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century. Ghana declined and was
superseded by Mali, under
whose empire the ancient trading
cities of Djenné and Timbuktu
became centers of both trade and
Islamic learning.
Little is known of Africa’s
history in the interim, but it is
recorded that Vasco da Gama
explored East Africa’s coast in 1498,
establishing what would be
centuries of European domination
and exploitation.
Precolonial
Africa possibly
possessed as many as 10,000 states,
characterized by many different
kinds of political organization and
rule. These included small family
groups of hunter-gatherers, such as
the San people of southern Africa;
Cradle of Mankind?
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