Bantu Expansion
Definition
The Bantu expansion was a significant series of migrations in Africa that spread the Bantu languages, cultures, and iron-working technology across much of the continent over several thousand years.
Analogy
Think of the Bantu expansion like a slow-moving wave at a sports game. Just as one section's movement influences the next, causing a ripple effect throughout the stadium, so too did the Bantu people influence neighboring cultures as they migrated across Africa.
Related terms
Bantu Languages: A group of some 500 languages belonging to the Bantoid subfamily of the Benue-Congo branch of the Niger-Congo language family.
Iron Age: The period in cultural development when tools and weapons were made from iron or steel; it followed Stone Age and Bronze Age.
Great Zimbabwe: An ancient city in southeastern hills of Zimbabwe which served as a royal palace for Zimbabwean monarch during late Iron Age; it's associated with wealth and trade.
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