Maps of Bari

Influential Eastern Nilotic Migrations (Newman)



Influential Eastern Nilotic Migrations

Map Creator:   James L. Newman
Source:   1995. The Peopling of Africa. New Haven: Yale University Press. 171.
Date Created:   1995

Map Description:
According to James L. Newman, the interior of East Africa is one of the most complex ethnolinguistic regions on the continent, due to the continuous movement of groups, including Khoisan, Cushitic, Nilotic and Bantu peoples. As he states in his book, the most influential migrations were those of the Eastern Nilotes. Despite the characterization of their encounters with other cultures as hostile and often violent, it was more common for groups to be gradually displaced or absorbed, with some maintaining independence and coexisting. Such was the case with the Southern Cushites, who were displaced over time, and the Kalenjins, who were assimilated into Bantu society (Newman).

Other resources related to this project:
Eastern and Southern Cushites Introduce Food-Producing Economies to the Interior Mosaic (Newman)
Southern Nilotic Speakers Seeking the Kenyan Highlands(Newman)
Bantu Colonization of the Interior Mosiac of Africa (Newman)
Ngoni, Kamba, Arab-Swahili, and Yao Movements, Migrations, and Trade Routes Within the Interior Mosiac (Newman)


Note: Scanned or downloaded images have been geo-registered for compatibility with our project interface. Slight imperfections are an inevitable result of the registration process. View original image(s) to see the unaltered map(s).

Peoples, States and Cities in northern Africa ca. 1340 (Ehret)



Peoples, States and Cities in the Northern Half of Africa, ca. 1340

Map Creator:   Christopher Ehret
Source:   Ehret, Christopher. 2002. The Civilizations of Africa: A History to 1800. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia.
Date Created:   2002.

Map Description:
This map displays the important groups and their locations in northern Africa circa 1340. Around this time, Islamic expansion was well underway and a very important aspect of culture in the Songay and Mali empires. The extension of Muslim communities stimulated trade and encouraged further growth.


Note: Scanned or downloaded images have been geo-registered for compatibility with our project interface. Slight imperfections are an inevitable result of the registration process. View original image(s) to see the unaltered map(s).

Peoples, States and Cities in northern Africa ca. 1550 (Ehret)



Peoples, states and cities in the northern half of Africa, ca. 1550

Map Creator:   Christopher Ehret
Source:   The Civilizations of Africa: A History to 1800. 2002. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia.
Date Created:   2002.

Map Description:
Shown here are important kingdoms, groups and cities in northern Africa around 1550. Important details of the period include the fate of the large Songay Empire, the expansion of the kingdom of Morocco and European colonization. The Songay Empire suffered from internal political turmoil and degenerated into civil war in the 1580s as it collapsed. Meanwhile, the kingdom of Morocco was growing in power, and steady trade with Europeans provided them with superior weapons, allowing them to expand further as they conquered former Songay lands. European colonial powers vied for forts and trade agreements along the Atlantic coast, although large settlements were rare (Ehret).


Note: Scanned or downloaded images have been geo-registered for compatibility with our project interface. Slight imperfections are an inevitable result of the registration process. View original image(s) to see the unaltered map(s).

Peoples, States and Cities in northern Africa ca. 850-875 CE (Ehret)



Peoples, states and cities in the northern half of Africa, ca. 850-875

Map Creator:   Christopher Ehret
Source:   The Civilizations of Africa: A History to 1800. 2002. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia.
Date Created:   2002.

Map Description:
This map displays the important groups and locations in northern Africa around 850-875. To name a few of the important events of this period, Islamic settlement and continued expansion under differing Caliphates influenced much of the north of the continent, even spreading into modern-day Spain and Portugal. At the edge of the African continent, the Abbasid Caliphate was deeply involved in several wars, including those against the Byzantine and Omayyad Empires.


Note: Scanned or downloaded images have been geo-registered for compatibility with our project interface. Slight imperfections are an inevitable result of the registration process. View original image(s) to see the unaltered map(s).

Peoples, States and Cities in southern Africa ca. 1400 (Ehret)



Peoples, Cities and States in the Southern Half of Africa ca. 1400

Map Creator:   Christopher Ehret
Source:   Ehret, Christopher. 2002. The Civilizations of Africa: A History to 1800. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia.
Date Created:   2002.

Map Description:
This map displays cities, kingdoms and peoples in southern Africa circa 1400. The territories of many of the smaller groups are uncertain, and hence have not been outlined. These, along with several of the kingdoms pictured, continued expanding their borders and developing the southern half of Africa as Europeans began their explorations of the continent (Ehret). Peoples are indicated by white lettering on the map, states by polygons.


Note: Scanned or downloaded images have been geo-registered for compatibility with our project interface. Slight imperfections are an inevitable result of the registration process. View original image(s) to see the unaltered map(s).

Peoples, States and Cities in southern Africa ca. 1550 (Ehret)



Peoples, Cities and States in the Southern Half of Africa ca. 1550

Map Creator:   Christopher Ehret
Source:   Ehret, Christopher. 2002. The Civilizations of Africa: A History to 1800. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia.
Date Created:   2002.

Map Description:
This map displays cities, kingdoms and peoples in southern Africa circa 1550 as shown by Christopher Ehret. During this period, the Portuguese slave trade had begun rapid expansion, and rival European powers had begun colonization in an attempt to begin their own competing stations. Trade routes shifted due to the new influence, and many of the great savannah states began to decline in importance while those on the coasts flourished.


Note: Scanned or downloaded images have been geo-registered for compatibility with our project interface. Slight imperfections are an inevitable result of the registration process. View original image(s) to see the unaltered map(s).

Peoples, States and Cities in southern Africa from 1725-1775 (Ehret)



Peoples, states and cities in the southern half of Africa, ca. 1725-1775

Map Creator:   Christopher Ehret
Source:   2002. The Civilizations of Africa: A History to 1800. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia. 430.
Date Created:   2002.

Map Description:
This map displays the important groups and locations in southern Africa from 1725-1775, including European colonies and African empires. At this time, the European slave trade was in full swing. Some African groups still resisted European colonization, and it was not long after this period that the first successful slave rebellion occurred in what is now Haiti, resulting in the formation of that country.


Note: Scanned or downloaded images have been geo-registered for compatibility with our project interface. Slight imperfections are an inevitable result of the registration process. View original image(s) to see the unaltered map(s).