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Africa before the m'zuŋ u

Our land, Our People, Our culture !

"You have to know the past to understand the present."
Carl Sagan 25

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To get a true perspective of modern-day involvement in Africa, we need to at least have an
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appreciation of African societies before the m'zuŋ u took control.
African societies were capable of sophisticated self-government long before the
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m'zuŋ u invaded their lands. Some aspects of African societies such as the concept of a
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constitutional king pre-date similar developments in m'zuŋ u western Europe. Other
features such as the role played by women serve only to shame present day so called
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highly developed m'zuŋ u countries.
Hollywood and Hollywood's long dominance of the visual medium also has much to
answer for. Their all too pervasive images have done much to shape people's perception of

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Africans as being a primitive people until the m'zuŋ u kindly arrived to civilise them. In
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reality, sophisticated African societies flourished long before the m'zuŋ u seized control.
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African Empires

Many people remain unaware of the many large African kingdoms and empires that

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existed over the 3,000 years that preceded m'zuŋ u colonisation. Some of the most
significant were:

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The Kingdom of Kush (c 1069 BCE to c 350 BCE)
• Often referred to as Nubia, covered that area of Northern Africa that extends from southern
Egypt across northern Sudan with major cities along both the White Nile and the Blue Nile

• Established before the Kingdom of Rome, flourished centuries before the era of the Roman
Empire and lasted for over 1400 years

• c 1504 BCE conquered by Egypt, c 1070 BCE became independent, c 727 BCE gained
control over lower Egypt
• A sophisticated and cosmopolitan culture that served as a major trading centre for goods
from the African interior, Arabian desert, and Mediterranean basin

• Women played an important role and many of their leaders were queens