This detailed timeline traces events in ancient Africa, offering links to pictures, more information and biographies.

The history of West Africa provides a context for learning about the transatlantic slave trade. Discover the rich cultural traditions and economic networks that existed in the West African empires such as Ghana, Mali, and Songhay long...

The British Museum shares the background of its ancient pieces from Egypt, Aksum, ancient Ghana, Mali, Songhoy, Ile Ife, and the Benin kingdom. Also provided is information about its later pieces from the Asante Confederation, the...

From nourishing agricultural soil to serving as a transportation route, the Nile was vital to ancient Egypt's civilization. The Nile, which flows northward for 4,160 miles from east-central Africa to the Mediterranean, provided ancient...

The Silk Road was a network of trade routes connecting the East and the West in ancient and Medieval times. The term is used for both overland routes and those that are marine or limnic. The Silk Road involved three continents: Europe,...

This site from Lonely Planet provides an overview of Libyan history from the Roman invasion in the 2nd century to modern day. It includes a section on Italian/Turkish conflict and the struggle for control of the region.

This detailed article from the Nobel e-museum on the life of Nelson Mandela is organized into the following sections: "Equality and Pluralism," "The Development of 'Colour-blindness,'" "The Legacy of Mahatma Gandhi and Pandit Nehru,"...

This site contains links to in-depth information on kinship fundamentals such as marriage customs and residence rules. It also provides definitions and links to differing systems of descent and marriage among several groups - the...

Explanation of the volcanic winter that happened about 20,000 years ago that destroyed most of the human population not living in Africa. Explains how these early people coped with this 1000 years of nuclear winter and how when it was...

This is a site from the PBS series "Wonders of the African World." This brief but detailed article gives information about the origins and history of the Swahili people.