15 Awesome AFRICAN SWORD Types You Never Knew Existed! (How Many Did You Know?)
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- Опубліковано 25 сер 2024
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15 Awesome African Sword Types You Never Knew Existed! How many of these did you know?
In this video I’m going to share my awesome collection of antique African swords. African sword types are surprisingly underrated, but they should be at the top of the charts when it comes to weaponry.
I’ll look at a range of weapons from all over Africa. From the Ol Alem or Ida sword, to the African Konda or Kuba sword, several African curved swords and of course the incredible African sickle, hook or Shotel sword. We will look at the nimcha, flyssa, takouba, kaskara, manding, ada, afena/akrafena, ngombe, kuba, mambele, shotel, gile and more!
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When is your Takouba Dated? I have one that seemed in way worse condition but I wasn't able to get any answers as to the period. It looks very, very similar to the 2nd photo in your video, just slightly more used.
European: Beautiful and practical
Asian: Beautiful
African:
You forgot the Ida from the Yoruba tribe. So, 16 iconic swords from Africa.
Fascinating video. Could you do a similar video on African armor/protective-wear? Or was defense purely by shields due to heat issues?
@@Simon-Wolf Ye that would be a good video they did have armor.
For example Greek Ptolmey Dynasty of Egypt during the conflict they had with the Nubian kingdom wore less heavy armor and used instead quilted armor for some Cavalry units called Stolas Piletas armor. This was likely similar or based on the armor they observed being used by Nubia to defend from the lethal archery skills that the Nubians and other threats in the region had. This type of armor is seen in later history all over the Sahel and Sudan.
The Nubians based on archaeology and historic imagery had different types of armor depending on the period, from quilted armor to scale armor (mostly seen on royalty) and also leather as well as ox-hide armor.
The the later Christian Nubian and Islamic kingdoms of the region as well as the West African and Central African empires also had this same type of armor, which was quilted armor with Brass and iron helmets but many had chain mail too.
The links below are a few examples. The first link shows the Greek Egyptian quilted armor and the others the Nubian quilted African armor.
images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/intermediary/f/49abed86-3826-4dc7-b5d3-81c95b43b190/d1hme51-2bb500ab-10a0-4765-b43d-16488987ca89.jpg
content-18.foto.my.mail.ru/mail/whatsthematter/89/s-109.bmp
i.pinimg.com/236x/04/65/b6/0465b6857df53841f3c9085a8c1f2dd0--the-rules-islam.jpg
2.bp.blogspot.com/-at0_v3FAAyA/T3LytwemGyI/AAAAAAAANRU/vmGChXflpTQ/s1600/Sudanese%2Btroops%2Bat%2BAdwa.jpg
i.pinimg.com/originals/ef/1f/7b/ef1f7b8f74b3fe63819b8e5e7311a1de.jpg
trc-leiden.nl/trc-needles/media/k2/items/cache/813541278369b150a801e94c8e0ace02_XL.jpg
And these are pieces of the leather and ox-hide armor found by archaeologists on Nubian archeaological sites.
www.vikingsword.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=141823&stc=1
www.vikingsword.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=141824&stc=1
i.pinimg.com/originals/19/38/e7/1938e7803d80c0919e19f1bd68d9427a.jpg
These next images show ancient art of Nubian scale armor likely based on the Egyptian scale armor. The images also show 3D animation of what they would have likely looked like in that type of armor. This type of armor might have been for the nobility and elite warriors only however.
vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/stargatearmageddon/images/a/ad/Sebiumeker.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20170626204121&path-prefix=it
www.vikingsword.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=141783&stc=1
wildfiregames.com/forum/uploads/monthly_2017_07/Unknown.jpeg.9fbad6fa069de3d7dfeea68200c49ede.jpeg
wildfiregames.com/forum/uploads/monthly_2018_01/5a640b5f4b994_012118-KushHero(2).jpg.049dbee979e26389afc331bafe9917ac.jpg.85c7d136e5e916e0f2b8f8f3f48ebf3e.jpg
wildfiregames.com/forum/uploads/monthly_2018_01/5a645ec527eea_Tiaa-06-Pharaonscalearmour.thumb.jpg.6257eaa4ed3c3f9f7197e0351ce8b95f.jpg
wildfiregames.com/forum/uploads/monthly_2018_01/5a64771e7f8e7_012118-KushHero(4).thumb.jpg.6b18237a4e3e49de4ff24aaf455315cc.jpg
Like i said chain mail was also used by the various Nubians, as well as the Sahelian states and empires. It was imported and also made within the regions. These are again a few examples of precolonial illustrations and images showing the African chainmail in museums.
i.pinimg.com/originals/e5/fa/93/e5fa93614885684f0e656bea08dbc648.jpg
www.gutenberg.org/files/55553/55553-h/images/i_128a.jpg
c1.staticflickr.com/1/109/302285356_4282d5a9ec_b.jpg
i.pinimg.com/originals/17/25/a4/1725a480a79f3dab4ab922e24b23dec3.jpg
i.pinimg.com/originals/a0/59/15/a059159569d529e2f5302e90f94e3d7c.jpg
i.pinimg.com/originals/4f/2e/b8/4f2eb8856011ea0b3abf2507221a1bfa.jpg
i.pinimg.com/236x/d9/b1/97/d9b197804e02255339922b47b274adf1.jpg
However there was an African kingdom that used iron breastplates/curiass called the Bornu Kingdom. The armor was first seen by European observers in the 1800s being used by the guards of the king. The first link shows the armor found in some musuems and private collections, and the third picture below is a recreation of the armor. This is one of the only exception of metal breastplates in Sub Saharan Africa I've found.
www.vikingsword.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=110405&stc=1
i.pinimg.com/originals/71/94/1f/71941fec6cdde2e7f0bcd7320793579b.jpg
i.pinimg.com/736x/4b/85/5e/4b855e33342f15c02bf4149f37fc4a54.jpg
Those of the forest regions and kingdoms further south wore little to no chainmail or quilted armor unlike those people further North to then. In most cases they predominantly relied on their shields and had no armor. The most they had was leather and ox-hide armor as well as brass or bronze helmets and Arras of the armor with metal like depicted in this medieval plaques and recreation below (though not 100% historically accurate).
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Benin_kingdom_Louvre_A97-4-1.jpg
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i.pinimg.com/736x/d8/67/53/d8675341ad710e32d736e17c29990a98.jpg
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4.bp.blogspot.com/-cNTkEmKGawc/UNCprRMPScI/AAAAAAAAJmE/jXesb7rAZMQ/s1600/Mangbetuwarriors-1.jpg
Here a handy guide:
5:16 - Nimcha.
6:00 - Flyssa.
6:49 - Takouba.
8:08 - Kaskara.
10:30 - Manding.
11:36 - Ada.
12:44 - Afrena.
14:03 - Hwi (Dahomey).
15:10 - Ngombe.
16:55 - KUBA.
18:00 - MAMBELE.
19:19 - SHOTEL.
21:05 - GARUDE.
21:48 - OL ALEM.
23:11 - GILE/JILE.
24:40 - BELAWA/BILLAO.
Thanks man !!!
Thank you
African weapons are unfairly glossed over all the time, and even when people do talk about them, they often only talk about northern African weapons due to the proximity to and interactions with the Ottoman Empire. Love to see this video.
African history in general is unfairly glossed over 😕
@@PaletoB There's always been a huge streak of Eurocentrism in the study of medieval history for sure.
A large part of that has to do with literacy. Sadly there are entire epochs of african history lost (you can thank Leopold II for that) due to it not being written down.
Congo.
@tylerrobbins8311 indeed but there are huge portions of history not lost that still don't get looked into still.
African designs are badass.
Dang, the Flyssa is another example how history often seems more fantastic than actual fantasy. Could be an elven blade from the peter jackson LOTR series. Never heard of it before either, thanks for broadening my horizon again. What a beautiful sword.
It is a pretty thing indeed, though I would like a handguard
@@mrmacguff1n Yeah, can agree.
Yup, immediately felt I'd seen a gazillion fantasy swords inspired by it.
Pure Northern African sword. I've seen one from Algeria and the scabbard is incrusted with Coral .
@@maths8458 Wow, cool! Thanks for the info!
Fun fact: the shotel was a very popular weapon for player-on-player combat in the original Dark Souls, as it had the special ability that heavy attacks would ignore the opponent's shield, in addition to being lightweight and with a fast attack speed. Because of this, it's probably the one sword out of this list that's the most well-known outside of sword collecting circles.
or age of empires players
Got to admit going into this video the only African sword I could think of was the shotel which I new of from Elden Ring.
Sandrock Gundam my guy
@@Helios80808 yep, Castle Dropping Shotel Warriors
Sad thing they are so nerfed in ER
Lautrec with shotel style weapons was a true aesthetic
There's a tendency in the West to treat Africa as a single, homogenous thing, when really it's a huge continent filled with a vast array of different cultures, countries, and environments. I like how this video brings a bit of that out! I'm sure that part of the reason there's many names for many of these weapons is because of the huge number of different languages one encounters in Africa.
I'd be interested in something that looked at even older African weapons. Of course that starts running into a problem with availability of samples and information - but there's a point in history where the best steel in the world actually came from Africa. Alas, I don't recall exactly when - this is something I learnt in a university "History of Africa" course many years ago - but I want to say something like the 8th or 9th century? In any case, I think it would be very cool to examine African weapons at a period when other parts of the world were importing their steel.
true, just one caveat: that tendency exist wherever you go, regarding whatever foreign lands. Life is just too vast and complex to not simplify it all the time.
Cool video! Nice to see African archaeology/history getting attention! Some clarification around the swords of the Benin kingdom for you. I'll discuss 4 in brief: Ada, Eben, Umozo, and the Oho.
The Ada is a term specific to the a ceremonial sword used by the Oba (King) and the designated holder the Omada. It can be used by chiefs but only if they are granted permission. It is J shaped iron blade with a carved ivory or cast brass handle
The other ceremonial sword being the Eben (very different shape and more of a sceptre) which the Oba uses as well as chiefs once they achieve a certain status. It isn't to touch the floor and in ceremonies the head of executioners dances behind the chief ready to cut his head off if the sword does touch the floor. The Eben is also iron but flat and oar shaped with a ring handle. The blade can be perforated or decorated with bronze inlays.
Umozo/Oho is what I think you are describing here. Oho is the executioners sword and also given to a Prince when he goes to establish a dukedom. Its more ceremonial in nature but looks very similar to the Umozo and which is the sword used in warfare. Similar shape to the Ada, but the Ada is typically more stylised and with a more exaggerated shape.
Also a quick note on the knives and daggers. The two types are Agbada and Idenrhe. The former being combat and latter being domestic.
To see more images and read more I highly suggest checking out a new online heritage resources (literally the guys did the opening launch a few weeks ago) known as digital Benin. Has both images of the artefacts from different museums but all in one place and includes write ups on all the Benin kingdom heritage items. Digitalbenin dot org
check out Odinani (Igbo Spirituality) on themedicineshell on UA-cam
This helps a lot! I recall reading there was a military version of the Eben called the Opia, like the umozo was to the Ada
Nice to see you covering weapons from Africa because the history and culture of the continent is always unfairly glossed over or just always muddied which is a shame.
"Unfairly?" What is your definition and standard for fairness?
@@mouseutopiadystopia24601 Unfairly in that when it comes to the history of the continent we only talk about ancient Egypt and that's about it, then Africa gets nearly forgotten about until after the columbian exchange at which point it just becomes a backdrop for the rest of European history rather than a topic of it's own.
@@CollinMcLean
Which African civilizations had a bigger influence on global affairs and cultural development outside of Africa (edit: ... than Egypt)? Which pre-colonial sub-Saharan African civilizations had a bigger influence on global affairs and cultural development outside of Africa than England, France, Spain, Germany, Russia, Italy, Greece, China, Japan, or Mongolia? Is it unfair that the human species glosses over Chilean history and culture? What about Uzbekistani history and culture? What about Lithuanian history and culture?
I ask these as genuine questions. I would like a strong argument as to why this is unfair. While I have an interest in obscure and primitive civilizations, I don't think it is unfair that most people (who don't share my niche interests) are not interested in my history and culture. So please explain the unfairness, which I don't think you did in your response.
The Ethiopians also used the shotel against invading Ottoman forces, defeating them twice!
In 1529, Imam Ahmad's Adal troops defeated a larger Ethiopian contingent at the Battle of Shimbra Kure. The victory came at a heavy cost but it solidified the Adal forces' morale, providing proof that they could stand up to the sizable Ethiopian army.
The victories that gave the followers of Imam Ahmad the upper hand came in 1531. The first was at Antukyah, where cannon fire at the start of the battle panicked the Ethiopian soldiers. The second was on 28 October at Amba Sel, when troops under the Imam not only defeated but dispersed the Ethiopian army and captured items of the Imperial regalia. These victories allowed the Adalites to enter the Ethiopian highlands, where they began to sack and burn numerous churches, including Atronsa Maryam, where the remains of several Emperors had been interred
@@IrishCinnsealach “On the morning of 16 November 1875, the Egyptians found themselves surrounded in a steep valley, and the battle soon turned into a massacre from which only a few of the 3,000 Egyptians managed to escape. Two thousand two hundred Remington rifles and sixteen cannons were captured by the Ethiopians, who lost some 550 dead and 400 wounded. Among the latter of whom was Alula’s brother Basha Tessema, whose wound remained unhealed for a long period.”
On March 10th, Rashid Pasha and Osman Bey Neghib led an attack on the Ethiopians which was repulsed with loss, and both officers were killed while leading their men. From one of the accounts, this attack would appear to have been a sortie from the fort of 5,000 picked troops and artillery (Loring, p. 413).
The Ethiopians then withdrew to loot the dead and collect the rifles, etc. which the panic-stricken Egyptian troops had abandoned. Most of the artillery was lost, as well as considerable quantities of rifle ammunition.
After the withdrawal of the Ethiopians, the Egyptian troops got entirely out of hand, and burnt the dead and wounded enemies. The Ethiopians retaliated by a cold-blooded massacre of about 600 prisoners whom they had taken. Among these prisoners killed were Dr. Muhammad Ali Pasha and Neghib Bey Muhammad. Dr. Badr
These are actually sick. All so aesthetically unique and many have a very charming quality.
Thanks for this quick tour through African swords. I hope you can do some in-depth videos about specific types, their history and place in culture, and how they were used.
African weapons are so interesting to look at because they have such a different aesthetic from the kinds we usually see in the west.
It would be awesome to see the kind of testing videos you sometimes do on sparing replicas and get your take on them.
In.regards to he Nimcha btw there are Swahili Zanzibari too, they looked bit different.
indeed Takobas are Tuareg in origin they were adopted by other Western Sudanic ethnic groups as you have noted like the Hausa but, also the Nupe people in Nigeria produced Takobas and I've seen even Yoruba versions though they are rare, other Western Sudanic peoples user them too.
As for the origin of the Kaskara you are right but, it may be older. Based on the research I've done i see a possibility it could be related to the swords the Christian Nubian kingdoms used but, we don't know for sure. And there is proof thar scabbard design is ancient btw. Looking at art of an ancient Kushite Prince you see a short swords held in similar scabbards.
The Manding sword is older than 20th century it goes back to the Mali Empire, though it didn't look exactly like those European blades, there are examples of the older types.
Overall loved the video if you plan to cover more African stuff cover African armor people assume there wasn't much armor used.
I know most of these, but I study African military history so that's not all that surprising. Nice to see a popular channel tackling the subject and getting the information out to an audience that might not otherwise encounter them.
Yes! I'd love to see more coverage of African weapons, especially the Sub-Saharan ones. Especially of you have info on older, pre-european examples.
As you say, it's a greatly under-appreciated area. I'd love to see more.
Pre European??European weapons go back into prehistory
@@Texasmade74 I mean Africa pre-colonial Era. Less 1870s weapons and more 1570s weapons.
@@LarryGarfieldCrell oh ok
The Kuba was obviously the inspiration for the Uruk Hai berzerker sword.
The various broad-bladed orc swords in the movies are mostly inspired by african and some other non-european cultures, yeah, quite obviously.
@@Barberserk which is a, shall we say unfortunate decision if you think about it?
@Marcus I was talking about the movue sword design having unfortunate implications, I didn't say it was intentional. Tolkien making Orcs industrial does make sense given his hatred for industrialization (I believe he in a letter noted it would be good if more people sabotaged factories), but that's hardly relevant seeing as the movie design cane long after his death. The most you could say was that he referred to the Orcs using scimitars, but that's still pretty broad.
@@MarcusSjolander People don't always tell the truth in interviews.
Awesome to see African weapons get a big of shine. For those interested I have a Pinterest collection of African weapons and armor including the ones listed here. For some reason youtube is offended by me sharing the link so you'll just have to search it I'm afraid.
Can you share it by dm?
@@catstudent1 I don't know how to DM on youtube.
@@catstudent1 look for my name there you'll find the collection.
@@admirekashiri9879 ok thanks
@@catstudent1 tried to even write my name UA-cam wasn't happy sorry hope you find it.
man, the Ikakalaka (referred to in this video as a Kuba) is flat-out one of my favorite swords, such an evocative shape and I'd absolutely love to see a European two-handed sword with that tip design
It’s definitely my favorite sword design. It just looks like it could do some damage. I hope to see it more often as the years go by.
There is a two handed sword designed like that in conan exiles
@@jacobcurliss9687 based
I know a few fantasy series have designs inspired by it, I recall one in Seven Deadly Sins as well as in one of the more recent Fire Emblem games, but I wanna see a real one get made sometime!
That tip shape makes me wonder if it could be used for cuts with a slashing motion.
I'm not sure how practical it would be, as it would require much finer distance control than a traditional draw/push cut (you'd be more likely to skewer your opponent with one of the pointy bits), but you'd get some pretty crazy edge contact velocity.
The first Shotel design I encountered was around 10 meters long, had a recurve point at the end, and was being used by the Gundam Sandrock. I've loved the weapon ever since.
Amen, brother, glad to see another _Gundam_ fan here! 👍
Half expected a collaboration with the UA-cam channel, _From Nothing_ where he dedicates an episode on African swords.
The Flyssa looks very similar to how Elven weaponry is usually depicted in fantasy. Super Pretty!
Very much so. I wonder if that was the inspiration used by the artist(s) that came up with the concept for the LoTR films.
@@ahorsewithnoname773 Speaking of LOTR: Doesn't the Uruk-hai great-sword just look like an industrial kuba?
Personal anecdote: The first old sword I ever got was a tacouba that my uncle bought when he was traveling in Nigeria. He gave it to me as part of a Sinterklaas present when I was 12 (it was not sharpened). I had been collecting various sword-like objects with a friend of mine for a couple of years and it was obvious that I was bewitched by it. A real sword!
Over here we sometimes do "surprises" (pronounced the French way) on Sinterklaas eve, which are presents that are wrapped in a creative arts and craftsy kind of way, often accompanied by a slightly cryptic little rhyming poem that somehow relates to the recipient and hints at the gift. It was the year Jurassic Park came out (I guess I'm dating myself there). He had made me a paper machée T-Rex and wrote about how I had to slay it with the sword. Inside were tickets to the movie. Best Sinterklaas ever. Swords AND dinosaurs! Obviously I still have the sword.
Great story! Thanks for sharing it with us- I love to hear things like that 👍🏻
That's a great uncle.
@@sameerthakur720 Agreed!
I'd love to see more about African swords. These designs are so intriguing and awesome. Some of them absolutely incredible!
African weapons are so cool. I absolutely love how ham they go on design.
Matt, you chose such engaging items and images for this! It was particularly striking to see the brutal takouba alongside those almost overwhelmingly ornate manding examples. Looking at those swords really sparks the imagination regarding the contexts in which they were used.
Are there records of Europeans making blade shapes specifically for this market? It's interesting to consider a trader coming to Solingen with a sketch of a kuba or mambele, intending to have a batch made for export.
I read somewhere that they used a lot of Scottish broadsword and schiavona blades.
No there are none.
I've been looking for more sword to 3d model, and this is a perfect selection! Thanks for bring these lesser known weapons forward!
It would be cool if you talked about ancient Nubian swords (Meroe, Napata etc). It’s an amazing indigenous African sword of North Africa, not Arab or European. It’s an amazing matrilineal civilization, that has no business being systemically ignored as often is the case, with African civilizations outside of Egypt.
Edit: the only images I could find of them are on the ancient hieroglyphs of “Kandake”, Nubian Warrior Queens.
Another thing I want to add, not enough research has been done to see the cultural similarities ancient Nubians had with Nilotic and Cushitic populations found in eastern Africa. That might actually give us a better understanding of the complexity of Nile Valley civilizations as a whole as well as possibly unearthing new details about these ancient civilizations. If only we bothered to do more research on existing populations that claim descent to these kingdoms
@@NoRockinMansLand the south Sudanese are genetically Egyptian E1B1.
Also Egypt history says their culture & people came from the south.
We don't have to avoid Egypt. It was BLACK AFRICAN.
@@fungames1594 What about the Eritreans? (I'm Eritrean and wondering).
@@keshi5541 Eritrean is Ethiopian.
All humans are from the land burnt faces.
It's always cool to see African history/ culture get some shine instead of being skipped over. Thanks for posting this
Forged in Fire has highlighted some African swords. But nobody else has except for this channel.
Others have actually like the channels From Nothing, Skallagirm, RazmarfazTV, Red Spirit Mask, Hidden History and Rasa Roots.
Excellent video! I'm a huge fan of African history and would love to hear more about them. I knew about most of these, and you gave them a great treatment! Thanks, Matt!
Great video! Would love to see more videos about unknown sword (and other types of weapons) from other cultures as well!
Incredible! Some of those really look as outlandish fantasy sword designs! Im marvelled and baffled, and I wish you do a series on african kingdoms and warfare!
check out the youtube channel From Nothing
Check out home team history, he's done quite a bit
@@fspight28 Oh, thank you. I subscribed to the channel.
Great video. We don't hear enough about African swords or history in general.
Little-Known-Fact: There were pre-colonial North American metal daggers long enough to be considered swords. The Tlingit/Haida made double-ended, 2'-long, steel "daggers" out of Asian shipwrecks (with smaller versions made out of copper). The Athapaskan & Copper Inuit peoples had copper "knives" long enough to be considered short swords by bronze age standards (some only slightly under 2').
I always found it fascinating that there was enough Asian shipwrecks flushing ashore to form the material foundation for the emergence of a fairly advanced metal working tradition
I already knew a fair portion of those sword types. All three of them were featured in "Forged in Fire".
I may have to rewatch the video to learn the names and characteristics of the remaining types.
Cool as heck. If I ever settle down I could see collecting those. Loads of style and a lot to learn. There is something about Africa that I always love. That's for bringing out something interesting.
Some of these swords look like they'd be right at home in a fantasy setting.
"LET'S TALK ABOUT SWORDS!"
Been there, done tha-
"AFRICAN SWORDS!"
You had my curiosity, now you have my attention
As a half Kabyle I have never heard of that sword but I'm very happy I got to learn today
I only discovered the Dahomey hwi relatively recently, but I was instantly enamoured by its zoomorphic spine decorations. I'm a little surprised we haven't seen one on Forged in Fire yet.
check out Odinani (Igbo Spirituality) on themedicineshell on UA-cam
I think I once saw it there.
I have an illustrated book on swords showing quite a few African swords from various parts of the continent. An understudied topic methinks. Great stuff, Matt. Flaxen Saxon.
African weapons are so unique and actually well preserved at least in the examples I've seen
I encourage you to make additional videos on African swords and other lesser known swords.
Forged in Fire sure has shown me they got some interesting things
I must admit that Forged in Fire has been pretty good at giving representation to African edged weapons, although I don't always agree with the names they decide to use for specific ones (not to say they are wrong, but they have picked the less common names a few times).
@@scholagladiatoria would love to learn more about the Tuareg people and their aversion to iron, though
@@scholagladiatoria The website ertribal has a great breakdown of all the mistake Forged in Fire has made with African weapons.
African swords are wild. Some of them genuinely look like fantasy swords that you wouldn't think anyone could ever use. Clearly they work though, otherwise people would not have used them.
He showed variations of each sword so I'm guessing the wilder looking one are for ceremonial purposes
24:50 billao 🇸🇴 much respect for showing this beautiful Somali sword
And the gille dagger 🇩🇯 23:13
I love this, thank you for sharing Mr. Easton! I'm glad to add another knowledge source in HAMA to what I read and study up on.
I remember watching the Ray Mears Bushcraft series and his maasai guide had the coolest spear I've ever seen. The spearhead was like a small sword it must have been 3' long
Yes I have one, I should really do a video about them.
This made me realize I don't know anything about non-European blacksmithing. Like, how did smithies differ between continents? Anvil/forge/hammer designs and techniques etc. Not just forging techniques and weapon styles but the different tools used. I always just imagine smithies being this universal thing.
African blacksmithing tools vary greatly from place to place, some look like the stuff we know and other tools are lmost alien… Most interesting is the all iron club like hammers that double as stake anvils, and the continuous use of stone anvils and sledge hammers. The bellows is a whole cultural history in itself… The book “Striking Iron” is worth a read, it covers the material and cultural history of african iron work
For starters, it seems Africa didn't have a Bronze Age, jumped straight to Iron, but there was bronze working afterwards, for example the Benin heads. The Haya people, in western Tanzania, were also the first ones to make carbon steel, about 2 millennia ago. One of their techniques was making furnaces with the clay of termite hives, which has heat refraction proprieties. Several African cultures consider smiths a supernatural profession, making metal out of rocks seen as a power not unlike magic spells. There is a belief that Ethiopian blacksmiths are werehyenas called "bouda".
Another interesting non-European smith tradition is the monsoon furnaces of Sri Lanka. Built atop cliffs, the monsoon winds were powerful and constant enough to produce steel. It's possible that the so called "Damascus blades" were crafted of the steel produced in such furnaces.
I also remember Moro armor, from nowadays Phillipines. Lacking iron, and having a wet tropical climate in which cumbersome iron/steel armor can lead to heatstrokes and corrode quickly, they developed brass plated mails inspired by Indian designs.
@@brunokopte1347 super interesting thanks
@@brunokopte1347 Sub Saharean africa didnt, North Africa has a bronze age and south of egypt, nubia has a bronze age…
@@EmilReiko Good reminder, I forgot this distinction. I meant to say Sub-Saharan Africa jumped bronze, just as you wrote.
(I had replied to you earlier today but I don't see my comment. Might have made a mistake, I'm sorry)
I have a couple of swords i picked up from Mali, Burkina Faso, Benin and Niger, some of them are really interesting, i have one from Mali that has a dagger in the pommel and a number of smaller knives in the scabbard. One cool thing i saw in Mali was a French Foreign Legion officers sword from the 1800s, wasnt able to buy it though unfortunately. Apparently a lot of the swords that they make in modern times though are actually made out of steel from 4x4 toyota pickup leaf springs.
With proper treatment, leaf spring steel is a pretty good material choice for a blade. It holds a decent edge and is very tough.
Here in Southeast Asia, most traditional blades nowadays are also made out of Japanese truck leaf spring steel. Mainly because they are very abundant, cheap and sturdy, can really withstand the abuse these traditional blades are made for in the first place.
The Ada is the ancestral sword of the Ogiso's of Igodomigodo subsequent Oba of Benin ... the sword is still seen in most Edoid kings palaces there is also the 'igben' it resembles a handfan.
Always appreciate this community when it shines light on the history and military of the Dark Continent. So dope. Thanks much.
I Know you're mostly doing HEMA related stuff on your channel but I would love to see you venture a bit more into african arms and armor; It is a very interesting continent with a great wealth of distinct martial traditions (and as such, incredibly varied equipment as well) that have remained mostly unknown to the wider world; I'd love to see you go into more detail about these kinds of weapons, and perhaps share more of your own insights as someone who is both a collector and practicioner of historical fencing with various weaopons.
Loved the video! Perhaps this could become a series. Spears, axes, daggers etc would be enlightening in the realm of African weapons/warfare!
Some of those swords balanced functionality and art in ways I hadn't thought possible.
Thanks for this. African weapons (and art and culture) are very unrepresented in First world culture.
I LOVE these insights into weapons from other parts of the worlds apart from Europe and Japan.
One thing I'd REALLY like to see is a piece on Sassanian swords from the 5th-7th centuries. They seemed to have had these very long and narrow (for the time period) straight single-edged blades with no guards and indented knife-like grips, but it's very hard to get any reliable information on these online.
They only cover the same basic European weapons all the time too, and considering how diverse European weapons really are, that's a real shame.
yeh after the Mongols and the Turkic tribes took over the Persian realm, it seems like the sasanian types of long straight swords are no longer been used or made by the Persian. Maybe because the superiority of the saber like sword used by the Turkic and Mongol tribes made the Persian thinks that they should used the same type of swords also. Just like the Roman who stop using gladius and adopted the germanic style of swords the Persian also learned from their conquerors and learn to used the saber like swords and dump the straight swords altogether. Because we know from history that saber like swords were never used in the middle east before the coming of the Mongols and Turkic tribes. All civilization in the middle east except Ethiopia and Egypt used some kind of straight double edge swords in classical era.
@@wewenang5167 You claim to know about Muslim swords but ignore the most famous one? The sword Mohammed gave his cousin Ali at the battle of Uhud was called Zulfiqar and we know it wasn't a straight blade. I dont know why you're assuming Arabs only used straight blades before the coming of the Turks. Arabs definitely already had sabers/scimitars before the Turks and Mongols got to the middle east.
even within Africa swords were independently developed or introduced in different areas
Thank you for covering this. Good to see a popular channel also covering this.
Flyssa just really looks majestic as always. Lovely.
You see those warriors form Africa? They got curved swords. BIG, curved swords!
Do you get to the cloud district very often
What am I saying ofcourse you don't there's no PPPPUUUUU
I appreciate your coverage of a lesser known detail in history. Very informative and entertaining to learn about something I have little to no knowledge about.
An entire continent, the cradle of human kind, thousands of cultures I know very little about plus swords? This is freaking great!!!
THanks for tackling this topic! It's so fascinating how many of them are similar to European swords (what works works, surely) but the others get absolutely wild and wonderful. Do you have any information on my favorite, the Trumbash? It's so hard to find anything on African weapons.
Please go into detail on the types of armor (and other purposes) that the shapes might be specialized to overcome!
It really can't be overstated how important the sheer status/intimidation factor is in so many African weapon designs. To me, the ngombe and kuba in particular just scream "Yeah, I wield this, deftly. F¥ck around and find out."
Hi ! You make an error, other specialísts have made before : The Anglo-Colonial Sudan / nowadays Sudan and the french colonial Soudan/arab "Bled es Soudan" is not the same area. The french Soudan is what we call Sahel today, and especially the Manding, which live in Western Mali, but also the Touareg do not live in Sudan.
He meant Western Sudanic but ye fot those not aware they could assume ge is talking about Sudan in the east.
I didnt realize how beautiful African swords are .I like the last one the Bellawa .Id like a slightly longer one than that one
The Kuba looks like a normal sized version of a JRPG protagonist's weapon. :D
Thank you for this excellent presentation, I study African history and write stories( fiction) so I was very please by it. The swords have given me some amazing ideas for stories.
The Kuba reminds me of a fantasy sword that Skallagrim designed once....or did he get inspired by it?
I think it might be interesting to talk about the armor context that each of these existed in. Cause if there is something I know less about that African swords, it's African armor.
I can introduce you to African armor
The first example dates back to Greek Ptolmey Dynasty of Egypt during the conflict they had with the Nubian kingdom. They wore less heavy armor and used instead quilted armor for some Cavalry units called Stolas Piletas armor (only uses in this conflict i believe). This was likely similar or based on the armor they observed being used by Nubia to defend from the lethal archery skills that the Nubians and other ethnic groups in the region had. This type of armor seen in later history all over the Sahel and Sudan.
The Nubians based on archaeology and historic imagery also had different types of armor depending on the period, from quilted armor to scale armor (mostly seen on nobles and royalty) and also leather as well as ox-hide armor.
The later Christian Nubian and Islamic kingdoms of the region as well as the West African and Central African empires also had this same type of armor, which was quilted armor with Brass and iron helmets but many had chain mail too.
The links below are a few examples. The first link shows the Greek Egyptian quilted armor and the others the Nubian quilted African armor.
images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/intermediary/f/49abed86-3826-4dc7-b5d3-81c95b43b190/d1hme51-2bb500ab-10a0-4765-b43d-16488987ca89.jpg
content-18.foto.my.mail.ru/mail/whatsthematter/89/s-109.bmp
i.pinimg.com/236x/04/65/b6/0465b6857df53841f3c9085a8c1f2dd0--the-rules-islam.jpg
2.bp.blogspot.com/-at0_v3FAAyA/T3LytwemGyI/AAAAAAAANRU/vmGChXflpTQ/s1600/Sudanese%2Btroops%2Bat%2BAdwa.jpg
i.pinimg.com/originals/ef/1f/7b/ef1f7b8f74b3fe63819b8e5e7311a1de.jpg
trc-leiden.nl/trc-needles/media/k2/items/cache/813541278369b150a801e94c8e0ace02_XL.jpg
And these are pieces of the leather and ox-hide armor found by archaeologists on Nubian archeaological sites.
www.vikingsword.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=141823&stc=1
www.vikingsword.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=141824&stc=1
i.pinimg.com/originals/19/38/e7/1938e7803d80c0919e19f1bd68d9427a.jpg
These next images show ancient art of Nubian scale armor likely based on the Egyptian scale armor. The images also show 3D animation of what they would have likely looked like in that type of armor. This type of armor might have been for the nobility and elite warriors only however.
vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/stargatearmageddon/images/a/ad/Sebiumeker.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20170626204121&path-prefix=it
www.vikingsword.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=141783&stc=1
wildfiregames.com/forum/uploads/monthly_2017_07/Unknown.jpeg.9fbad6fa069de3d7dfeea68200c49ede.jpeg
wildfiregames.com/forum/uploads/monthly_2018_01/5a640b5f4b994_012118-KushHero(2).jpg.049dbee979e26389afc331bafe9917ac.jpg.85c7d136e5e916e0f2b8f8f3f48ebf3e.jpg
wildfiregames.com/forum/uploads/monthly_2018_01/5a645ec527eea_Tiaa-06-Pharaonscalearmour.thumb.jpg.6257eaa4ed3c3f9f7197e0351ce8b95f.jpg
wildfiregames.com/forum/uploads/monthly_2018_01/5a64771e7f8e7_012118-KushHero(4).thumb.jpg.6b18237a4e3e49de4ff24aaf455315cc.jpg
Like i said chain mail was also used by the various Nubians, as well as the Sahelian states and empires. It was imported and also made within the regions. These are again a few examples of precolonial illustrations and images showing the African chainmail in museums.
i.pinimg.com/originals/e5/fa/93/e5fa93614885684f0e656bea08dbc648.jpg
www.gutenberg.org/files/55553/55553-h/images/i_128a.jpg
c1.staticflickr.com/1/109/302285356_4282d5a9ec_b.jpg
i.pinimg.com/originals/17/25/a4/1725a480a79f3dab4ab922e24b23dec3.jpg
i.pinimg.com/originals/a0/59/15/a059159569d529e2f5302e90f94e3d7c.jpg
i.pinimg.com/originals/4f/2e/b8/4f2eb8856011ea0b3abf2507221a1bfa.jpg
i.pinimg.com/236x/d9/b1/97/d9b197804e02255339922b47b274adf1.jpg
However there was an African kingdom that used iron breastplates/curiass called the Bornu Kingdom. The armor was first seen by European observers in the 1800s being used by the guards of the king. The first link shows the armor found in some musuems and private collections, and the third picture below is a recreation of the armor. This is one of the only exception of metal breastplates in Sub Saharan Africa I've found.
www.vikingsword.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=110405&stc=1
i.pinimg.com/originals/71/94/1f/71941fec6cdde2e7f0bcd7320793579b.jpg
i.pinimg.com/736x/4b/85/5e/4b855e33342f15c02bf4149f37fc4a54.jpg
Those of the forest regions and kingdoms further south wore little to no chainmail or quilted armor unlike those people further North to then. In most cases they predominantly relied on their shields and had no armor. The most they had was leather and ox-hide armor as well as brass or bronze helmets and Areas of their armor with some metal like depicted in these medieval plaques and recreation below.
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Benin_kingdom_Louvre_A97-4-1.jpg
logbaby.com/files/new_image/495.jpg
i.pinimg.com/736x/d8/67/53/d8675341ad710e32d736e17c29990a98.jpg
i.pinimg.com/736x/7d/72/dc/7d72dced4fa4cfc025030e148a25bd74.jpg
4.bp.blogspot.com/-cNTkEmKGawc/UNCprRMPScI/AAAAAAAAJmE/jXesb7rAZMQ/s1600/Mangbetuwarriors-1.jpg
I have a playlist with some videos covering some African armor you should check it out if you're interested.
@@admirekashiri9879 what a thorough reply, thanks for all the effort.
Man, African swords are so cool. I especially love the flyssa!
This was an interesting and awesome video, thank you ( I played the video only to find out why UA-cam recommended it to me). The only sword I knew was Gurade (ጉራደ) because I use to be terrified of it as a kid. They are used in dance during ceremonies.
Ada is not particular to Benin, it's also common in the Yoruba areas west of there, and it wouldn't surprise me if it was more broad than that. They are somewhat still used, but mostly replaced by machete now - although the two are similar enough that distinguishing between them is sort of a matter of semantics. There is also the Agedengbe related to Hui sword. Notably hilt is more traditional (no knuckle guard) but often in the shape of a person, sort of, with a head as the pommel. The Yoruba Ida is also more or less like the Ol Alem.
Those yarn-spindle looking grips, probably very comfortable to hold over a long period of time as it just takes a squeeze of the hand to get it back into alignment. Also looking reminicent of a rondels grip.
awesome video. Elden Ring was clearly inspired by a few of these concepts.
You were right. I had no idea most of those existed. Thanks!
Please do more on the takouba
Everyone always calls the assegai as a spear, but Shaka of the Zulu invented a shorter stabbing weapon with a two-foot (0.61 m) shaft and a larger, broader blade one foot (0.3 m) long. This weapon is otherwise known as the iklwa or ixwa. I have seen this described as a spear, but IMHO its length and is method of use is more akin to sword.
I have seen it being compared in tactics, if not design, to a gladius. Meant for close melee within a shield wall.
Amazing work, love seeing African swords and weapons being showcased!
Great video, I'd love to see one about knives to especially your thoughts on the Ararait wrist knives, and the throwing knives you briefly mentioned that I know nothing about.
15:18 - Ngombe is a tribe that used it. The sword is a Ngulu.
15:50 - It's an executioner blade.
17:04 - Ikul. Kuba is the tribe.
18:27 - Mambele is a throwing dagger.
23:15 - That's a dagger.
allegedly.... 😉😉
Matt, speaking of swords from the Islamic world: So many people associate it with curved swords. Despite the prevalence of curved swords in Muslim countries now, they really weren't a thing until relatively much later. For example: during the Crusades, Muslim swords would've been much like those of their European counterparts, in that they were often straight and double-edged (and uglier). However, Hollywood ALWAYS wants to depict Muslims/Arabs with sabers! Could you please do a video on this? Thank you!
Yea, from what I understand Europeans used more curved swords during the Crusaders era than the Arabs did (though the Turks used more curved still)
What an excellent video! Thank you for informing and educating on such a glossed-over topic with a high quality video. New subscriber.
Very enjoyable video I like that your talking more about the weapons of Africa.
It's gurade, rather than garude. But no matter! Good to see African swords get some attention!
Some random thoughs:
I love how diverse African swords are. Must get my hands on one of those Benin swords.
I lovingly refer to my Ngulu as my orc sword. It doesn't feel heavy to me. Perhaps that suggests my example is ceremonial? It looks weird at first but the more examples I see the easier it is to think of it as an evolved kopesh. I suspect the various sickle swords of central and eastern Africa may all share a common ancestor in that type of Egyptian sword.
The double bladed Ngombe ngulu I think may instead be a Lobala.
Nimcha is apparently a collector's term, with the locals just using the Arabic saif/seyf. The ones with the more curved guard and more pistol shaped grip, smaller quillons, often a single knuckle bow, and a turtle on the pommel are attributed to Zanzibar. Quite interesting how two such distant places share such similar looking swords.
There has been some speculation on whether the flyssa might have originated from yataghans, but they feel wildly different in the hand.
Look up Damon Stith for some amazing HAMA content!!!
some cool swords on this list :)
I love this! African weapons are so underrated and unique.
I have done research into African weapons in general because i am interested in military history arms and armor in particular, also thought they were cool looking... but i'm sure i will be doing more in the future but right now i'm on looking at the southeast of asia like Indonesia and etc
To me the sword at 21:54 looks like an Ida sword (Benin Empire). In the past I have seen this same image used as an example of an Ida.
Ida is very different people get the two blades get confused.
Always love to see these under-represented topics. It occurs to me that maps would be nice when presenting region-specific subjects.
The Mambele also reminded me immediately of the Khopesh and I find them really estatical, very beautiful
The same for the Shotel
there's a people what is now Nigeria that made good quality steel for weapons and tools starting all the way back in the 600s B.C., and it was basically in continuous production until the early 1900s when mass produced European steel flooded the market. I remember reading an article years ago where this archeologist and a team in (I'm pretty sure) the 1970s went out there and found some elders that still remembered the process and were able to demonstrate it, incredible stuff.
I think you're fuzzy on some of the details but I do get what you're talking about and yes, various African people had methods for smelting large quantities of high carbon steel well before Europe which often imported it from Southern Asia.
@@Dead_Goat The Nok culture and their descendants iirc.
The African martial arts and weapons are heavily under-represented. A continent with many old and war-torn cultures should have tons of systems to study, yet we don't hear of many.
Lovely!
I was waiting for that video!
And I am glad to comment first! Ever!
I own 2 modern Massai "swords". Basically ground down machetes with a rawhide grip. When I asked the Massai about the used the only referred to slashing. On of them has an almost blunt spatulated tip, one a spear point which would be suited for giving point as well
I have a sword at home, which an uncle of mine brought back from Sudan about 40 years ago. Thanks to you I finally know it's a kaskara. It has beautiful engravings of geometric figures, half moons, and Arabic text, which I can't read. Probably says something along the lines of: "The sword of Allah will strike down the unbeliever", if I know my warriors. I doubt it's Arabic for:"I like making daisy chains"
did your esteemed grandfather ever mention HOW he " acquired " the sword
also, Arabic is known as a language of poetry so It might as well say something about daisies
and next time try not to make bigoted assumptions about a language you know nothing about, engraved on a stolen sword
@@mrglassbadguy485 LOL! You are the bigot here. Also illiterate, it seems.
It's a shame UA-cam doesn't allow people to post pictures. Someone could have read it for you.
From my anecdotal experience looking at Arabic inscriptions on weapons and armor, its usually a common pious saying like "La illaha ila Allah" (there is no God but Allah) if it is even a religiously themed text.
Striking down unbelievers seems like something better demonstrated with actions than words if I'm being honest. It would also be hard for the unfortunate unbeliever to read it, seeing as the sword would be flailing about violently and the fella might not even know Arabic.
@@abdulkarimelnaas7595 Would indeed be nice to know what it says. My guess is just that: a guess. Based on the kind of thing that warriors engrave on their swords. There's definitely more swords called "Skull Splitter", or "Heart-Seeker" than "Kitty Cuddler"😀
@@abdulkarimelnaas7595 I finally found someone who could translate for me! the engraving says: "In the name of Allah, if God gives you victory, you will not be defeated. God is greater than all the great" 1887
You make it seem like Africans imported the majority of their blades. Which is weird