GEOG101 Study Guide

Unit 6: Sub-Saharan Africa

Sub-Saharan Africa

Physical Features of Africa

6a. Distinguish between the Sahel or African Transition Zone and the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa

  • What are the characteristics that distinguish the African Transition Zone from Sub-Saharan Africa?
  • What is Sub-Saharan Africa's dominant climate type?
  • What are the most important physical features of Sub-Saharan Africa?

The African Transition Zone is also known as the Sahel, an Arabic term for coast or shore. This zone is the southern coast or shore of the Sahara Desert. To the north of the African Transition Zone, the climate is arid, dominated by type B climates. To the south, the climate is tropical, dominated by Type A climates.
 
This tropical climate gives way to dry, temperate (Type C climate) conditions and then predominantly arid conditions (Type B climate) in southern Africa, which includes the Namib and Kalahari Deserts. Despite its proximity to the Equator, the Horn of Africa is arid due to the rain shadow effect of the Ethiopian Highlands, which is also known as the Ethiopian Plateau. The Congo River, which is second only to the Amazon River in terms of discharge volume, flows through the heart of Sub-Saharan Africa's tropical rainforest.
 
Most of the high elevations are in the east-northeast of the Sub-Saharan Africa realm, in the vicinity of the Great Rift Valley. Sub-Saharan Africa also has many lakes which started out as depressions in the East African Rift Zone that later filled with water. Some of the most prominent lakes include Lake Tanganyika, Lake Malawi, Lake Albert, and Lake Victoria.
 
To review, see Physical Landscape of Sub-Saharan Africa, Physical Geography of Sub-Saharan Africa, The Great Rift Valley, Koppen-Geiger Climate Classification for Africa, and Africa by Satellite.
 

6b. Describe factors that have led to desertification in parts of Sub-Saharan Africa

  • What cultural and natural factors have led to desertification in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Desertification tends to occur on the outskirts of already existing deserts. In Sub-Saharan Africa, examples would include the Namib Desert, the Kalahari Desert, and most notably, the Sahara Desert. Not surprisingly, the Sahel or African Transition Zone comprises the part of Africa most prone to desertification.
 
Desertification refers to how previously fertile land transforms into a desert due to a variety of reasons, such as climate change or other human activities.
 
Among the most well-known natural causes of desertification is climate change. Warming temperatures not only alter precipitation patterns but also increase the speed of evaporation. Certain human activities make these matters worse. For example, overgrazing by cattle can greatly reduce vegetation causing the erosion of fertile topsoil. As the desert expands, farmers tend to migrate south to search for more fertile soil. This can lead to conflict with southern farmers and further stress the land.
 
To review, see Physical Landscape of Sub-Saharan Africa, Physical Geography of Sub-Saharan Africa, The Great Rift Valley, Koppen-Geiger Climate Classification for Africa, and Africa by Satellite.
 

6c. Explain how the human history of Sub-Saharan Africa affected its ethnic and linguistic diversity

  • What cultural features characterized Sub-Saharan African cultures before colonialism?
  • How many languages are spoken on the continent of Africa?
  • Describe the pattern of religions on the continent of Africa.

Through growing fossil evidence, it is widely recognized that Sub-Saharan Africa, especially the grasslands and forests of East Africa and Southern Africa, was home to the human species. Beginning with homo erectus, our ancestors left Africa as they evolved a little less than two million years ago. They traveled as far as Indonesia and China. Some eventually arrived in Europe and western Asia, where they evolved into the Neanderthals. Those that stayed in Africa became the first modern humans (or homo sapiens) and eventually dispersed out of Africa around 100,000 years ago.
 
During the intervening years, pre-colonial Africa has been characterized by many diverse cultures with rich histories. Scholars have recognized more than 800 distinct ethnic regions – several distinct cultural groups lived within some of these ethnic regions. Some tribes coexisted peacefully, while others warred over territory. Most practiced shifting cultivation for subsistence.
 
The family was the basic social and economic unit in these African societies, and the extended family was important politically. Tribes consisted of landholding groups of families united by common ancestry and language. In addition to these tribes, pre-colonial Africa was also characterized by several large empires, particularly in the Sahel region and West Africa.
 
The people of Sub-Saharan Africa speak more than 2,000 languages, 30 percent of the world's languages. Many of these were never written down. Colonialism and globalization have made it difficult for some of these languages to survive.
 
In terms of religion, most of the countries of Sub-Saharan Africa continue to practice traditional animistic or tribal religions. A number of world religions are also present in the region, particularly Christianity and Islam. Here too, the African Transition Zone has played an important role. While most Sub-Saharan African countries have been greatly influenced by Christianity, Islam seems to have greater influence in the Sahel and northwards.
 
To review, see The Dispersal of Homo Erectus, Homo Neanderthalensis, and Homo Sapiens, Pre-Colonial Sub-Saharan Africa, History of Sub-Saharan Africa, and Powerful Stories that Shaped Africa.
 

6d. Describe the pre-colonial landscape of Sub-Saharan Africa and the effects of European colonialism

  • What were the main cultural features of pre-colonial Sub-Saharan African societies?
  • What were the effects of European colonialism in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Colonial empires expanded their colonial holdings to expand agricultural production and obtain mineral resources to fuel the Industrial Revolution that was spreading across Europe. France, Italy, Britain, Portugal, Belgium, and Germany recognized the resource potential of Sub-Saharan Africa.
 
European colonialism completely reshaped the political and ethnic landscape of Africa. Although policies varied across the continent, colonialism generally refers to the control Europeans forced on the territories they conquered in Africa. For example, Belgium adopted a paternalistic attitude in the Congo and was especially violent toward the population; France tried to spread the French culture and language in its colonies, while the British often partnered with local rulers.
 
In general, the Europeans focused on exporting goods and gave little attention to local development or connectivity. They made their colonial borders arbitrary and often divided pre-existing ethnic groups. Local communities which had practiced subsistence agriculture were forced to export their crops to European markets. Although the colonists constructed rail lines in Africa, they were designed to transport resources from the interior of the continent to the coastal ports. They showed no concern for linking city centers that would have promoted other forms of trade among the indigenous population.
 
Eventually, the Europeans granted independence to their African colonies, but the ease of transition varied widely. For example, many of the British colonies had a gradual transition of power because the British had practiced indirect rule. Other colonies, such as the Belgian Congo, had to resort to violent means to remove their colonial administration.
 
To review, see Pre-Colonial Sub-Saharan Africa, The Slave Trade Through a Ghanaian Lens, Sub-Saharan African Colonization, African Slave Trade, and History of Sub-Saharan Africa.

 

6e. Identify recent and historic barriers that have impeded economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa, including the role of foreign countries and organizations

  • What are some of the problems that have plagued countries since gaining their independence?
  • Why are most countries on the continent of Africa in subsistence mode?
  • Why is it difficult for women to get an education or a job outside the home in the realm of Sub-Saharan Africa?
  • What role do endemic and epidemic diseases play in impeding economic growth?

While independence movements successfully freed African countries from European control, many faced difficult decisions on how they should politically organize their new states. During colonization, the European powers had redrawn the map of Africa without any regard for the long-standing, underlying ethnic territories. Some groups were forced to live with groups they had fought with for centuries. Other ethnic groups were divided among two or more colonies.
 
The new political map of Africa reinstated the artificial boundaries the Europeans had created, a predicament that de-incentivized cooperation among countries and regions with significant cultural differences.
 
Meanwhile, the economy of many Sub-Saharan countries remains structured around subsistence agriculture, which is not profitable. With increased urbanization, families have grown significantly, placing greater pressure on the agricultural sector. In addition, the cultural expectation is that women will care for the children. This limits educational and economic options for women since children make up the majority of the population. However, women must also perform agricultural work to feed their families and care for ailing and aging family members.
 
Several illnesses, such as hepatitis and hookworm, exist among the Sub-Saharan population in relatively steady numbers. They are endemic to Africa. Epidemic diseases affect large numbers of people on a regional scale. For example, the two African regions of West Africa and Central Africa have suffered from periodic epidemics of Ebola, a deadly viral hemorrhagic fever.
 
Malaria is the deadliest disease in Sub-Saharan Africa. Sudden epidemics of this mosquito-borne disease can affect large populations. In addition, nearly 70 percent of the total number of people living with HIV/AIDS reside in Sub-Saharan Africa. HIV/AIDS is spread by unsafe sexual practices, such as having unprotected sex with multiple partners. People living in other regions typically receive long-term treatments when diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, but its fatality rate is much higher in Sub-Saharan Africa.
 
To review, see Democracy in Africa: Success Stories That Defied the Odds, Filming Democracy in Ghana, Modern Sub-Saharan African Landscape, Lagos, Nigeria: The City That Keeps Growing, COVID-19 Shows Why African Data Is Key for the Continent's Response to Pandemics, Famine in Ethiopia: Eritrea's Long-Running Feud with Tigrayans, Economics and Globalization in Sub-Saharan Africa, Debt Distress in Africa: The Way Forward, and Scaling the African Sharing Economy.
 

Unit 6 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms listed above that students need to know to successfully complete the final exam for the course.

  • African Rift Zone
  • African Transition Zone
  • climate change
  • Congo River
  • desertification
  • Ebola
  • Ethiopian Plateau
  • Great Rift Valley
  • HIV/AIDS
  • homo erectus
  • homo sapiens
  • Horn of Africa
  • indirect rule
  • Kalahari Desert
  • Lake Albert
  • Lake Malawi
  • Lake Tanganyika
  • Lake Victoria
  • Malaria
  • Namib Desert
  • Neanderthal
  • Sahara Desert
  • Sahel
  • shifting cultivation
  • tribe
  • Type A climate
  • Type B climate
  • urbanization