.
~Histories and stories of people that come to us in a spoken and sung form are part of what is called an oral tradition. Oral tradition means that the stories are told rather than written down.
Economy:
~Along the Ivory coast, there is the world's leading cocoa producer.
~The West African Economic and Monetary Union (also known as UEMOA from its name in French, Union économique et monétaire ouest-africaine) is an organization of eight, mainly francophone West African states within the ECOWAS, that was dominated otherwise by anglophone heavyweights like Nigeria and Ghana.
~Also rely on cash crops.
Society:
~300-1500 powerful empires controlled West Africa.
~Women prepared food and took care of children. They also worked in the fields, made pottery, and brought water to their village.
~Children would gather wood for fires, and helped clean the house
Physical landscape:
~West Africa is the region of western Africa that includes the countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.
~It is on what is known as the “Bulge of Africa.”
~Western Africa is dry and also has mediterranean climate since it's along the coast.]]> 2017-04-18 07:00:24 UTC https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166683766 Central Africa 349575 https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166683793 Historical facts:
~ The earliest period of settlement began around 10,000 years ago when nomadic people first began to settle, farm and fish in the region.
~ The next period began around 1,000 to 3,000 years ago when several non-indigenous groups began to migrate into the region from other parts of the continent.
~The third period involved the colonial conquest and rule of the country by France and Germany which spanned from the late 1800's until 1960 when Central African Republic became an independent state
Culture:
~Official language=French but many people speak native Bantu dialects.
~Predominant religion=Christianity.
~Popular foods=stews, greens, meat and fish, and livestock such as chickens.
Economy:
~Poor economy; one of top ten poorest countries in the world.
~Trade routes; imports=goods and services. exports=slaves
~Congo River - main natural resource.
Society:
~Limited access to modern technology, medicine, and education.
~Poverty and hunger live here.
~Plant crops.
Physical landscape:
~Total area of Central Africa is 6.5 million square km.
~Lake Victoria is located in this region and is the largest freshwater lake in the world.
~The Congo river flows through the  RoC and the DRoC, it's 220 meters deep and 4,700 km long.]]> 2017-04-18 07:00:34 UTC https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166683793 Central Africa 349575 https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166865114 2017-04-18 19:17:02 UTC https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166865114 North Africa 349575 https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166866190 2017-04-18 19:21:54 UTC https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166866190 West Africa 349575 https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166866396 2017-04-18 19:22:55 UTC https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166866396 East Africa 349575 https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166866561 2017-04-18 19:23:40 UTC https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166866561 Southern Africa 349575 https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166867838 2017-04-18 19:29:54 UTC https://padlet.com/349575/20430cqvqd7a/wish/166867838