Africa - A Colonial Carve-Up

This map of 1888 shows the African continent, seen through European eyes in that period.

The land has been carved up and divided among the British, French, Germans and Belgians.

 

The only exception is Abyssinia (now Ethiopia) which remained independent. 

 

No attention was ever paid to inter-tribal relationships and local ownership.

 

This land grab laid the foundation for a great deal of the conflict which plagued African countries in the 20th century and beyond.

Yet African culture has endured and strengthened in many instances, and has greatly influenced Western Art and Music.

An Ancient, Modern, Concept from Africa

 This is an excellent example of the Art of the Sculptors of West Africa.

It is a mask of the Guro people, carved from wood, with a polychrome finish.

The entire piece is carved from a single wood billet, spectacularly demonstrating the maker's skill.

It depicts the position of the human species within the Creation.

The face is surrounded by animal features, signifying the dependence of people on the creatures around them.

The bird at the top, usually a Hornbill, represents the creatures of the air. 

The Antelope horns show the presence of the creatures of the bush or forest, and the serrations below show the jaws of the crocodile: a creature of the water.

The message is that each depends on the others for existence and survival.

What is done to one, affects all.

Not quite as Old as the Hills .....

 

Africa is considered by most anthropologists to be the oldest inhabited territory on the earth, with the Human species originating on that continent.

The discoveries of Fossils and of evidence of Human occupation, date from as early as 7 million years ago.

Several species of early ape-like Humans, are thought to have evolved into modern man.

Australopithecus afarensis ( dated to approximately 3.9–3.0 million years BC ), Parnthropus boisei ( c. 2.3–1.4 million years BC ) and Homo ergaster ( c. 1.9 million–600,000 years BC ) have all been documented.

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And now for some Good News from Africa .......

Poverty rates throughout the African continent have been falling steadily, and much faster than previously thought, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.

The death rate of children under five years of age is dropping, with “clear evidence of accelerating rates of decline,” according to The Lancet.

Perhaps most encouragingly, Africa is “among the world’s most rapidly growing economic regions.”