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How Does Trans-Saharan Trade Affect West Africa

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What characterized trans-Saharan trade, and how did it affect West African society?

Between 900 B.C.E. and 1500 C.E., trans-Saharan trade flourished, bringing about change that deeply impacted the African continent. Africa was full of natural resources that the rest of the world coveted. However, the desert climate, with its extreme temperatures, made travel here very difficult. Criminal activity by nomadic raiders also threatened the trade industry. Despite significant obstacles, the economic advantages that trading brought with it motivated merchants to continue running trans-Saharan trade routes. Trans-Saharan trade impacted Africa in four fundamental ways. The most significant change was the arrival of Islam to the continent. Additionally, …show more content…

As traders, the Berbers traveled to sub-Saharan Africa and consequently spread Islam to other parts of the continent. A fundamentalist group of Berbers called the Almoravids exposed the rulers of Ghana, Mali, Songhai and Kanem-Bornu to Islam. The rulers wanted to protect their kingdoms from Muslim attacks and both liked and implemented some of their administrative approaches, such as the diwan. Written records were important in this system of government, thus, the advent of written documents coincided with the arrival of Islam to Africa. Islam became the religion of rulers and the upper class, who were motivated to convert due to political or economic reasons. Rural people tended to maintain traditional African belief systems (McKay et. al., 2015). Merchant families settled in trading posts in border zones that merged the savanna and the Sahara. They acted as liaisons between the Muslim merchants to the north and the miners to the south. As people congregated in these zones, urban cities developed, resulting in the growth of agriculture and the craft industry. Eventually, large cities like Jenne, Gao and Timbuktu emerged. Scholars believe that the Western Sudan city of Koumbi Saleh had about 15 to 20 thousand people, which was a metropolis by standards at the time (McKay et. al.,

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