9.2 The Emergence of Farming and the Bantu Migrations

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

• Discuss the introduction and emergence of farming in Africa
• Analyze the origin and impact of ironworking technology in Africa
• Describe the geographic extent and impact of the Bantu migrations

For tens of thousands of years, people across Africa lived in relatively small groups and relied on hunting and gathering. This lifestyle began to change dramatically beginning around 7000 BCE when plant and animal domestication methods from the Fertile Crescent were first adopted in Africa. Often called the Neolithic Revolution, the adoption of domestication led some groups to build permanent settlements and support large populations. Over thousands of years, these methods spread up the Nile River and across North Africa. Below the Sahara, plant domestication was developed independently in both the east and the west as the people in those areas learned to cultivate their own unique plant varieties. By approximately 1000 BCE, large populations in both north and sub-Saharan Africa supported themselves by working the land. This wave of transformation effectively transformed the continent and over time led to the emergence of a number of large and sophisticated civilizations.