Pre-colonial African kingdoms

There have been a number of historical African states of varying size and influence:

Vansina (1962) discusses the classification of Sub-Saharan African kingdoms, mostly of Central, South and East Africa, with some additional data on West African (Sahelian) kingdoms distinguishing five types, by decreasing centralization of power:

The Islamic empires of North and Northeast Africa do not fall into this categorization and should be discussed as part of the Muslim world.

Ancient history (3600 BCE – 500 CE)

Ancient history refers to the time period beginning with the first records in writing, approximately 3600 BCE. It ends with the fall of several significant empires, such as the Western Roman Empire in the Mediterranean, the Han Dynasty in China, and the Gupta Empire in India, collectively around 500 CE.

Postclassical Era (500 – 1500 CE)

The Postclassical Era, also referred to as the Medieval period or, for Europe, the Middle Ages, begins around 500 CE after the fall of major civilizations, covering the advent of Islam. The period ends around 1450–1500, with events like the rise of moveable-type printing in Europe, the voyages of Christopher Columbus, and the Ottoman Empire's conquest of Constantinople.

Modern history (1500 – present CE)

The Modern Period covers human history from the creation of a more global network (i.e. the discovery of the Americas by Europeans) to present day.

Non-exhaustive list of known pre-colonial kingdoms and empires with their capital cities on the African continent.

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