ABSTRACT
Africa, the second largest continent in the world with 800 million people, is characterized by diversity similar to that of the Native Americans of North America. Historically, the continent experienced cultural exchanges with places as remote as Southeast Asia and the Pacific, from where it received bananas, and as close as the Arabian Peninsula, from where some of the world’s first Muslims migrated to Ethiopia. Colonialism operated in Africa with great effectiveness and speed. The Industrial Revolution had made available to Europeans the tools they used to dominate Africa, such as tropical medicine, machine guns, and steam ships. For instance, the Somali people were divided into new colonies under the rule of three different Europeans powers, the British, the Italians, and the French. European perceptions shaped the colonial encounter in important ways. The perception of darkness also guided European missionaries who came to Africa.
