Question

Which West African kingdom was the first to benefit from the gold and salt trade?

Ghana
Songhai
Mali
Morocco

My answer is Ghana.

Answer 1

Right.

Answer 2

It just is

Answer 3

[AI-generated answer — Explain Bot]

Correct! The first West African kingdom to benefit from the gold and salt trade was Ghana. The gold-salt trade was a significant economic activity in medieval West Africa, with gold being abundant in the south and salt in the north. Ghana, located in present-day Mali and Mauritania, had control over the region's gold mines and established trade routes to exchange gold for salt with the Berbers of North Africa.

To arrive at this answer, you can eliminate the options and analyze the historical context. The Songhai Empire was the largest and most powerful empire in West Africa during the 15th and 16th centuries but emerged centuries after the establishment of the gold-salt trade routes. Likewise, Mali, although it played a significant role in the trade, was not the first to benefit. Morocco, on the other hand, is not a West African kingdom but a country located in North Africa. By process of elimination, Ghana remains as the correct answer.