Portal:Pan-Africanism

The Pan-African flag—also known as the UNIA flag, Afro-American flag, Black Liberation flag and various other names—is a tri-color flag consisting of three equal horizontal bands of (from top down) red, black and green. The Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA-ACL) formally adopted it on August 13, 1920 in Article 39 of the Declaration of the Rights of the Negro Peoples of the World, during its month-long convention at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Variations of the flag can and have been used in various countries and territories in the Americas to represent Garveyist ideologies.

Edward Wilmot Blyden
c 1860s, London
Born	(1832-08-03)3 August 1832 Sankt Thomas, Danish West Indies (now the US Virgin Islands)
Died	7 February 1912(1912-02-07) (aged 79) Freetown, British Sierra Leone (now Sierra Leone)
Nationality	Liberian
Other names	Eddy, Ed
Citizenship	Danish West Indies
Occupation(s)	educator, writer, diplomat, politician
Known for	"Father of Pan-Africanism" Liberian ambassador and politician
Spouse	Sarah Yates
Partner	Anna Erskine
Children	Pay'ton Blyden

Edward Wilmot Blyden (3 August 1832 – 7 February 1912) was an educator, writer, diplomat, and politician primarily in Liberia. Born in the West Indies, he joined the free black immigrants from the United States who migrated to the region. He taught for five years in the British West African Colony of Sierra Leone in the early 20th century. His writings on pan-Africanism were influential in both colonies. These were founded during the slavery years for the resettlement of free blacks from Great Britain and the United States.

Blyden's writings attracted attention in the sponsoring countries as well. He believed that Zionism was a model for what he called Ethiopianism, and that African Americans could return to Africa and redeem it. He believed political independence to be a prerequisite for economic independence, and argued that Africans must counter the neo-colonial policies of former colonial powers.

Ghana Empire Wagadou
c. 700–c. 1240
The Ghana Empire at its greatest extent
Capital	Koumbi Saleh
Common languages	Soninke, Malinke, Mande
Religion	African traditional religion, Islam
Government	Monarchy
Ghana
• 700	Kaya Magan Cissé
• 790s	Majan Dyabe Cisse
• 1040–1062	Ghana Bassi
• 1203–1235	Soumaba Cisse
Historical era	Middle Ages
• Established	c. 700
• Conquered by Sosso/Submitted to the Mali Empire	c. 1240
Area
1067 est.	1,600 km2 (620 sq mi)
Preceded by Succeeded by Djenné-Djenno Mali Empire
Today part of	Mali Mauritania Senegal

The Ghana Empire (c. 700 until c. 1240), (Ghana or Ga'na being the title of its ruler), was located in the area of present-day southeastern Mauritania and western Mali. Complex societies based on trans-Saharan trade with salt and gold had existed in the region since ancient times, but the introduction of the camel to the western Sahara in the 3rd century A.D. opened the way to great changes in the area that became the Ghana Empire. By the time of the Muslim conquest of North Africa in the 7th century the camel had changed the ancient, more irregular trade routes into a trade network running from Morocco to the Niger river. The Ghana Empire grew rich from this increased trans-Saharan trade in gold and salt, allowing for larger urban centres to develop. The traffic furthermore encouraged territorial expansion to gain control over the different trade-routes.

When Ghana's ruling dynasty began remains uncertain; it is mentioned for the first time in written records by Muḥammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī in 830. In the 11th century the Cordoban scholar Abuof travelled to the region and gave a detailed description of the kingdom. He claimed that the Ghana could "put 200,000 men into the field, more than 40,000 of them archers", and noted they had cavalry forces as well.

As the empire declined it finally became a vassal of the rising Mali Empire at some point in the 13th century. When the Gold Coast in 1957 became the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to regain its independence from colonial rule, it renamed itself in honor of the long-gone empire.

African-American culture, also known as Black American culture, refers to the contributions of African Americans to the culture of the United States, either as part of or distinct from mainstream American culture. The distinct identity of African-American culture is rooted in the historical experience of the African-American people, including the Middle Passage. The culture is both distinct and enormously influential on American and global worldwide culture as a whole.

African-American culture is primarily rooted in West and Central Africa. Understanding its identity within the culture of the United States it is, in the anthropological sense, conscious of its origins as largely a blend of West and Central African cultures. Although slavery greatly restricted the ability of African Americans to practice their original cultural traditions, many practices, values and beliefs survived, and over time have modified and/or blended with European cultures and other cultures such as that of Native Americans. African-American identity was established during the slavery period, producing a dynamic culture that has had and continues to have a profound impact on American culture as a whole, as well as that of the broader world.

Elaborate rituals and ceremonies were a significant part of African Americans' ancestral culture. Many West African societies traditionally believed that spirits dwelled in their surrounding nature. From this disposition, they treated their environment with mindful care. They also generally believed that a spiritual life source existed after death, and that ancestors in this spiritual realm could then mediate between the supreme creator and the living. Honor and prayer was displayed to these "ancient ones", the spirit of those past. West Africans also believed in spiritual possession.