Tales of the Songhai Empire Trivia Quiz

Answer: Sahel

The Songhai Empire eventually reached the Niger River in modern-day central Mali, but also included parts of Niger and Nigeria to the east, and Senegal and The Gambia to the west, all the way to the Atlantic Ocean. It covered an estimated 540,500 square miles, an area roughly corresponding to the size of France.

While the northern part of the empire was on the edge of the Sahara Desert, most of it was situated in the Sahel, which is a band of land that stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea. Mostly consisting of flat grasslands, shrublands, and woodlands, the climate of the Sahel is described as being similar to the Sahara Desert, but not as severe.

Its year-round weather can typically be reported as being hot, windy, and dry.

Answer: The Songhai, the leading ethnic group

The Songhai Empire, also spelled Songhay, got its name from the leading ethnic group and ruling elite in the empire. Of course, as the empire grew it contained a large variety of different peoples, including subgroups of the Songhai, such as the Dendi, who speak the Songhai language.

The Songhai as an ethnic group is believed to have descended from the Kingdom of Za, whose history, passed down orally for centuries, dates back to before the 1000s AD. The culture of the Songhai people was greatly influenced by tradition and custom, as well as the beliefs of people who eventually came into the area.

Answer: Sonni Ali

By the time Sonni Ali, also known as Sunni Ali Ber, became king, the great Mali Empire was in a state of steady decline. The 15th ruler of his dynasty, Sonni Ali conquered and fortified many existing cities with the help of his infantry and cavalry. He also created a fleet of ships to patrol the Niger River area of his empire. Ruling from 1464-1492, Sonni Ali built an empire that was even larger than the great Mali Empire which preceded the Songhai.

His cause of death is still debated; some sources state he drowned while crossing the Niger River, while others claim he was murdered by his nephew. Either way, he was followed as king by his son, Sonni Baru.

Answer: Sonni Dynasty and Askiya Dynasty

According to stories recorded in the 17th century, the "Tarikh al-Sudan" and the "Tarikh al-fattash", Ali Kulun, also known as Ali Golom, was the founder of the Sonni (Sunni) Dynasty. He was a member of the court of the Mali Empire who led a rebellion.

The sources disagree as to how many kings ruled during the Sonni Dynasty; one says it was nineteen, while the other lists sixteen. Both, however, list the son of Sonni Ali, Sonni Baru, as the last dynastic king. He was defeated in battle by Askia Muhammad I in 1493, and the Askia Dynasty began. Known in history as Askia the Great, Askia expanded the empire and encouraged cultural development, learning, and trade.

He was overthrown by his son in 1528, but the dynasty had nine kings and continued until 1591 - also the end of the Songhai Empire - when a civil war enabled an army from Morocco to invade the area.

Answer: Gao

The history of Gao, which is located on the Niger River, stretches back to at least the ninth century. Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi, a Persian scholar who wrote about the city, stated that it was already an important "regional power", and by the end of the 1200s, it had become an important city of the Mali Empire.

It was called Kawkaw at the time; Ibn Battuta, a Moroccan scholar who visited in 1353, described the town as "one of the finest, biggest, and most fertile cities..." Already a great city, Sonni Ali chose Gao as his capital.

When the Songhai Empire fell, the city of Gao began to decline in importance. Visitors to the area in 1854 described a poor village of about three hundred huts.

Answer: Islam

The Islam religion was spread to the continent of Africa in the 7th century, as Muhammad encouraged his followers who were being persecuted to settle near the ancient Kingdom of Axum. After Muhammad's death, the religion quickly spread through conquest, missionary work, and trade networks, reaching West Africa by approximately 850 AD.

While Sonni Ali had converted to the religion, he ruled over a kingdom that typically practiced Islam in urban areas and animism in rural ones; some sources call him more of an "outward Muslim". Nevertheless, in the Songhai Kingdom there were two types of justice - royal and Islamic. Royal justice dealt with offenses like treason, the rest was mostly based on Islamic principles, with the "qadi", or Islamic judges, given the responsibility of maintaining law and order according to the teachings of the Koran.

Answer: True

In the Songhai Empire, the clan to which a person belonged determined his occupation. The noblemen and people who were directly descended from the original Songhai were at the top of the class system. Next came the traders and freemen, who were farmers, carpenters, metalworkers, merchants, and fishermen.

There were craft guilds to which different types of artisans belonged. Immigrants who came into the Empire were next on the social ladder, and slaves, war captives who did the heavy manual labor, as well as other tasks, were at the bottom of the hierarchy.

Answer: Timbuktu

There is evidence that Timbuktu was an important settlement in West Africa during the Iron Age there, indicating that it was settled by the fifth century BC, but collapsed sometime in the 10th or 11th century. By the 1100s, however, Timbuktu went from being a seasonal camp used for salt storage, to a prosperous permanent settlement, becoming part of the Mali Empire approximately two hundred years later.

The settlement grew quickly due to its location on the caravan routes, and became part of the Songhai Empire in 1468. During the reign of Askia the Great, a Golden Age occurred there, as scholars from many areas came to the city to study at one of its numerous schools, and Timbuktu became a great center of learning.

When the Songhai Empire was invaded by a Moroccan army in 1591, Timbuktu became their capital.

The Golden Age was over and the city went into a period of decline.

Answer: Tobacco

Slaves were an extremely important commodity in the Songhai Kingdom. In addition to carrying out the heavy labor, they were commonly used as soldiers, as they were trusted to NOT try and overthrow the ruler. Believe it or not, they also held important positions as advisors to the king, as they were not viewed to have a personal agenda as normal citizens would.

There were several classes of slaves, who worked in a wide variety of fields, such as farming, soldiering, and even crafting. Mali had long been known as an area rich in gold deposits, and both gold and salt were used by some as currency.

In exchange for these items, the Songhai would receive goods like horses, metalware, and cloth, among others.

Answer: Griot

Dating back to the Malinke Empire in the 7th century AD, the griot, or jeli, held a position that was passed down from family member to family member, and carried out many different functions. They were historians, story-tellers, advisors to court, and musicians.

They were the ones who preserved the oral traditions - the names of the kings, the actions of humanity, and the history - for centuries until they could be recorded. Today griots still are an important part of West African society. Both men and women, they are said to specialize in singing and playing instruments.