East Africa

Why is the lingua franca of many parts of East Africa not an indigenous language?

• There are many native languages, but dominant colonial languages such as English or French were

  commonly understood by most people, and so are still used today.

• Trade activity with Arabic speaking peoples over hundreds of years made Arabic commonly understood

  by most people throughout East Africa.

• Because Portugal introduced Christianity, which since spread throughout East Africa, Portuguese has

  spread across the region as a language understood by both believers and non-believers.

• Most people in East Africa speak Bantu today because there is too much ethic tension associated with

  Tutsi and Hutu languages.

Identify successful actions implemented by some East African governments that have had both environmental and economic benefits.

• creating conservation areas and national parks, which draw ecotourists

• encouraging commercial cash crop agricultural enterprises to convert back to traditional subsistence

  farming

• combating overpopulation, which contributes to desertification, especially along the Sahel

• regulating industrial and agricultural chemicals that pollute water systems and kill off fish which otherwise

  may be commercially harvested

What geographical factor(s) led to both Christianity and Islam becoming the two most prominent faiths within

East Africa today?

• The harsh conditions of the Sahel served as a buffer to any cultures attempting to penetrate inland from

  the coast, leaving East Africa culturally isolated, despite its access to the sea.

• The uniform elevation across the subregion made East Africa vulnerable to colonization by both Arabic

  and European powers.

• Easy travel along the Great Rift Valley river systems brought both trade and new ideas.

• Explorers, colonists, and traders had easy access due to East Africa’s long Red Sea and Indian Ocean

  coastlines.

Which country is heavily investing in East African trade, natural resources, and infrastructure, fundamentally

altering the economy of the subregion?

• Saudi Arabia

• The United States

• Egypt

• China

How are escarpments and cataracts related?

• They are both features of the savanna and Sahel that runs along the Great Rift Valley.

• Both are common to the many volcanic regions in East Africa, especially along fault lines where tectonic

  plates shift deep underground.

• Rivers flowing over the many plateaus of East Africa plunge over steep cliffs to form large waterfalls

• Rainwater flooding into the many rift valleys of East Africa forms deep freshwater lakes.

The largest sector in East Africa's economy is

• export agriculture.

• subsistence agriculture.

• services, including tourism.

• mining/fishing/raw materials.

Habitat loss and poaching are examples of

• the effects of deforestation.

• the effects of soil erosion and desertification

• the variety of environmental threats East Africa faces.

• the proper management of resources in East Africa.

Which human-caused problem is most directly related to exceding an area's carrying capacity?

• loss of habitat

• overpopulation

• poaching

• desertification

Which is a factor that has contributed to the lack of proper management of natural resources within East Africa?

• deforestation

• poverty

• overfarming

• pollution

Which characterizes the primary population pattern of people in East Africa?

• urban

• rural

• coastal

• inland