USA HISTORY

SETTLING NORTH AMERICA 1497 1732

RISE OF THE SLAVE TRADE BLACK HISTORY IN COLONIAL AMERICA

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
Drums were banned by slave masters because they feared the slaves would be able to communicate to each other using them
A
True
B
False
C
Either A or B
D
None of the above
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -From regions known today as Nigeria and Ghana they spread across West Africa and to America and the Caribbean during the slave trade. There they were banned because they were being used by the slaves to communicate over long distances in a code unknown to their enslavers.

Detailed explanation-2: -In America, slaves played drums of all shapes and sizes in the tradition of both eastern and western Africans. The drumbeat not only accompanied chants and dances, but was also used to send messages. By striking and holding the drum in certain ways, drummers could replicate tones of speech almost exactly.

Detailed explanation-3: -In 1739, a slave rebellion led to the banning of drums and horns, a law written into the 1740 slave code of South Carolina.

Detailed explanation-4: -Answer and Explanation: Slaves used drums for communication because it was the fastest way to deliver a secret message that could not be understood by invaders or slave masters. Drum beats were played at specific rhythms and speeds which correlated with different signals and warnings.

Detailed explanation-5: -talking drum, any of various types of drums that, by imitating the rhythm and the rise and fall of words in languages, are used as communication devices. Such drums occur in East and West Africa, Melanesia, and Southeast Asia.

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