Period+Two600+CE+to+1450

William The Empires of Ghana and Mali differed in which of the following ways?

a) Unlike Ghana, Mali was a Muslim empire from the beginning b) Mali was a smaller empire than Ghana c) **Ghana was not able to control the Trans-Saharan trade routes, but Mali could** d) Ghana controlled the trading area around the Niger, while Mali controlled the trading area around the Congo e) The gold of the Niger brought great wealth to Ghana, while Mali gained wealth only through trade


 * Correct:** Ghana was not able to control trans-Saharan trade routes, but Mali could. Mali was geographically located in a better are than Ghana. Mali had easy trade routes where they could trade with Northern, Eastern, Southern, and Western Africa. Mali also lived in an agriculturally fertile land. Gold was available along the Nile River which Mali had easy access to.


 * Incorrect:** Unlike Ghana, Mali was a Muslim empire from the beginning. This is false because Ghana was the first civilization to be influenced by Islam in Western Africa by the ninth century. Mali then followed Ghana and adopted Islam. The primary reason of its inheritance is due to trade and commerce where ideas and items are easily tradable.