Amanda Cordeiro D block

Africa
North Africa North Africas main religion is Islam. All Muslims in North Africa must follow the five Pillars of Islam. Muslims believe in one god named Muhammad. In the Five Pillars of Islam one duty for Muslims is prayer. All Muslims must pray 5 times a day in the direction of Mecca. Another rule of the Pillars is fasting. Fasting is when there is no eating or drinking from sunrise to sunset during Ramadan. There is also 3 other Pillars Muslims must follow. North Africa is also a hub of trade. North Africa has traded with places including Europe, Asia, and other parts of Africa. North Africa contains an ancient civilization, Egypt. Egypt is home to very famous pyramids and statues. The Mediterranean sea borders around North Africa.

West Africa In West Africa they have a wide variety of cultures. They speak many different languages. Many West Africans speak from four to five languages. To make a living in West Africa they farm. Most people live in rural areas and grow food for themselves and cash crops to sell. But in the Sahara they herd cattle, goats, sheep, or camels to make a living. Along the coast they make a living by fishing. In the cities they may work in hospitals, hotels, or office buildings. The strongest bond in West Africa is kinship, a family relationship. The first level of kinship is nuclear family, including parents and children. Then there is extended family which includes other relatives besides just parents and their children. Mostly includes aunts, uncles, grandparents, and cousins. Some groups of families trace their descent back to an ancestor. That is called lineage. More than one lineages form a clan. Groups that trace back their women ancestors are matrilineal. Most groups are patrilineal. When they are patrilineal they trace

descendents back through the men side of the family. In West Africa a storyteller is called a griot.

East Africa In East Africa there is more than 70 different languages spoken. East Africas coast is along the Indian Ocean. Living along the ocean keeps the people of East Africa connected to the rest of living across the ocean to the East. Africans who mixed with Arab ancestry are called Swahili. They live mostly on the coast. Their language is also called Swahili. The Swahili is one of s lot of ethnic groups in East Africa. Swahili is the official language of Kenya and Tanzania. In this region the main religions are Islam and Christianity. Islam was introduced by the Arabs and Christianity was introduced by the Romans. Before the Europeans took over Africa land could not be owned or sold. Much of East Africas land today is very poor farmland. East Africa is increasingly becoming Urban. To most people home is in the rural villages. The cities are just temporary to most people. But if you ask most people home is still in rural villages.

Central and South Africa

Until around the beginning of the 1990s minority ruled South Africa. In the beginning of the 1900s, the Africans were separated in to different groups based on skin color. Blacks, coloreds, and Asians were not allowed to vote nor have other basic rights. The rule about blacks not being able to be with whites was given a new name, apartheid. Back then discrimination was not illegal. Apartheid made all blacks to move to rural areas called homelands. Apartheid also kept blacks and coloreds from white restraints, schools, hospitals, and more. Most South Africans fought against it. During 1950s and 1960s blacks and some whites protested against it. Police officers put some in jail and killed some blacks who fought against it. Many people were willing to risk everything for freedom. A lot of countries around the world joined the movement against apartheid. Blacks were banned from all sporting events and the Olympics. 1990 is when

their hard work started to have an effect. In 1994 elected their first black president, Nelson Mandela. Since then all votes have been open to all races.