The unknown land

Africa seems to be the land of mystery, and even with the net vast resources it is much harder to find information on it then on Europe or US. Which is, of course, not that strange - net penetration of Aftica is around 10%, and that means many people knowing its history, culture and such first-hand simply cannot contribute the the internet community. And there is of course the fact that during the education, Africa tends to be marginalised as well. Again, an obvious fact - if you live in countru X, continent Y, you will likely learn more about X and Y then about the rest of the world.

Which means that most of us now very little about Africa of today, and even less about it's history. And that is a shame - especially for history lovers like me. Reading about such strange places is close to reading a good fantasy book - one simply cannot belive that it really happened.

Let me show you my favourites story of the Axumite Kingdom. Well before 1 AD it has carved massive monuments, like the Obelisk of Axum.





It had a strong navy and naval trading routes going as far as India. Its cosmopolitan ports where inhabited by Arabs, Jews, Indians and many other cultures. It converted to Christianity in 4th century AD and remained Christian ever since, even when all of its neighbours have converted to Islam. When first European explorers 'discovered' Axum around, they were so suprised by the chruches, crosses and similar insignia that they thought they finally disvovered the domain of Prester John.

And this is just the tip of an iceberg...stay tuned to Wikipedia: History of Africa!