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Ghana Empire

Addison Lang

Created on October 30, 2025

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North and West African Empires

This paragraph is ready to be filled with incredible creativity, experiences, and stories.

By Luna and Addie

A timeline of Ghana, Almoravid, Mali, Almohad, and Songhai Empires

A timeline of the rise, power, and delcline of the Ghana empire.

Ghana Empire

13th century CE

7th century CE

​​ Ghana was run by a Mandi speaking group called the Soninke. Ghana had 4 major city states:Dierra, Agada, Ghana, Silla Ghana included modern day countries of Mali, Mauritania, Guevara, and Senegal.

Decline
Culture

In 990 Ghana captured the Muslim city of Awdughast, a few years later conquered Takrur Ghanas kings lead the army, and Ghanian souldiers were highly regarded Ghana experienced few attacks due to its military strength. When there was war, every able bodied man, even the royal princess, had to undergo training and be ready to serve.

The government taxed one gold coin for every donkey-load of salt that came into the region, and 2 gold coins for every donkey-load that came out.The Gold coming from Awdaghust was more pure than that of any other country in the world Ghana got most of its salt from Taghaza, a city located in the Sahara desert

The declaration of war disrupted trade and caused economic hardship The Almoravid conquest of the Ghana empire caused its fall Ghana regained its land, but never came back to be powerful as it previously had been

Camels provided efficient trans-Saharan trade, this allowed gold-rich Ghana to have a flourishing economy. traded -gold -vory -koala nuts in echange for - salt -manufactured goods Trans-Saharan travel was safe due to Ghana's government . Saftey encouraged trading from other regions.

Traditional house, made of sun dried mud

Religion

Griots record history music, poetry, dance, and drama. Every village had a griot The Soninke people were a large family, the women cooked, ate, worked, and entertained together. The men hunted and worked in the fields together.Ghana was believed to be a matrilineal society, where leadership was passed down through the mothers lineage.

At it peak, the empire was approximately the size of Texas Ghanaian cities had become overpopulated. In 1076, the Almoravids declared war on Ghana since they wouldn't fully convert to Islam

Government

Around the time the Ghana empire gained power, Islam spread to Africa Muslims were allowed to build mosques, and practice religion freely in Ghana, as there was no official religion Most Soninke practiced traditional religion. They believed that God created the earth, and everything had a spirit-- animals ,trees, rocks, birds, even the air, sun, and moon.

Ghana was beurocracy with a king, and then many government oriented jobs -military - administrative class - royal officials kings sent to send a tax to the king of Ghana in exchange for protection. Kings had numerous wives and children, household slaves, and personal guards

Economy
Origin

+info

+info

+info

Origin
Military
Economy

Art found from Ghana empire

Gold & Salt
Religion

Step 2

Use timelines to tell stories

Also amations

Almoravid Empire

1130

1076

Start of Almoravid

The Almoravid empire enforced radical changes in Islam. One of their main targets was Ghana, who's kings repeated refused to convert to Islam.

Decline

And leave your audience speechless.

After a relatively short lived reign (1076- 1130) Abd al-Muʾmin overthrew the Almoravids, which started the Almohad empire.

A brilliant title

Abdullah ibn Yasin, a Muslim teacher had become the leader of a large group of Islam believers called the Almoravids.

Conquering

A brilliant title

We don’t like to bore. We don’t want to be repetitive. Communicating as always is boring and doesn’t engage.We do it differently. We sabotage boredom.

When we are told a story, it moves us; it can even touch us, making us remember stories up to 20 times more than any other content we might consume.

The Almoravids overthrew Ghana and took back Awdoghast (an originally muslism city)

depiction of Yasin

Mali Empire

16th century CE

13th century CE

Decline

Culture

By the 15th century, the Mali empire was in decline due to internal conflicts over royal succession, which led to civil wars and the emergence of new trade routes and rival kingdoms.

The Mali Empire had a rich cultural tradition, with griots preserving history through music, storytelling, and songs honoring heroes during festivals. It was also known for pottery and sculptures made from clay, wood, and brass, depicting realistic human figures used in rituals and decoration.

The Mali rulers had a triple income: they taxed the passage of trade goods, bought goods and sold them at much higher prices, and had access to their own valuable natural resources.

Pilgrimage to Mecca

Mansa Musa

Religion

Power and Wealth

Mali was a Muslim empire and part of *Dar al-Islam*, sharing many features of medieval Islamic civilizations. Arab merchants brought Islam to West Africa, attracting Mali’s rulers, who converted and helped spread the faith.

The Kingdom of Mali emerged as a dominant power in the Sahel region after the fall of the Ghana Empire and as a result of the military victory of Sunjata.

Traveling from his capital Niani, he led a caravan of 60,000 people, including 12,000 enslaved attendants dressed in fine silk. Mansa Mūsā rode on horseback, preceded by 500 attendants with gold staffs, and brought 80 camels loaded with hundreds of pounds of gold.

Mansa Musa was the emperor of Mali for about twenty-five years. He is well known for his pilgrimage to Mecca, which displayed Mali’s immense wealth and brought global attention to West Africa.

Mali grew prosperous by controlling key trade routes between North and West Africa, acting as a middle-trader in the exchange of gold, salt, copper, ivory, and slaves across the Sahara.

Almohad Empire

1269

1130

During Abū Yūsuf Yaʿqūb al-Manṣūr’s reign, the Almohads faced Arabrebellions and constant Christian attacks in Spain. After their defeat at Las Navas de Tolosa (1212), they retreated to North Africa, where their empire broke apart as the Ḥafṣid caliphate took control.

The Almohad Empire originated under the religious reforms of Ibn Tumart, who combined religious reform, moral strictness, and political leadership, forming the foundation of the Almohad movement.

Ibn Tumart's successor, ʿAbd al-Muʾmin, overthrew the Almoravids and expanded Almohad rule across North Africa and Spain.

Origin

Songhai Empire

1464-1492

Early 1400's

1591

Ali's son faced a major revolt by Muslims Askia Muhammad, the leader of the revolt, drove Sunni Ali['s son from power and replaced him. Set up an efficient tax system - chose able officials - appointed officials to serve as ministers of the treasury, army, navy, and agriculture

Governing
Songhai Society

- Sunni Ali (began rule in 1464) grew the empire by military conquest. Sunni Ali built a professional army - In 1468, Sunni Ali captured the city of Timbuktu. Five years later, he took Djenné. - Sunni Ali died in 1492 and his son succeeded him as ruler.

Songhai lacked modern weapons. The Moroccan troops quickly defeated the Songhai warriors which led to the collapse of the Songhai Empire.

After Mali declined in the 1400s, the Songhai people built up an army and extended their territoryThey expanded towards the Niger River near Gao. They gained control of the all-important trade routes. Gao was the capital.

In addition to the king and the elites, Songhai society included a class of artisans such as metal workers, farmers, and slaves.

decline

The Songhai studied the people they defeated and learned from them, adopting many of their customs, legends, and myths. In this way Songhay was an everchanging society

Sunni Ali

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  • Define secondary messages with interactivity.
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  • Measure the results.
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Describe the topic and the contents that you will cover in class; do not forget to emphasize why the topic is interesting

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Describe the topic and the contents that you will cover in class; do not forget to emphasize why the topic is interesting

With Genially templates, you can include visual resources to engage the class from minute one. You can also highlight key content to facilitate its assimilation and even embed external content that surprises and adds more context to the topic: videos, photos, audios... Whatever you want! Did you know that Genially allows you to share your creation directly, without the need for downloads? Ready for students to visualize it on any device and learn anywhere.

Here you canput a highlighted title

Do you need more reasons to use dynamic content in class? Well: 90% of the information we assimilate comes to us through sight, and we retain 42% more information when the content is moving. We don't like to bore in our classes or work with flat content. It's time to bet on dynamic and interactive learning experiences that stimulate each student's thinking and creativity.

Put a GREAT title here, something that captures the attention of the class

What you read: interactivity and animation can turn the most boring content into something fun. At Genially, we also create our designs to facilitate understanding and learning, so you can level up with interactivity and turn your content into something that adds value and engages. Implement Visual Thinking in the classroom with Genially: organize information and knowledge in a much easier and more visual way through images, graphs, infographics, and simple drawings. Now, that's how it's done!

Visual communication interactive step by step

  • Plan the structure of your communication.
  • Prioritize it and give visual weight to the main points.
  • Define secondary messages with interactivity.
  • Establish a flow through the content.
  • Measure the results.
Use graphics in your presentation. Data, figures, numbers… can also be displayed visually, interactively, and animated. And this has a great advantage: you will simplify the information and make it more understandable for the entire class.

Here you can put a highlighted title.

Do you need more reasons to create dynamic content? Well: 90% of the information we assimilate comes to us through sight, and we retain 42% more information when the content is moving. Step-by-step interactive visual communication:

  • Plan the structure of your communication.
  • Hierarchy and give visual weight to the main points.
  • Define secondary messages with interactivity.
  • Establish a flow through the content.
  • Measure the results.

Down with boring and flat content in your classes: do it to motivate

  • Improve understanding of any topic.
  • Engage the whole class…
  • And keep their attention until the end.
  • Include visual elements appropriate to the topic.
  • Show data and info in a visual way.
  • Use interactivity to delve deeper into the concepts.

Here you can put a highlighted title.

Do you need more reasons to create dynamic content? Well: 90% of the information we assimilate comes to us through sight, and we retain 42% more information when the content moves. What you read: interactivity and animation can turn the most boring content into something fun. At Genially, we use AI (Awesome Interactivity) in all our designs, so you can level up with interactivity and turn your content into something that adds value and engages. Visual content is a cross-cutting, universal language, like music. We are able to understand images from millions of years ago, even from other cultures.

Insert a great video for your presentation

And use this space to describe it. Multimedia content is essential in a presentation to leave everyone speechless. Additionally, this way you will synthesize the content and entertain your audience.

Here you canput a highlighted title

Do you need more reasons to create dynamic content? Well: 90% of the information we assimilate comes to us through sight, and we retain 42% more information when the content moves. Step by step interactive visual communication:

  • Plan the structure of your communication.
  • Prioritize it and give visual weight to the main points.
  • Define secondary messages with interactivity.
  • Establish a flow through the content.
  • Measure the results.

Here you canput a highlighted title

Do you need more reasons to use dynamic content in class? Well: 90% of the information we assimilate comes to us through sight, and we retain 42% more information when the content is moving. We don't like to bore in our classes or work with flat content. It's time to bet on dynamic and interactive learning experiences that stimulate each student's thinking and creativity.

Here you canput a highlighted title

Do you need more reasons to create dynamic content? Well: 90% of the information we assimilate comes to us through sight, and we retain 42% more information when the content moves. Step by step interactive visual communication:

  • Plan the structure of your communication.
  • Prioritize it and give visual weight to the main points.
  • Define secondary messages with interactivity.
  • Establish a flow through the content.
  • Measure the results.

Put a GREAT title here, something that captures the attention of the class

What you read: interactivity and animation can turn the most boring content into something fun. At Genially, we also create our designs to facilitate understanding and learning, so you can level up with interactivity and turn your content into something that adds value and engages. Implement Visual Thinking in the classroom with Genially: organize information and knowledge in a much easier and more visual way through images, graphs, infographics, and simple drawings. Now, that's how it's done!

Down with boring and flat content in your classes: do it to motivate

  • Improve understanding of any topic.
  • Engage the whole class…
  • And keep their attention until the end.
  • Include visual elements appropriate to the topic.
  • Show data and info in a visual way.
  • Use interactivity to delve deeper into the concepts.

Put a GREAT title here, something that captures the attention of the class

What you read: interactivity and animation can turn the most boring content into something fun. At Genially, we also create our designs to facilitate understanding and learning, so you can level up with interactivity and turn your content into something that adds value and engages. Implement Visual Thinking in the classroom with Genially: organize information and knowledge in a much easier and more visual way through images, graphs, infographics, and simple drawings. Now, that's how it's done!

Write a great headline

What you read: interactivity and animation can turn the most boring content into something fun. At Genially, we also create our designs to facilitate understanding and learning, so you can level up with interactivity and turn your content into something that adds value and engages. When giving a presentation, there are two objectives to pursue: convey information and avoid yawns. To achieve this, it may be a good practice to create an outline and use words and concepts that aid in the assimilation of the content.

Write a great headline

What you read: interactivity and animation can turn the most boring content into something fun. At Genially, we also create our designs to facilitate understanding and learning, so you can level up with interactivity and turn your content into something that adds value and engages. When giving a presentation, there are two objectives to pursue: convey information and avoid yawns. To achieve this, it may be a good practice to create an outline and use words and concepts that aid in the assimilation of the content.

Visual communication interactive step by step

  • Plan the structure of your communication.
  • Prioritize it and give visual weight to the main points.
  • Define secondary messages with interactivity.
  • Establish a flow through the content.
  • Measure the results.
Use graphics in your presentation. Data, figures, numbers… can also be displayed visually, interactively, and animated. And this has a great advantage: you will simplify the information and make it more understandable for the entire class.

Down with boring and flat content in your classes: do it to motivate

  • Improve understanding of any topic.
  • Engage the whole class…
  • And keep their attention until the end.
  • Include visual elements appropriate to the topic.
  • Show data and info in a visual way.
  • Use interactivity to delve deeper into the concepts.

Insert a great video for your presentation

And use this space to describe it. Multimedia content is essential in a presentation to leave everyone speechless. Additionally, this way you will synthesize the content and entertain your audience.

Here you can put a highlighted title.

Do you need more reasons to create dynamic content? Well: 90% of the information we assimilate comes to us through sight, and we retain 42% more information when the content is moving. Step-by-step interactive visual communication:

  • Plan the structure of your communication.
  • Hierarchy and give visual weight to the main points.
  • Define secondary messages with interactivity.
  • Establish a flow through the content.
  • Measure the results.

Describe the topic and the contents that you will cover in class; do not forget to emphasize why the topic is interesting

With Genially templates, you can include visual resources to engage the class from minute one. You can also highlight key content to facilitate its assimilation and even embed external content that surprises and adds more context to the topic: videos, photos, audios... Whatever you want! Did you know that Genially allows you to share your creation directly, without the need for downloads? Ready for students to visualize it on any device and learn anywhere.

Write a great headline

What you read: interactivity and animation can turn the most boring content into something fun. At Genially, we also create our designs to facilitate understanding and learning, so you can level up with interactivity and turn your content into something that adds value and engages. When giving a presentation, there are two objectives to pursue: convey information and avoid yawns. To achieve this, it may be a good practice to create an outline and use words and concepts that aid in the assimilation of the content.