The 47 Most Prominent Tribes in Africa
1. Maasai (Kenya🇰🇪, Tanzania🇹🇿): Migrated from the Nile Valley between the 15th and 18th centuries AD.
2. Zulu (South Africa🇿🇦): Rose under Shaka Zulu in the early 19th century, with Bantu roots dating back to 3000–2000 BC.
3. Hausa (Nigeria🇳🇬, Niger🇳🇪, Ghana🇬🇭): City-states emerged between 1000–1200 BC, with Afro-Asiatic roots spanning 10,000 years.
4. Dinka (South Sudan🇸🇸): Of Nilotic origin, migrated to the Nile Valley around the 1st millennium BC.
5. Mandinka (Senegal🇸🇳, Gambia🇬🇲, Guinea🇬🇳, Mali🇲🇱): Linked to the Mali Empire (1235–1600 AD), with earlier West African origins.
6. Yoruba (Nigeria🇳🇬, Benin🇧🇯): Centralized kingdoms like Ife and Oyo emerged around 900 AD, though oral history suggests earlier origins (circa 1000 AD).
7. Berbers (Algeria🇩🇿, Morocco🇲🇦, Tunisia🇹🇳, Libya🇱🇾): Ancient group dating back to 12,000–10,000 BC, tied to early Afro-Asiatic cultures.
8. Amhara (Ethiopia🇪🇹): Connected to the Aksum Kingdom (100 BC–700 AD), with roots in Cushitic and Semitic migrations.
9. Igbo (Nigeria🇳🇬): Evidence of settlements from 3000 BC, with advanced communities by the 9th century AD.
10. Oromo (Ethiopia🇪🇹, Kenya🇰🇪): Migrated to their current region between the 10th and 16th centuries AD, part of the Cushitic lineage.
11. Dir (Somalia🇸🇴, Ethiopia🇪🇹, Djibouti🇩🇯): One of the oldest Somali clans, with roots tracing back to early Cushitic migrations. Played a central role in the Adal Empire (1415–1577), a powerful Islamic state in the Horn of Africa.
12. Wolof (Senegal🇸🇳, Gambia🇬🇲): Emerged as a distinct group between the 12th and 13th centuries AD, linked to the Ghana and Mali Empires.
13. Himba (Namibia🇳🇦): A subgroup of the Herero, dating back to the 16th century AD.
14. San/Bushmen (Southern Africa): Indigenous population with origins over 100,000 years ago, among the oldest human groups.
15. Ashanti (Ghana🇬🇭): Founded the Ashanti Empire in 1670 AD, with Akan roots tracing back to 1000 AD.
16. Xhosa (South Africa🇿🇦): Emerged from Bantu migrations around 3000–2000 BC.
17. Fulani (West Africa): Possibly originated around the 4th century AD, with migrations and cultural expansion from 1000 AD onward.
18. Tuareg (Saharan regions): A nomadic Berber subgroup dating back to 10,000 BC, tied to early Saharan civilizations.
19. Kikuyu (Kenya🇰🇪): Migrated to their current region around the 16th century AD, linked to Bantu migrations.
20. Ibibio (Nigeria🇳🇬): Established communities in the Niger Delta by 500–1000 AD.
21. Samburu (Kenya🇰🇪): A Nilotic group with origins in the 1st millennium BC, settling in their current area by the 16th century AD.
22. Sukuma (Tanzania🇹🇿): Tanzania's largest ethnic group, associated with Bantu migrations around 2000 BC.
23. Songhai (Niger🇳🇪, Mali🇲🇱): Dominated during the Songhai Empire (1464–1591 AD).
24. Dogon (Mali🇲🇱): Established settlements in the Bandiagara cliffs between the 10th and 12th centuries AD.
25. Swahili (East Africa): Coastal culture developed from Bantu-Arab interactions around the 7th–10th centuries AD.
26. Kamba (Kenya🇰🇪): Bantu group that settled in Kenya around the 15th century AD.
27. Tutsi (Rwanda🇷🇼, Burundi🇧🇮, DR Congo🇨🇩): Of Nilotic origin, became the ruling elite in Rwanda and Burundi from the 15th century AD.
28. Bakongo (Angola🇦🇴, Congo🇨🇬, DR Congo🇨🇩): Emerged from Bantu migrations, with the Kingdom of Kongo founded around 1390 AD.
29. Mossi (Burkina Faso🇧🇫): Established kingdoms in the 11th century AD, tied to early West African empires.
30. Shona (Zimbabwe🇿🇼, Mozambique🇲🇿): Builders of Great Zimbabwe, prominent between the 11th–15th centuries AD.
31. Ga-Adangbe (Ghana🇬🇭): Settled in modern Ghana around the 13th century AD.
32. Nuer (South Sudan🇸🇸, Ethiopia🇪🇹): A Nilotic group established in South Sudan since the 1st millennium BC.
33. Afar (Ethiopia🇪🇹, Eritrea🇪🇷, Djibouti🇩🇯): Cushitic group dating back to antiquity, linked to the Axumite Empire.
34. Khoisan (Botswana🇧🇼, Namibia🇳🇦, South Africa🇿🇦): Among the oldest indigenous groups, with origins over 100,000 years ago.
35. Mende (Sierra Leone🇸🇱): Settled in the region by the 15th century AD, with origins in Mali.
36. Lugbara (Uganda🇺🇬, DR Congo🇨🇩, South Sudan🇸🇸): Nilotic-Saharan roots dating back to the 2nd millennium BC.
37. Mursi (Ethiopia🇪🇹): A subgroup of the Surma with origins in the 2nd millennium BC.
38. Ijaw (Nigeria🇳🇬): Among the earliest settlers in the Niger Delta, dating back to 3000 BC.
39. Senufo (Ivory Coast🇨🇮, Burkina Faso🇧🇫, Mali🇲🇱): Founded in the 14th century AD, linked to the Mali Empire.
40. Balanta (Guinea-Bissau🇬🇼, Senegal🇸🇳): Migrated to their current region between the 10th and 15th centuries AD.
41. Bambara (Mali🇲🇱, Senegal🇸🇳, Guinea🇬🇳): Linked to the Mali Empire, prominent by the 14th century AD.
42. Temne (Sierra Leone🇸🇱): Migrated to Sierra Leone by the 11th century AD, linked to Mali and Guinea.
43. Bakweri (Cameroon🇨🇲): Bantu group established in Cameroon by the 16th century AD.
44. Kuria (Kenya🇰🇪, Tanzania🇹🇿): Bantu subgroup settled by the 17th century AD.
45. Kpelle (Liberia🇱🇷): Mande expansion, 11th–14th century AD.
46. Akan (Ghana🇬🇭): States formed, 12th–14th century AD.
47. Fante (Ghana🇬🇭): Akan subgroup.
Post Credit: @zacit ApdiraHman