5.8 - Culture of Sub-Saharan Africa

Religion

Africa has a complex religious history but we can simplify it but looking at three religious practices: traditional or indigenous African belief systems, Islam and Christianity.

Indigenous Belief Systems

Traditional African religions, are found in every part of the continent and may be the oldest on Earth. Countries in which traditional beliefs remain particularly strong include: Namibia, Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone and the Gambia. Most traditional African beliefs can be considered animist, spirits (including those of the deceased) are thought to exist everywhere - in trees, streams, hills, and art. In return for respect, these spirits offer protection from sickness, accidents and the ill will of others.  Where Africans have converted to Islam or Christianity, they commonly retain aspects of their traditional religion. 

Islam

Islam began to extend south of the Sahara about 100 years after Muhammad's death in 632 AD. About 15% of Sub-Saharan Africans are muslims. Islam is the predominant religion in the north, throughout the Sahel and in parts of East Africa.  Somalia, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Chad, Niger, Nigeria, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso, and the Ivory Coast have significant muslim populations.

Christianity

Christianity came to the region through Egypt and Ethiopia shortly after the time of Christ. It was spread through Africa by European and North American missionaries. In the 20th century, Christian churches grew significantly. The Anglican Church (the Church of England) has grown so fast that by the year 2000 Anglicans in Kenya, Uganda and Nigeria outnumbered those in the U.K.  1/5th of all the Christians in the world live in Africa. South Africa, Lesotho, Namibia, Angola, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone all have large Christian populations.

Ethnicity and Language

Thousands of ethnic groups are scattered throughout the region. There is immense diversity within the 1 billion people in Sub-Saharan Africa, and within each country there are cultural and ethnic groups with their own history, language, and religion. More than two thousand separate and distinct languages are spoken in all of Africa. Forty are spoken by more than a million people. Many local languages are not written down and have no historical record or dictionary. More than five hundred separate languages are spoken in Nigeria alone. Three of the six dominant languages in Sub-Saharan Africa—spoken by at least ten million people or more—are spoken in Nigeria: Hausa, Yoruba, and Ibo. The three remaining major languages of Sub-Saharan Africa are Swahili, Lingala, and Zulu.

Many African countries today speak a European language as their official language - another legacy of colonialism.  Mauritania is the only country that has Arabic as its official language. Nigeria has English plus other local languages. The official languages of most of West Africa are either French or English, and Guinea-Bissau’s official language is Portuguese.

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Rwanda’s Tutsi-Hutu conflict has been historic in its violence and in the senseless killing of innocent people. Hutu farmers and Tutsi cattle raisers in Rwanda share similar occupations, languages and ways of life. However, colonial policies purposely exaggerated ethnic differences as a method of control and Tutsi's were assigned higher status.  Hutu and Tutsi's now think of themselves as having very different ethnicities.  In 1994, the conflict erupted into violence of unprecedented proportions. Hutu militias took revenge on the Tutsis for years of suppression and massacred anyone who did not support the Hutu cause. Tutsi rebels finally gained strength, fought back, and defeated the Hutu militias. More than a million people were killed, and more than a million defeated Hutus fled as refugees to neighboring countries, where many died of cholera and dysentery in refugee camps.

Some African countries have only a few ethnic groups; others have hundreds. Cameroon has 250 recognized different ethnic groups. Different groups often have extremely different values and practices making the development of a cohesive nation difficult.