Form Five History 1: Topic 1 – Pre Colonial African Societies Topic 1 Classroom Notes

Pre-Colonial African Societies

Basic Concepts

Human Labour: Human labour refers to purposeful activities directed at producing necessary goods and services. It encompasses personal factors in the production process, such as skills, experience, and scientific and technological knowledge. Labour is fundamental for human survival as it enables individuals to meet their needs.

Means of Labour: These are tools and equipment used in production, such as machines and hoes. Instruments of labour facilitate the production process.

Objects of Labour: These are materials or resources that human labour is applied to, with land being the most common example.

Relations of Production: This concept describes how people interact with each other in the production process. It is shaped by the form of ownership of the means of production and the distribution of labour products, reflecting the presence or absence of classes and exploitation in society.

Mode of Production: This is a combination of productive forces (human labour, means of labour, and objects of labour) and the relations of production. The pre-colonial African modes of production included communal, slavery, and feudal systems.

Modes of Production in Pre-Colonial Africa

Communal Mode of Production

The communal mode of production is the oldest system of social relations, marking the evolution of society from primitive animalism to human society. This mode was characterized by activities such as hunting and gathering, with tools made from stones and arrows.

Examples: Maasai of East Africa, Fulani of West Africa, Khoikhoi of South Africa

Features:

• Collective Ownership: Major means of production, like land, were owned collectively, eliminating exploitation since no few individuals controlled the resources.
• Low Level of Production Forces: Tools were primitive, resulting in low productivity.
• Absence of Trading Activities: The absence of surplus meant that trade was minimal.
• No Exploitation: Collective ownership prevented exploitation.

Over time, the discovery of iron tools led to increased production, surplus, and a shift towards more exploitative modes of production.

Slave Mode of Production

This was the first exploitative mode of production, where individuals were owned as property by others. Although not extensively developed in pre-colonial Africa, it was practiced in regions like Egypt, where slaves built pyramids.

Features:

• Existence of Two Antagonistic Classes: Slaves and slave masters.
• Private Ownership: Slaves were considered the private property of slave masters.
• Existence of Exploitation: Slaves produced goods for their masters, who appropriated the surplus.
• Relatively Advanced Tools: Although more advanced than communal tools, they were still primitive.
• Relatively High Level of Political Institutions: The development of better tools supported increased production, population growth, and the formation of states or kingdoms.

Reasons for Limited Development of Slave Mode:

• Slavery existed more as an institution than a mode of production in parts like Zanzibar, Egypt, and Maghreb societies.
• Slavery often coexisted with feudalism.
• The absence of a significant class of slave masters.
• Many societies transitioned directly from primitive communalism to feudalism.

Transition from Slavery to Feudal Mode of Production

Factors contributing to the decline of slavery and the rise of feudalism included:

• Improvement in productive forces.
• Class struggles and uprisings by slaves against their masters.
• Incompatibility between productive forces and social relations of production.
• Slave disinterest in labour, leading to sabotage.
• Oppression and cruelty by slave masters.
• Lack of innovation by slave owners.
• Military campaigns reducing the number of slaves and increasing their prices.

Feudal Mode of Production

The feudal mode of production, prevalent from the 14th to the 19th century, was based on private land ownership.

Examples: Haya in Tanganyika, Zulu in South Africa

Features:

• Existence of Two Dominant Classes: Feudal lords and peasants.
• Private Ownership: Major means of production, such as land and cattle, were owned by feudal lords.
• Exploitation: Peasants were exploited through rent payments to landowners.
• Advanced Tools of Production: Led to higher productivity and surplus.

Pre-Colonial African Societies

During colonization, most African societies were in the communal mode of production, transitioning to feudalism. Some were already in the feudal mode, while the slave mode was not well-developed.

Characteristics:

• The family was the basic production unit, limiting the division of labour and technological advancement, resulting in low agricultural productivity.
• Productive forces were primitive, leading to low production levels and the absence of surplus.
• Land distribution was based on cultural values and traditions.
• Some societies had class distinctions, such as slave masters and slaves or feudal lords and peasants.
• Major economic activities included agriculture and pastoralism.
• Pre-colonial societies were pre-capitalist, with communal, slavery, and feudal modes of production. Capitalism was introduced during colonialism.
• Production was primarily for consumption, not for the market.