Northeast/ East Africa

1.     Life:  Place of origin of humanity in the view of  monoregional and multiregional theories of human origin.

2.       Writing: The first evidence of  writing. The world's first paper - made from papyrus. Earliest evidence of writing - found by Gunter Dreyer at Abydos at U- J. - dated 3250BCE. ( 150 years before that of the Sumerians).    (Gunter Dreyer)

3.      Medicine and Medical Ethics:  Early medical knowledge with respect to brain surgery, neuroscience  and medical ethics developed  around 5,500 years ago.  

  4.A principal source of inspiration for Greek intellectuals such as Hippocrates, Pythagoras, Homer, Solon, Plato, Pythagoras, Eudoxus, Democritus etc.  See Diodorus Siculus, Biblioteca/ The Library of History, HUP Vol. 1. Bk 1. p. 327.

5.     Astronomy: The calendar used by most of the world today  - adopted by the Romans  and modified by Pope Gregory

6.     Religious concepts possibly derived from ancient northeast Africa include:

     a. The  Cross ( similar to the Egyptian Ankh, the symbol for life itself)

           b..The Concept  of Madonna and Child (Auset/Isis  and Horus) and  the phenomenon of Virgin Birth

    c.The Resurrection  (resurrection of Ausares/ Osiris)

  7.   Materials: A major pioneer in the manufacture of glass in the ancient world.

8.     Coinage: Ancient Ethiopia  (Aksum) was one of  the earliest regions  to use coins.

9.     Steel Fabrication:  One of the earliest regions to produce steel  in the ancient world- using the innovative principle of  the hot air blast  furnace-  Tanzania, East Africa.

10.      Fermented Beverages: One of the  earliest  breweries  has been found - dated 3500BCE

11.       Architecture: Pioneer  in building concepts such as  the  vault and colonnade

12.     Engineering: Construction  of  some of the largest  stone structures  on record - the Giza  pyramid (Egypt)   and the stelae of 750 tons and 13 storeys (Ethiopia)

13.      Cosmetics: A forerunner in nail polish, perfumes, eye liners etc

Southern/CentralAfrica

14.    The world's oldest mathematical artifact -found in Swaziland  and  dated 35, 000BCE

15.      Modern Art:  acknowledged source of inspiration for Picasso ( and Cezanne)

16.      Central African Music:  A major   inspiration and source for Bossa Nova, Samba, Salsa etc

West Africa

17.  Engineering:  Contribution to world heritage of one of the world's most   extensive  fortifications 10,000 miles in length:   Benin  Iya, West Africa

18.   Navigation:  One of the world's oldest boats of 8,000 years  - found at Dufuna, Northeast Nigeria.   Note also the  sewn boats of the Swahili and their early use of the lateen sail

19.        Metallurgy/ Gold Resources: The major source of gold for Europe  before the  conquest of the  Americas  -  from the Empire of Ghana  and Mali

20.    Agriculture:  Domestication of  1,500 species of   rice (oryza glaberrima) in the Niger River confluence area; domestication of  yam, cowpeas, kola, oil palms, okra  as well as coffee and sorghum.. Influence of  African rice technology on South Carolina etc

21.  Religion: Orisa  a religious system from which Santeria andCandomble originated with at least 150 million devotees world wide in Brazil , Cuba and the rest of the  Caribbean and West  Africa

22.    Music:  A major source of various musical styles including Jazz, Calypso, Soca

23.  Cloth : Source of numerous  contemporary textile motifs  and  various types of textile including   kente, adinkra, adire- many of which  have been copied and imitated ....

      Africa in General

24.     Language:  Numerous loan words and vocabulary in contemporary English, Spanish and Portuguese

25.  Major contributions to the development of the economies of Western Europe and the Americas in terms of natural resources and centuries of unpaid labor. 

   Go to www.africahistory.net. Send comments to Dr. Gloria Emeagwali, Prof. of History, CCSU, New Britain, CT06050       860-832-2815