The Bantu People Migration from 3000 BCE

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The Bantu PeopleMigration from 3000 BCE1100 CE
through Sub-Saharan Africa

• By Priyanka Juneja, Sasha Ree, and Lauretta Zhao

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Regional Impact Central Africa
Politics largely local from 1000-800BCE developed into larger Kingdoms centralized government evolved Intellectual Bantu languages dominate this region by 600-1000CE Introduced methods of land clearing and preparing soil for farming Religion rituals differed but some things were consistent belief in a supreme being, belief in the communication between the spirits and ancestors, interaction between the living and dead or seen and unseen Their religion was pantheistic which means that rather than giving God a personality they viewed God as the manifestation of all their laws and forces These people were very tolerant which allowed Christian missionaries easy conversion of the Bantu-speaking peoples. Religion rituals differed but some things were consistent belief in a supreme being, belief in the communication between the spirits and ancestors, interaction between the living and dead or seen and unseen Their religion was pantheistic which means that rather than giving God a personality they viewed God as the manifestation of all their laws and forces These people were very tolerant which allowed Christian missionaries easy conversion of the Bantu-speaking peoples.
Art/Architecture masks created the Kuba a Bantu people they represented deities and spirits and we were worn on special occasions by select people like the community head dancer. Technology more efficient food production methods introduced as they brought with them agricultural technologies introduced pottery and metal working technologies like iron Economy Lived in villages and farmed along river banks Introduced new crop like bananas and yams More efficient food production Society subsistence farming pastoral pursuits gongs or iron bells of African music are products of Bantus introduction of metal to society permanent homes
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Regional Impact East Africa
Politics largely local from 1000-800BCE central government soon develops Intellectual assimilated language Introduced methods of land clearing and preparing soil for farming Religion rituals differed but some things were consistent belief in a supreme being, belief in the communication between the spirits and ancestors, interaction between the living and dead or seen and unseen Their religion was pantheistic which means that rather than giving God a personality they viewed God as the manifestation of all their laws and forces These people were very tolerant which allowed Christian missionaries easy conversion of the bantu-speaking peoples. Religion rituals differed but some things were consistent belief in a supreme being, belief in the communication between the spirits and ancestors, interaction between the living and dead or seen and unseen Their religion was pantheistic which means that rather than giving God a personality they viewed God as the manifestation of all their laws and forces These people were very tolerant which allowed Christian missionaries easy conversion of the bantu-speaking peoples.
Art/Architecture artistic basketry, pottery, the carving of wooden vessels, stools and headrests, ceremonial weapons, spoons, pipes, and beadwork masks created the Kuba a Bantu people they represented deities and spirits and we were worn on special occasions by select people like the community head dancer. Technology more efficient food production methods introduced they brought with them agricultural technologies introduced pottery and metal working technologies like iron Economy Since central African rainforests didnt boast the greatest vegetation, some moved here after 1CE and grew vegetables Introduced new crop like bananas More efficient food production Society subsistence farming pastoral pursuits Derived ethnic groups like the Shona, the Xhosa, the Kikuyu, and the Zulu gongs or iron bells of African music are products of Bantus introduction of metal to society permanent homes
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Regional Impact West Africa
Politics largely local from 1000-800BCE developed into larger Kingdoms centralized government introduced Intellectual Assimilated Bantu language Swahili is derived Bantu with Arabic influence language Introduced methods of land clearing and preparing soil for farming Religion rituals differed but some things were consistent belief in a supreme being, belief in the communication between the spirits and ancestors, interaction between the living and dead or seen and unseen Their religion was pantheistic which means that rather than giving God a personality they viewed God as the manifestation of all their laws and forces These people were very tolerant which allowed Christian missionaries easy conversion of the Bantu-speaking peoples. Religion rituals differed but some things were consistent belief in a supreme being, belief in the communication between the spirits and ancestors, interaction between the living and dead or seen and unseen Their religion was pantheistic which means that rather than giving God a personality they viewed God as the manifestation of all their laws and forces These people were very tolerant which allowed Christian missionaries easy conversion of the Bantu-speaking peoples.
Art/Architecture masks created the Kuba a Bantu people- they represented deities and spirits and we were worn on special occasions by select people like the community head dancer. Technology more efficient food production methods introduced they brought with them agricultural technologies introduced pottery and metal working technologies like iron Economy Introduced new crop like bananas More efficient food production Society Bantu first resided here Subsistence farming and pastoral pursuits Herero and Tonga are descendants of the western Bantu group gongs or iron bells of African music are products of Bantus introduction of metal to society permanent homes
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Regional Impact South Africa
Politics largely local from 1000-800BCE created stone city states in between 600-1000CE centralized government evolves Intellectual Bantu languages dominate this region by 600-1000CE Introduced methods of land clearing and preparing soil for farming Religion rituals differed but some things were consistent belief in a supreme being, belief in the communication between the spirits and ancestors, interaction between the living and dead or seen and unseen Their religion was pantheistic which means that rather than giving God a personality they viewed God as the manifestation of all their laws and forces These people were very tolerant which allowed Christian missionaries easy conversion of the Bantu-speaking peoples. Religion rituals differed but some things were consistent belief in a supreme being, belief in the communication between the spirits and ancestors, interaction between the living and dead or seen and unseen Their religion was pantheistic which means that rather than giving God a personality they viewed God as the manifestation of all their laws and forces These people were very tolerant which allowed Christian missionaries easy conversion of the Bantu-speaking peoples.
Art/Architecture The Zulu made wooden figures they made clay models of cattle artistic basketry, pottery, the carving of wooden vessels, stools and headrests, ceremonial weapons, spoons, pipes, and beadwork The Ndebele of the modern province of South Africa painted and decorated their walls masks created the Kuba a Bantu people- they represented deities and spirits and we were worn on special occasions by select people like the community head dancer. Technology more efficient food production methods introduced as they brought with them agricultural technologies introduced pottery and metal working technologies like iron Economy Went into the dry, grassy coast where they raised livestock like sheep, cattle and goat after 1 CE Introduced new crop like bananas More efficient food production Society subsistence farming pastoral pursuits introduced Zimbabwe, Dhlo-Dhlo, Kilwa, and Sofala- stone city states in between 600-1000CE gongs or iron bells of African music are products of Bantus introduction of metal to society permanent homes
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Chronology

• 3000 BCE Bantu migration begins from north
  Africa and expands through west Africa because of
  population pressures
• 1500 1000 BCE Bantu migration spreads south
  all over sub-Saharan Africa
• ca. 1000 BCE Bantu groups arrive in what is
  modern-day Uganda
• 500 BCE 600 CE massive transfer of Bantu
  traditions and practices southward, eastward, and
  westward
• 500 BCE 800 CE Bantu language spreads
  throughout the African Great Lakes region
• 750 CE The first towns built by the Swahili
  people in Kenya emerge
• 1 1000 CE Bantu people bring the skill of
  metalworking, mostly iron, throughout sub-Saharan
  Africa the Iron Age of Africa
• 1000 CE Mapungabwe, the capital of a Bantu
  kingdom, develops from settlements along the
  Limpopo River and controls most of the
  surrounding territory
• ca. 1000 CE First great kingdoms of sub-Saharan
  Africa are established in regions immediately
  south of the desert
• 1000 1800 CE East Africa experiences a wave
  of Bantu migration.

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This shows the approximate distribution of
African languages that are spoken today. The
orange represents the Bantu languages, which
shows how widely spoken the Bantu language is
throughout Africa.
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This map shows the early age iron findings in
sub-Saharan Africa. As shown, the areas where the
iron findings occurred parallels the Bantu
migrations which show how the Bantu migrations
affected the African knowledge of iron smelting.
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Modern-day Bantu people.
This picture shows the progression of the Bantu
migrations throughout Africa. This map traces the
large expanse of the Bantu people's migrations.
Key 1  20001500 BC origin2  ca.1500 BC
first migrations     2.a  Eastern
Bantu,   2.b  Western Bantu3  1000500
BC Urewe nucleus of Eastern Bantu47  southward
advance9  500 BC0 Congo nucleus10  01000 AD
last phase
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Comparison and Contrast

• The impacts of Bantu migrations on the various
  regions of Africa are very similar as their
  culture is essentially sustained throughout this
  period. In the field of politics, the Bantu
  migrations created local administration that
  later evolved into a more centralized government.
  The Bantu also had many intellectual innovations,
  such as their use and maintenance of the Bantu
  languages. They also promoted the same land
  clearing techniques throughout Africa. Religion
  was also essentially the same. It was
  pantheistic, and very tolerant in nature allowing
  for most of them to be converted to Christianity.
  In the field of economics, the Bantu depended
  mostly on agriculture and introduced new fruits
  like bananas and yams. However the artistic
  impacts do vary. In South Africa the Zulu made
  wooden figures and clay models of cattle. The
  Ndebele of the modern province of South Africa
  painted and decorated their walls. Artistic
  basketry, pottery, the carving of wooden vessels,
  stools and headrests, ceremonial weapons, spoons,
  pipes, and beadwork was also prevalent in both
  South and East Africa. However the Kuba, who
  created masks that represented deities and
  spirits and were worn on special occasions by
  select people like the community head dancer,
  were spread throughout Africa. Societal impacts
  varied as well. The Bantu migrations enabled the
  creation of many new ethnic groups derived from
  the Bantu. Each region grew distinct ethnic
  groups. In East Africa Shona, the Xhosa, the
  Kikuyu, and the Zulu were created. IN West Africa
  the Herero and Tonga formed and in the south
  Zimbabwe, Dhlo-Dhlo, Kilwa, and Sofala
  stone-states were created.

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Change Over Time

• Bantu refers to a group of languages spoken by
  certain groups of people throughout Africa. As
  the people spread, a variety of different Bantu
  languages developed.
• The Bantu migration was most likely caused by a
  population increase, which was a result of more
  efficient food production of new crops such as
  the banana.
• Societies were mostly agriculture-based, and the
  development of iron tools would have helped make
  farming more efficient.
• Political organization was mostly local, though
  later larger kingdoms developed in western and
  central Africa.
• At the beginning of the first millenium BCE, two
  major linguistic branches emerged, the Eastern
  and Western language branches.
• The Eastern branch migrated south, and the
  Western branch migrated north.
• The spread of Bantu traditions and ideas
  intermingled with preexisting societies, and the
  new ideas that emerged became known as
  Pan-African traditions.

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Impact on the World Today

• The Bantu peoples migrated throughout sub-Saharan
  Africa and as a result their language spread
  throughout Africa as well. Today, Bantu languages
  are spoken throughout the entire continent. An
  example of a Bantu language is Swahili, which is
  the most widely spoken language in Africa today.
  The widespread knowledge of the Bantu languages
  is a result of the extensive Bantu migrations
  that occurred in 1000-800 BCE.
• Another impact that the Bantu migrations had on
  the world today is the spread of different
  agricultural products, such as yams, bananas, and
  plantains. Because the Bantu peoples dispersed
  these agricultural products, many villages grew
  greatly in size. Therefore, the Bantu peoples are
  responsible for the development of village life
  until today. An example of one of the city-states
  the Bantu peoples created is Zimbabwe, which is
  still successful today.
• The Bantu migrations are also responsible for the
  widespread knowledge of iron smelting. Before the
  Bantu migrations, the knowledge of iron smelting
  was confined to a small area in sub-Saharan
  Africa. However, when the Bantu migrations
  occurred, the Bantu peoples spread the knowledge
  and therefore affected the growth of many
  city-states that still exist today.

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Jobs

• Priyanka Juneja PIRATES (1), Comparison/Contrast
  (4a)
• Sasha Ree Pictures (3), Impact on World Today
  (5)
• Lauretta Zhao Chronology (2), Change Over Time
  (4b)

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