From Senongo:
The Nok civilization appeared in central Nigeria around 1000 B.C. Spanning more than 80,000 square kilometers (31,000 square miles), the tropical region they lived in was larger than the Chech Republic or the US state of South Carolina. With no record of what these people actually called themselves, their name comes from the village of Nok, near the archaeological site.
Image courtesy Resource Data
Iron use, in smelting and forging for tools, appears in Nok culture in Africa by 500 BC. Soon after that, the population exploded. People that had been living a Stone Age-like nomadic existence suddenly settled, creating a critical mass for the development of higher culture. They also contributed mightily to the centralized societies that arose later in central southern Nigeria.
The culture mysteriously vanished around 500 AD...[continue reading]
