Tag Archives: North Africa

Cuisines and Crops of Africa, 18th Century: Food and Farming in Timbuktu

Posted on 02/02/2013 by

In about 1789, the merchant and voyager Abd Salam Shabeeny  set out from his home city, the Moroccan port town of Tetuan (above picture), for Germany in order to procure items for use in his trans-Saharan caravan trade business.  On the way he … Continue reading →

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Posted in Africa-North, Africa-West, African rice, Agriculture, Caravan routes, Colonialism, Cuisine, Egypt-Recent, Explorers & exploration, Food, History, History-Recent, Indigenous crops & medicinal plants, Livestock, Technology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

City States in the Sahel: Pre-European Kingdoms of West Africa

Posted on 14/01/2013 by

With the current efforts of France to address the efforts of Islamists in northern Mali, I am revising and reposting this blog on Sahelian history.  First posted in 2012.   Introduction: Recent events in the West African Sahel by way … Continue reading →

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Posted in Africa-North, Africa-West, African rice, Arab traders, Caravan routes, Niger River, Sahel | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

A Taste of 2012 – Top Posts Favor Colonial Era; Food; Ancient Egypt

Posted on 01/01/2013 by

2012 was an excellent year for blogging.  Daily reads ranged between 200 and 300, with a few entries going over 500.  Readers were most interested in posts that stress the colonial era of African history, together with wildlife, traditional farming … Continue reading →

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Posted in Africa-Central, Africa-General, Africa-West, Agriculture, Burundi, Caravan routes, Colonialism, Contract-Farming, David Livingstone, Egypt-Ancient, Ethnicity, Food, Hotel Club du Lac Tanganyika2, Indigenous crops & medicinal plants, Lake Tanganyika, Organic Gardenig, Research & Development, Stanley and Livingstone, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Qanat Structures in the Western Desert of Egypt: Early Forms of Desert Irrigation

Posted on 04/11/2011 by

 [First posted May 2010,  Revised 04 November 2011] Qanat structures – underground water canals that can extend many miles – are a feature of the Middle East and North African agriculture that I find fascinating. It was Paul English who wrote one … Continue reading →

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Posted in Africa-General, Agriculture, Egypt-Ancient, Technology | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Climate change and the origins of agriculture and complex societies

Posted on 04/11/2011 by

[First posted May 2010,  Revised 04 November 2011]  Re-posting an earlier blog on climate change and agriculture, to be followed with a blog on the same topic, but with a focus on the Garamantian kingdom and other groups of  North Africa and the … Continue reading →

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Posted in Africa-General, Agriculture, Climate Change, Egypt-Ancient, History-Ancient, Middle East, Technology, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Spicy, North African Pan-Fried Locusts, 1792

Posted on 30/10/2010 by

Here is another recipe for locusts, this one with a North African Flare.  It is preceded by brief remarks on the plague of locusts that occurred in Barbary  (N.W. Morocco) in 1792.   An Account of Timbuctoo and Housa Territories … Continue reading →

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Posted in Africa-North, Colonialism, Cuisine, Explorers & exploration, Food, Indigenous crops & medicinal plants, Recipes | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Mulukhiyyah in Housaland and Morocco and a North African Recipe

Posted on 20/06/2010 by

A re-posting – because this entry is getting daily hits of 10-20; perhaps for Paula’s recipe, below.  But no one has yet proffered a comment to the question in the blog.. The North African Merchant Shabeeni describes the following vegetable that existed … Continue reading →

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Posted in Africa-North, Africa-West, Colonialism, Cuisine, Egypt-Ancient, Egypt-Recent, Explorers & exploration, Food, History-Recent, Middle East, Recipes, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments