East AfricaChapter 22

East Africa

Rift Valleys

Rift Valleys are places where the earth’s crust stretches until it breaks

A series of rift valleys stretches from north to south across the center of East Africa

The Great Rift Valley is the largest rift valley in the world

https://youtu.be/w7Y2R4KBwvo

Mountains and Highlands

East Africa has many high, snowcapped volcanic mountains, including Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa

https://youtu.be/HNLpTiSnHRg

The Ethiopian Highlands are very rugged and cut by deep river valleys

Plains

Tanzania and Kenya have wide plains areas The Serengeti Plain in Tanzania is famous for

its wildlife, such as elephants, giraffes, lions, and zebras

The government has made the plain a national park

Rivers and Lakes

The Nile, the world’s longest river, begins in East Africa

It is formed by the joining of two rivers, the White Nile and the Blue Nile

The White Nile flows out of Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest lake

Lakes have formed along both eastern and western rift valleys

Climate

East Africa’s location on the equator and its varied elevations influence the climates found there

Climate - Equator

Areas near the equator receive the most rain, while areas away from the equator experience occasional droughts, or periods when little rain falls

During droughts crops die and people suffer

Climate - South

South of the equator the climate changes to tropical savanna

Tall grasses and scattered trees

Rift floors are dry with grasslands and thorn shrubs

Climate - North

North of the equator, plateaus and mountains have a highland climate and dense forests

Temperatures are cooler than on the savanna

Heavy rains make farming possible Because of the rain and farming,

most people in the region live in the highlands

Climate - Coasts

East of the highlands and on the coast, the land is much lower

Desert and steppe climates

Only shrubs and hardy grasses can grow

Christianity

Missionaries brought Christianity to Ethiopia in AD 300s. It moved to Nubia, now part of Egypt and Sudan, later

In the 1200s an emperor named Lalibela had 11 rock churches carved out of the rocky ground

Islam

Islam was a major religion in East Africa by 700

Islam gradually spread from Egypt south into East Africa

Muslims also moved into East Africa from the Indian Ocean. Cities like Mogadishu and Mombasa became Muslim centers

The Slave Trade

The Indian Ocean slave trade began more than 1000 years ago

East African, Arabs, and Europeans kidnapped Africans, enslaved them, and shipped them to ports throughout African and Southwest Asia

Most slaves went to Islamic countries https://youtu.be/04J0xegh-zE

Zanzibar

The Portuguese built forts and settlements to support the slave trade

In the 1700s Zanzibar became an international slave-trading center

Most European countries ended slavery in the 1800s

Europeans

Europeans wanted goods like gold, ivory, and rubber that came from Africa

Europeans

To get these goods, Europeans thought they needed to dominate the regions of Africa that they came from

European countries formed colonies in Africa

Only Ethiopia was not colonized In the 1800s Britain and other countries

divided Africa among them, they used imperialism, a practice that tries to dominate another countries government, trade, and culture

Europeans

In the 1960s most East African countries gained independence

Some newly independent countries were faced with ethnic conflicts

Language

Many countries speak languages introduced by European imperialists

For example, French is an official language in Rwanda, while English is spoken Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania

Languages

Swahili

Swahili this the most widely spoken East African language

Religion

Most religions emphasize honoring ancestors

Many East Africans are animists. They believe the natural world contains spirits

Most Christians live in Ethiopia Islam is also common Sudan and Somalia are mostly

Muslim

Population

National Parks

More than 2 million tourists visit Tanzania and Kenya each year

Safari: an overland journey to view wildlife

https://youtu.be/Pj7cRxjCXoU

Natural Resources

Tanzania is rich in gold and diamonds Farming is a major activity in both

Tanzania and Kenya However, farming is encroaching on

national park land causing a problem for wildlife

Kenya also produces geothermal energy, energy produced from heat of the earth’s interior

Cities of Tanzania and Kenya

Tanzania’s capital is Dodoma

Dar es Salaam is the country’s business center

Kenya’s capital is Nairobi

U.S. embassies in both Dar es Salaam and Nairobi have been attacked by al Qaeda (1998)

Dar es Salaam

Rwanda and Burundi

Populated by two main groups the Hutu and the Tutsi

Violence has erupted between the two groups

The borders drawn by Europeans have lumped these two groups together in the same areas

Rwanda

1990 ethnic conflict led to genocide, the intentional destruction of people, in Rwanda

The Hutu tried to wipe out the Tutsi

https://youtu.be/KqJr46_yUH8

Left to Tell by Immaculee Ilibagiza

Population

Both Rwanda and Burundi are densely populated

Neither country has many resources Both depend on coffee and tea

exports to survive

Sudan

Large country, mainly agricultural

Conflict between Christians and Muslims

Genocide occurred in a region called Darfur

Millions of people have fled Sudan as refugees

https://youtu.be/m8__o6mzsX0

Uganda

Recovering from decades of military leadership

Democratic since 1986

About 80 percent of the people work in agriculture

Coffee is the major export

Ethiopia

Has never been under foreign rule

Rich soil in the highlands makes agriculture profitable

Droughts in the 1980s caused a loss of crops

Most people in the highlands are Christian

People in the lowlands are Muslim

Eritrea

Italian colony in the 1800s then part of Ethiopia

Became a country in 1993

Tourists are drawn to the coasts

Most people are farmers or herders

Cotton is the main export

Somalia

Mostly covered with deserts and dry savanna

Too dry for farming, most people are herders

Most people are Muslim Clans within Somalia have fought over

rights to lands and cities, such as Mogadishu, the capital

Movie: Blackhawk Down 1990s civil war and drought caused much

hardship

Djibouti

Small, desert country on the Bab al-Mandab, the strait that connects the Red Sea and Indian Ocean

Was a French colony until 1977 French is the official language Capital and major seaport is also

called Djibouti Serves as the main port for

Ethiopia which is landlocked Ethnic fighting for many years

Visual Summary