Tales of the Kingdom of Ghana Trivia Quiz

Answer: Al-Bakri

Considered to be the most important work, "Kitāb al-Masālik wa-al-Mamālik", or "Book of Highways and Kingdoms", is one of only two books written by Al-Bakri that survives today. It is interesting to note that Al-Bakri never visited the places about which he wrote; he relied on information from merchants and other travelers. Known for his impartiality, Al-Bakri wrote about the customs, geography, main cities, and climate of each region mentioned in his book.

Answer: Ghana

The modern country of Ghana has no relation whatsoever to the geography or culture of the ancient Kingdom of Ghana. It is uncertain exactly when the Kingdom of Ghana was founded. However, sources put the date at sometime between 300-400 AD. There is also some disagreement as to the exact boundaries of the 100,000 square mile empire; while some sources emphatically include Senegal, others do not.

It is known that the kingdom enjoyed a Golden Age from approximately 800 AD, which lasted for 300 years before an attack and subsequent period of decline ended the Kingdom of Ghana in approximately 1200 AD.

Answer: Warrior King

The king or "ghana" was the absolute ruler of the Kingdom of Ghana. He was the commander in chief of the army, controlled all trade, and was the chief and only judge. He had assistants, but make no mistake! He had all the power and expected to be old everything that happened in his empire.

It is written that he held court every day; people were allowed to publicly state their complaints, and he was the final judge. Two types of cases, denial of debt and the shedding of blood were tried by ordeal.

The accused would have to drink an awful concoction. If he vomited, he was found not guilty. If he didn't, however, he had to face the king's justice. This time of public justice was described as follows: "He sits in audience or to hear grievances against officials in a domed pavilion around which stand ten horses covered with gold-embroidered materials. Behind the king stand ten pages holding shields and swords decorated with gold, and on his right are the sons of the kings of his country wearing splendid garments and their hair plaited with gold.

The governor of the city sits on the ground before the king and around him are ministers seated likewise. At the door of the pavilion are dogs of excellent pedigree that hardly ever leave the place where the king is, guarding him. Around their necks they wear collars of gold and silver studded with a number of balls of the same metals". Speaking of the "warrior king", he must have wielded tremendous power. A legend stated that he could "order 200,000 warriors and 40,000 more with bows and arrows" if needed.

Answer: Camel

Camels were first introduced to the Sahara Desert around 200 AD as part of the trade caravan network from Saudi Arabia. They replaced horses, which were totally unsuited to the conditions in the desert. A camel's feet can move quickly through sand, and it can go for as many as seventeen days without food or water.

In fact, it is happy eating the dry grass that is sometimes found in the Sahara. Of course, it was important to fatten up the camels for a few months before they would begin their journey.

In a kingdom whose economy was based on trade, the ghana would not have been able to build such a wealthy kingdom without camels. The nomadic Berber people who lived in North Africa used camels and helped to stimulate trade, especially, caravan trade in the Kingdom of Ghana.

Answer: Feudal

It is believed that in its beginnings the Kingdom of Ghana was ruled by the clan leader or elder of each village. As the kingdom became more wealthy from trade, the governing system was reorganized. It appears that the Kingdom of Ghana was surrounded by vassal states; one early account states that "under his authority are a number of kings". Apparently these kings, which of course were lesser kings, were allowed to rule as they wished as long as they maintained the terms of their agreement, sending tribute and fulfilling their quota of soldiers, with the Kingdom of Ghana.

In addition to the exerted influence of the king onto local regions, tribute was also received from various tributary states and chiefdoms to the empire's periphery

Answer: False

Although tribute was expected from his people and empire, and the king was entitled to the gold nuggets while the others could claim the dust, the majority of the ghana's wealth came from taxes on foreign trade, both from the north and south of the empire.

There was quite of bit of suspicion and distrust toward foreigners coming into the Kingdom of Ghana, so measures were taken to control them as much as possible. People coming into the Kingdom of Ghana had to pay a tax to enter - and leave! If they wanted the protection of the kingdom's army while in the empire, they had to pay a tax.

The collection of taxes, as well as the caravan trade itself, made the Kingdom of Ghana very wealthy.

Answer: Soninke

There is no written evidence regarding the origins of the Soninke people. It appears that they lived in stone settlements in southern Mauritania, perhaps as early as 1000 BC. The people do have an oral tradition that states that Dinga, a man who came from the east, was their founder.

He migrated around different regions of what became the Ghanan Empire, leaving behind children from different wives. One of his sons, Dyabe Sisse, became the founder of the empire, uniting all the tribes together under his control. Islamic historians who came into the empire with the caravan traders also wrote about the founding of the empire, which they said was also called the Wagadu Empire.

The ethnic group still exists today in parts of Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, and Guinea.

Answer: Iron ore

Iron working began in West Africa as early as the 6th century BC with the Nok culture of Nigeria and spread to other regions quickly thereafter. Ironworkers in West Africa were prized as artisans, and even moved with armies during wars. Some people believed that working with the precious ore connected the smith with supernatural powers, and ironworkers had a high status in Ghanan society. Iron was used to make the best weapons of the time, and this superiority enabled the Kingdom of Ghana to expand its empire and conquer its neighbors.

Not only did the iron make better weapons, it also made better farming tools, which also increased agricultural production.

Answer: Salt and Gold

While the people of West Africa had plentiful supplies of gold, they needed salt to preserve and add flavor to their food. An ounce of gold traded for an ounce of salt was seen as an even exchange. The marketplace of the Kingdom of Ghana served as a middleman of sorts in exchanging these goods.

In fact, there was no bartering with the foreign traders. Masudi, a traveler to the area in the 900s wrote that the merchants would place their items on the ground and leave. The people would then bring their gold and place it next to goods and leave.

Then the merchants would return; if they liked the "payment" they would accept it, if not they would leave and the people would return and add to the price until a deal was concluded. This system worked very well for a time.

In fact, it was understood that if the merchants did not leave a fair amount, all trade would stop immediately until the problem was resolved. To avoid this, the foreign traders would typically leave a bit more than necessary.

This was viewed as an efficient way to trade with unfamiliar people who spoke a different language. Ivory and kola nuts were also important trade items, but their exchange was not equal as was salt and gold.

Answer: They were attacked by the Almoravid Dynasty of Morocco.

The Almoravid Dynasty of Morocco began to launch attacks to the north in Spain and the south in the Ghana Empire in the 10th and 11th centuries. They were able to capture the capital of the Kingdom of Ghana, Kumbi; eventually they were expelled from their region, but their attacks left the Ghana Empire vulnerable. Trade was disrupted and the animal flocks that had been introduced into the area by the Almoravids ruined much of the good farmland.

As vassal states began to leave the empire, the kingdom eventually collapsed, and was absorbed into the growing Kingdom of Mali.