Ghana Empire

The Empire of Ghana (existed c. 750-1036) was located in what is now southeastern Mauritania and part of Mali. Though known to its own citizens (Soninke) as Wagadou, the Empire became known in Europe and Arabia as the Ghana Empire by the title of its ruler (the Ghana, meaning "Warrior King"). The dou in the empire's name is a Mandé term for "land" and is prevalent in place names throughout central West Africa. The waga in the name roughly translates to "herd". Thus, Wagadou translates to "Land of Herds".

It is believed to be the first of many empires that would rise in that part of Africa. It first began in the eighth century, when a dramatic shift in the economy of the Sahel area south of the Sahara allowed more centralized states to form. The introduction of the camel and other forms of livestock by Arabs brought about a revolution in trade, and for the first time, the extensive gold, ivory, and salt resources of the region could be sent north and east to population centers in North Africa, the Middle East and Europe in exchange for manufactured goods.

The Ghana empire grew rich from the trans-Saharan trade in gold and salt. This trade produced an increasing surplus, allowing for larger urban centres. It also encouraged territorial expansion to gain control over the lucrative trade routes.

Relatively little is known about the kingdom, with most information coming from Andalusian traders who frequently visited the country, and from the Almoravids, who invaded the kingdom in the late 11th century.

The first written mention of the kingdom comes soon after it was contacted by Sanhaja traders in the eighth century. In the late ninth and early tenth centuries, there are more detailed accounts of a centralized monarchy that dominated the states in the region. The Cordoban scholar al-Bakri collected stories from a number of travelers to the region, and gave a detailed description of the kingdom in 1067. At that time, the Ghana could field an army of some 200,000 soldiers.

Upon the death of a Ghana, he was succeeded by his sister's son. The deceased Ghana would be buried in a large dome-roofed tomb. The religion of the kingdom involved emperor worship of the Ghana and worship of the Bida, a mythical sea serpent of the Niger.

Origin

The Ghana Empire is believed to have started as a small agro-pastoralist settlement in a region known as Awkar, established around the middle of the fourth century. Then around 750 or 800 AD, a Mandé people known as the Soninke united under Majan Dyabe Cisse or Dinga Cisse in taking over Awkar.

Archaeological testimony supports that the Mandé were among the first peoples on the continent, outside the Nile region and Ethiopia, to produce stone settlement civilizations. These were built on the rocky promontories of the Tichitt-Walata and Tagant cliffs of Mauritania where hundreds of stone masonry settlements, with clear street layouts, have been found. These towns had a unique four-tier hierarchy and tribute collection system, and the later Ghana Empire seems to have inherited the social and economic organization of the Tichitt-Walata complex. [jwsr-v10n3-kea.pdf]

Over time, Wagadou became the center of power for trade in the region. The Dinga Cisse became the first Ghana (warrior king) and his clan became the rulers of the new state. To this day, the Cisse name is prominent in the politics of Mali and Mauritania.

Expansion

The Ghanas expanded their territory greatly by annexing a number of neighbouring cities and peoples.

Kumbi Saleh

The empire's capital was built at Kumbi Saleh on the edge of the Sahara. The capital was actually two cities six miles apart separated by a six-mile road. But settlements between the cities became so dense due to the influx of people coming to trade, that it merged into one. Most of the houses were built of wood and clay, but wealthy and important residents lived in homes of wood and stone. This large metropolis of over 30,000 people remained divided after its merger forming two distinct areas within the city.

El Ghaba Section

The major part of the city was called El-Ghaba. It was protected by a stone wall and functioned as the royal and spiritual capital of the Empire. It contained a sacred grove of trees used for Soninke religious rites. It also contained the king's palace, the grandest structures in the city. There was also one mosque for visiting Muslim officials.

Merchant Section

The name of the other section of the city has not been passed down. We do know it was the center of trade and functioned as a sort of business district of the capital. It was inhabited almost entirely by Arab and Berber merchants. Because the majority of these merchants were Muslim, this part of the city contained more than a dozen masjids.

The Rise of Islam

As Islam grew throughout the region, the Ghanas permitted the religion, but did not convert to it, unlike the smaller state of Takrur in modern Senegal. The Soninke captured the important city of Aoudaghost in 1050. It was lost soon after to the Takrur, who had joined themselves with the Almoravids, radical Muslims of the North.

Decline and Conquest

The empire began struggling after reaching its apex in the early 11th century. By 1059, the population density around the empire's leading cities was seriously overtaxing the region. The Sahara desert was expanding southward threatening food supplies. While imported food was sufficient to support the population when income from trade was high, when trade faltered, this system also broke down. The growing power of the Almoravids soon led them to launch a jihad against Ghana in 1062 under Abu-Bakr Ibn-Umar. The Almoravids fought the Ghana empire for five years before reaching and laying siege to the capital city in 1067. For ten more years, under the leadership of Ghana Bassi and his successor Ghana Tunka Menin, the empire resisted. Finally, in 1076, General Abu-Bakr Ibn-Umar captured the capital and ended the state as an empire while converting many to Islam.

Aftermath

General Abu Bakr died in 1087 and the Almoravid rule over the remains of the Ghana Empire did not long survive him. The now fractionalized region came under the rule of the Soninke again though with far less power.

Sosso Occupation

Around 1140, the rabidly anti-Muslim Sosso people of the Kaniaga kingdom captured much of the former empire. Diara Kante took control of Koumbi Saleh in 1180 and established the Diarisso Dynasty. His son, Soumaoro Kante, succeeded him in 1203 and forced the people to pay him tribute. The Sosso also managed to annex the neighboring Mandinka state of Kangaba to the south, where the important goldfield of Bure were located.

Mandinka Rule

In 1230, Kangaba led a rebellion under Prince Sundiata Keita against Sosso rule. Ghana Soumaba Cisse, at the time a vassal of the Sosso, rebelled with Kangaba and a loose federation of Mande speaking states. After Soumaoro's defeat at the Battle of Kirina in 1235, the new rulers of Koumbi Saleh became permanent allies of the Mali Empire. As Mali became more powerful, Koumbi Saleh's role as an ally declined to that of a submissive state. It ceased to be an independent kingdom by 1240.

Influence

The modern country of Ghana is named after the ancient empire, though there is no territory shared between the two states. There are traditional stories that the survivors of the Ghana Empire migrated to the region of modern Ghana, but there is no evidence that this is true. The Sosso, however, are present along the Atlantic coast of West Africa and claim to have migrated after the fall of the Sosso kingdom.

Rulers of Awkar Kingdom

King Kaya Maja or Kaya Maghan: circa 350 AD
21 Kings, names unknown: circa 350 AD- 622 AD
21 Kings, names unknown: circa 622 AD- 750 AD

Ghanas of Wagadou Empire

Majan Dyabe Cisse or Dinga Cisse: 750s
More Ghanas, names unknown: circa 750s- 1040
Bassi: 1040- 1062
Tunka Menin: 1062- 1076

Almoravid Occupation

General Abu-Bakr Ibn-Umar: 1076- 1087

Ghanas of Wagadou Kingdom

Kambine Diaresso: 1087- 1090s
Suleiman: 1090s- 1100s
Bannu Bubu: 1100s- 1120s
Majan Wagadou: 1120s- 1130s
Gane: 1130s- 1140s
Musa: 1140s- 1160s
Birama: 1160s- 1180s

Kaniaga Occupation

Diara Kante: 1180-1202
Soumaba Cisse as vassal of Soumaoro: 1203-1235

Ghanas of Wagadou Tributary

Soumaba Cisse as ally of Sundjata Keita: 1235-1240

External links

References

Mauny, R. (1971), “The Western Sudan” in Shinnie: 66-87.
Monteil, Charles (1953), “La Légende du Ouagadou et l’Origine des Soninke” in Mélanges Ethnologiques (Dakar: Bulletin del’Institut Francais del’Afrique Noir).