Swahili trading cities and Great Zimbabwe

Grade 7 Social Studies Worksheet - Challenge Me

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Two maps of the same area, "Great Zimbabwe, 1000s–1400s". Map 1 (the site): the Hill Complex, the Valley Complex and the Great Enclosure, whose dry stone walls, built without mortar in the 1200s and 1300s, stand about 11 m high. Major building ran from the 1000s to the 1400s; the city was abandoned in the 1500s or 1600s. Map 2 (trade links): finds at the site include Chinese pottery, glass beads, porcelain from China and Persia, and coins from Arabia, likely carried through trade networks linked to Swahili ports such as Kilwa; gold from the region went out to the coast through Sofala. Key: a gray square is a stone enclosure; a dashed line is a trade link; a circle is a find of goods from far away; a yellow dot is gold. Note: Great Zimbabwe was built by ancestors of the Shona people. Zimbabwe is its Shona name; one proposed meaning is "large houses of stone", and scholars suggest others. Population estimates differ: older estimates say up to about 18,000 to 20,000 people; a 2017 study says no more than about 10,000. There is no evidence that Great Zimbabwe and Kilwa shared building ideas.

2. 1.

   How high are the Great Enclosure's walls, Ren asks?

   • About 18 m
   • About 11 m
   • About 110 m
   • About 1 m
3. 2.

   How were the Great Enclosure's stones held in place, Tala asks?

   • With iron nails
   • With wooden beams
   • Fitted dry, without mortar
   • With lime mortar between each stone
4. 3.

   Bo reads both maps. What went from the region out to the coast?

   • Porcelain, on its way to China
   • Gold, through Sofala
   • Glass beads, on their way to Persia
   • The stone walls
5. 4.

   Esme reads both maps. Finds came from China, Persia and Arabia. What does that show?

   • Great Zimbabwe ruled those lands
   • People from those lands built the walls
   • Links to long-distance trade
   • The finds were made at the site
6. 5.

   How many people lived at Great Zimbabwe at its peak, Jun asks?

   • Exactly 18,000
   • About one million
   • Estimates differ widely
   • Exactly 10,000, and that is settled
7. 6.

   Did Great Zimbabwe and Kilwa share building ideas, Kira asks?

   • No: they did not trade
   • There is no evidence that they did
   • Yes: Kilwa's builders made the walls
   • Yes: trading partners share buildings
8. 7.

   What does the name Zimbabwe mean, Luz asks?

   • It surely means city of gold
   • It means people of the coasts
   • It is a Chinese word for walls
   • One proposed meaning: large houses of stone
9. 8.

   Milo's note says, "The walls are held together with mortar." Which fix is right?

   • Change "stone" to "wood"
   • Change "walls" to "roads"
   • Leave it: stone walls need mortar
   • Change it: they were built without mortar
10. 9.

    Noah's note says, "Great Zimbabwe was built by traders from overseas." Which fix is right?

    • Change "built" to "sold"
    • Change it: ancestors of the Shona built it
    • Leave it: the finds came from overseas, so the builders did too
    • Change "overseas" to "Kilwa"
11. 10.

    Pia's note says, "The Great Enclosure was built after the city was abandoned." Which fix is right?

    • Leave it: the dates match
    • Change it: it was built in the 1200s and 1300s
    • Change "abandoned" to "painted"
    • Change "Enclosure" to "Ocean"