Ancient kingdoms of West Africa

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Sub-Saharan African history is often overlooked in classical world history due to a focus on local paradigms. This study utilizes previously unexplored sources to highlight parts of West and East Africa's significance in the ancient world. It reveals that the clan and state structures of several West African kingdoms share a dualistic pattern similar to that of Canaanite-Israelite and Phoenician societies. Supported by written records, oral traditions, and cult-dramatic performances, these parallels indicate early trans-Saharan contacts dating back to the pre-Roman era. The Phoenician slave trade significantly facilitated the transfer of these organizational forms from North Africa to sub-Saharan regions, notably influencing Hausa and Yoruba societies. Additionally, similar social institutions were transmitted to the Horn of Africa through the ancient myrrh and frankincense trade, leading to the emergence of powerful kingdoms in both West and East Africa. Some of these polities became so dominant that they conquered the successor states of their former metropolitan suzerains. The volume also explores the development of the West African empires of Ghana, Mali, and Songhay from the perspective of ethnogenesis, complemented by original maps, charts, and photographs. The author, a Professor of African History at the University of Bayreuth, draws on over thirty years of research, focusing on relations with Phoenician North Africa a