The Description of Africa

The Description of Africa is the first comprehensive book about Africa, written by Leo Africanus, an African scholar trained in the Islamic intellectual tradition, in 1526, during the Italian Renaissance. A skillful mixture of anthropology and geography, as well as a travelogue and biography, it became the only source material for early modern Europeans about the African continent.

Leo Africanus

Leo Africanus aka Al-Hassan Al-Wazzan (1485-1554) was an Andalusian scholar whose family migrated from Granada to Fez, Morocco, during the Spanish Reconquista when Catholic monarchs Isabella I of Castile (1451-1504) and Ferdinand II of Aragon (1452-1516) seized Granada, marking the end of 700 years of Muslim rule. He was a well-travelled, cosmopolitan intellectual and diplomat, who arrived in Rome as a captured slave. On 6 January 1520, he converted to Christianity under the tutelage of Pope Leo X de Medici. After this, Leo Africanus would enjoy the somewhat privileged life of a Vatican scholar. His scholarly contributions included translations of important Arabic manuscripts into Latin, the first Latin sourcebook on Arab numbers and numerology, an Arabic-Hebrew-Latin dictionary, and perhaps most notably a compendium of biographies of illustrious Arab scholars. The book remains until today the most reliable source of details we have for the life of Leo Africanus.

The National Library of Rome holds what historians believe to be Leo's original 957-page manuscript dated 1527 and titled La cosmographia & geographia de Affrica. The book was originally introduced to European readers in 1550 when the celebrated Italian travel writer and self-styled geographer Giovanni Battista Ramusio published his version called La descrittione dell'Africa or The Description of Africa. We now know that Ramusio's edition was substantially edited and differs in language, style, and content from the 1527 manuscript.

The Book's Readership

Leo Africanus wrote the book for a Renaissance audience, one that on one hand had a keen interest in the advances made in Arab scholarship during the Dark Ages; while on the other, it tended to vilify the religion of Islam. An African Muslim – learned and conversant not only in Arabic but also in Latin and Italian, Leo, like the Muslim civilization he represented and translated, held a twin, almost binary fascination for his 16th-century Italian contemporaries – as a Muslim faqih or jurist and yet also a knowledgeable and charming scholar. He wrote in a style that sought to please and entertain, making it clear that he had none of his books or papers at his disposal and was writing instead from memory. As such, he erred in some details, timelines, and even names of books. Nevertheless, he succeeded in dismantling the long-established divisions of the medieval age. His work bridged Africa and Europe, aligning Islam and Christianity as faiths within the fold of the Abrahamic tradition. Leo also diffused the gaps between the literary languages of scholars such as Arabic and Latin, and the more vernacular, colloquial, languages spoken among the lay people like Berber and Italian.

The work remained unparalleled until well into the 19th century when Europeans themselves began to travel to and explore Africa, recording their first-hand accounts.

The Naming of Africa

The Description Africa is divided into seven books. Book 1, comprises a kind of ruminating introduction. Beginning with the naming of the continent which he links to the Arabic word Ifriqiya, he then designates the terrain that makes up Africa:

According to African scholars and cosmographers, Africa is bounded to the east by the Nile, stretching north from the tributaries of the lake in the Gaoga desert, to the lowlands of Egypt where the Nile flows into the Mediterranean. It is bounded by the Nile Delta to the north extending west to the Pillars of Hercules [The straits of Gibraltar]. The western border stretches from these straits near the ocean down to Nun, the furthest town of Libya on the ocean. The southern border extends from Nun, along the ocean that surrounds the whole of Africa as far as the Gaoga deserts.

(Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans., p.5)

It is interesting to note that The Description of Africa does not contain any maps. This is all the more curious as during Leo's time, scholars and scientists in the Muslim world excelled at cartography. Having introduced the parameters of the continent, he divides Africa into four regions: Barbary, Numidia, Libya, and The Black Land. Next, he discusses the "settlements" or areas where people live, including the various theories of their origins. Leo tells us that the African tribes each have their own dialects and native tongues, yet they share a common language known as the agual amazigh. Arabic seems to prevail as the lingua franca of the region at that time.

In Book 1, Leo introduces the diversity of peoples who live on the continent. The first ethnic group that Leo discusses is the many different Arab peoples. The Barbary Arabs are the ones who went to live in Africa in different settlements. Then there are the Africans who live in Libya and Egypt as well as the Bedouins who live in the desert between Barbary and Egypt and the shepherds. The peoples who inhabit the Black Lands are discussed separately and at length in their section in Book 5 and the Egyptians in Book 6. He gives an interesting account of the founding of the city of Cairo under the Fatimid Caliphate (909-1171).

A cursory discussion of the indigenous religions of Africa, followed by the advent of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, is included with the promise of more details in the books to come. The same is true for the discussion of the African air and climate, terrains that are fertile and fruitful and those that are not, the virtues and shortcomings of the many different African peoples, the diseases that afflict them, health, and longevity.

All of this is peppered with a great many charming tales from having been frozen over in the Atlas Mountains – the greatest adventure of his life – to lessons from The Book of a Hundred Tales.

The author has twice escaped, as if by miracle, from the grave peril of the snow. It was sunset when the snow began to fall; some Arabs appeared on horseback, perhaps ten or twelve of them, inviting him to leave the caravan in haste and ride with them. The author wondered if by this invitation they meant to lure him into a wood and kill him for his possessions; but, luckily, before they took off he cunningly pretended to go and piss, hiding his money under a well-marked tree. He rode with them until around midnight, when they started questioning him to find out if he had any money on him. He replied that he'd left it in the caravan with one of his family; not satisfied with this answer they stripped him naked in the freezing cold, but, finding no cash, they returned his clothes and claimed they were just horsing around with him.

(Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans., p. 36)

The North African Arabs & the Berbers

Leo devotes Book 2 to Barbary and its kingdoms:

1. Marrakesh
2. Fez
3. Tlemcen
4. Bejaia
5. Tunis

Each kingdom is broken down into its individual regions and includes a discussion of the characteristics of the land, its people and how they live, their clothing, and customs. It is by far the longest book – being the region that is perhaps most well-known to him, hailing as he does from the Kingdom of Fez. Each locale is brought to life with an anecdote from Leo's experience or visit to the place. He says about the town of Tiout, in Haha, the Kingdom Marrakesh:

The author lodged one night outside town in a tumble-down farmhouse, tying the horses to a manger in one room, and foddered them with plenty of barley, since it was April. His men then stopped up the door with a mass of thornbushes, climbed onto the roof overlooking the courtyard, and went to sleep. When midnight came, two enormous lions arrived and tried to drag away the thornbushes covering the door; the horses heard and smelled the lions, and tugged with enough force to pull over the manger, one tearing its halter and making terrible noises. At first the author's part feared the lions' jaws, and be ravaged and eaten; then they stopped worrying about the horses for they feared the building would fall because of the noise, leaving them at the mercy of the lions. The night dragged on for a thousand years. When morning came they wondered in what state they would find the horses after all the kicking and biting, especially the author's mare; but without any delay they saddled up and rode back to the prince.

(Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans., pp.57-58)

It is easy to imagine how such stories would have regaled 16th-century European readers.

Leo's designation of Numidia in Book 3 follows that of Ptolemy (c. 100-170 CE) the ancient Egyptian polymath, whom he references, placing the provinces of Sous, Guzla, and al-Hammah in the Kingdom of Tunis rather than here. Numidia, here, borders the Libyan deserts, with provinces like Sijilmasa, and towns such as Irfan and Gafsa flanking the Atlas Mountains ranges and reaching towards the North Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. The chapter, like the previous one, is organized by region, with a detailed entry for each. Although this section is shorter, it still seems to be an area that Leo knows fairly well considering it is not his homeland. He says of the town of Tesset: "The men are quite brutish, dark-skinned and illiterate, and it is the women who study and work as schoolteachers for the girls and boys…" (Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans., p. 343)

Libya & the Desert Lands

Book 4 transverses the deserts of Libya, which are divided into five parts taking their name from that of the people who live there. The first is Zanaga, which he classifies as "dry and thirsty", remarking that "one can go 100 or 150 miles [160-240 km] without finding water" (Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans, p. 367). The second Libyan Desert is called Wanziga and is "even harsher than the one mentioned above", lying in the Kingdom of Gobir. Next is the desert where the Terga live, which is more habitable as "within two days one can find good water in deep wells" (ibid). The fourth desert, that of the Lamta is used by merchants traveling from Constantine to the Land of the Blacks and is deemed unsafe due to local pirates who attack foreigners and kill those from the land of Ouargala. The final desert is Bardoa the settlement of which comprises three ksars (castles) and several villages. Leo tells another great story about how the three castles were discovered:

These three ksars were once unknown, but eighteen years ago they were discovered by a guide named Hammar, who had lost the way because of an eye ailment he'd picked up en route, and there was no other guide to help. After every mile, he went ahead on his camel and was given sand to smell; thanks to this practice he could say when the caravan was forty miles [65 km] away, "We are near a settlement."

(Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans., p. 343)

Leo's storytelling skills draw the reader in, keeping us engaged through more mundane descriptions of climate, terrain, and agriculture. He seems to mimic in writing the skills of the Arab hakawati – an oral storyteller who would weave multiple, complex stories together entertaining eager audiences in cafes and public squares long before radio and television.

The Black Lands

Book 5 covers the Black Lands. In the introduction, Leo told us that the Black Land was "unknown to the cosmographers of Africa in detail". However, here he concedes, "but their knowledge generally picked up after the Libyans became Muslim." (Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans., p. 373). He divides this region into 17 kingdoms and provides a succinct paragraph for each, following his model of describing the terrain, climate, and people, although in his description he says there are 15 kingdoms, he actually names 17.

The Kingdom of Timbuktu

The name of this kingdom is modern, from the name of the city Timbuktu which was built in AH 610 [1213-14 CE] by King Mosa Suleyman about two miles [3 km] from a branch of the Niger. The city consists entirely of huts made of beams covered in clay…In this city there are many shops of craftsmen and merchants, especially dealers in cotton textiles. Slaves and free women sell all manner of food. The men are well dressed in black or blue cotton and fabrics that com from Europe by way Barbary merchants….The king of Timbuktu possess enormous wealth in precious stones and gold bars, some weighing pounds, others 300. His court is smartly liveried and when the king rides with his courtiers from one town to the next they ride the camels known as mehari, having the grooms lead the horses by hand…If someone wants to speak to the king, he must fall to his knees and sprinkle some dirt on his head and shoulders – the same obeisance is made by one who never spoke to him before and by the ambassador from a great ruler.

(Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans., pp. 377-378)

This is definitely the part of Africa that Leo knows least well. He has, of course, visited the Mali Empire and Timbuktu and gives a detailed account of these places. However, he gives the impression that his knowledge of the rest of the region comes from what he has heard in these two places and that he has not been there himself.

Egypt – the Cradle of Civilisation

Book 6 on Egypt is perhaps the longest after the Book 1 on Barbary. It is rich in history and detail of both the terrain and the history of its people and civilizations. Plentiful details of geography and climate, and even of the food and the women tell us that Leo has spent quite some time in Egypt and among its people. He divides the regions as follows:

In modern times, that is, since the Muslims began to rule, the region and kingdom of Egypt was divided into three parts: Cairo to Rosetta, called Ar-Rif, that is, the coast; Cairo to Beja, called al-Sa`id, that is, the ground; and the part along the branch of the Nile to Damietta and Tinnis, called al-Behriyya, that is, the lake region.

(Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans., p. 392)

Quoting Moses from the Quran, Leo declares the Egyptians to be "descendants of Mizraim, son of Cush, son of Ham, son of Noah…" then confesses, "The Arabs likewise call the whole country Misr…" (ibid) The Egyptians are described as cultivated and cultured people, unlike some of the tribes of the Libyan Desert and the Black Lands. In this section, Leo Africanus shows us his keen grasp of history and of cultural development as he draws a picture of Egypt filled with depth and complexity – all from memory!

Book 7 gives an account of the rivers, animals, and plants of Africa. It names 25 rivers starting with the Tensift, which begins at the Atlas Mountains, and ending with the River Nile. This discussion alone is a testament to the amount of information Leo has retained and can recall without relying on other sources.

The African Elephant

The section on animals begins with a note explaining that this will not be a comprehensive list of all the animals in Africa, but rather only of the ones not found in Europe. He begins, perhaps somewhat predictably with the elephant, describing it as a "wild but tameable animal, found in large numbers in the forests…" (Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans., 443). Then he goes on to name 33 other animals, including the giraffe, parrot, ostrich, crocodile, and so on. The last section ends with a list of minerals and plants, including their tastes and uses.

The manuscript of The Description of Africa is signed:

Here ends the book or treatise of the author, Messer Giovanni Leone of Granada on what is meant by Africa: its cities, deserts, mountains, settlements, villages, rivers, animals and their habits, likewise its unknown fruits and roots in the manner of a cosmography. Rome, 10 March 1526.

(Oosterhoff & Ossa-Richardson trans., p. 467)

The figure of the author of this book Leo Africanus is as enigmatic and interesting as is the book itself. The Description of Africa offered its European readers a huge volume of knowledge about Africa that had hereto been unavailable. The stories and anecdotes woven into his narrative create an exotic and fascinating read. Translations in the European languages from Latin to French to German and Dutch followed upon the heels of its Italian publication in 1550; with the English edition by John Pory printed just 50 years later in 1600. It is a book that, to this day, remains essential to how we understand the history of our world.