Question

multiple select question

select all that apply

by the late centuries b.c.e., the bantu spread agriculture to all of sub-saharan africa except for

coastal regions.
deserts.
areas near rivers.
densely forested regions.

Explanation:

Identify the core historical event

The question asks about the geographic limits of the spread of agriculture by the Bantu-speaking peoples in sub-Saharan Africa by the late centuries B.C.E. This relates to the concept of Agricultural Diffusion and the environmental constraints on early farming.

Analyze the environmental constraints on Bantu agriculture

The Bantu-speaking peoples migrated across sub-Saharan Africa, spreading agriculture (such as yams, millet, and sorghum) and ironworking. However, certain ecological zones were unsuitable for their agricultural practices:

• Coastal regions and river valleys were highly suitable and settled extensively.
• Densely forested regions (like the deep Congo rainforest) presented major challenges, but agricultural communities did penetrate and clear parts of the forest edges.
• Deserts (such as the Sahara to the north, and the Kalahari and Namib to the southwest) and extremely arid regions were completely unsuitable for farming, preventing agricultural diffusion into those areas.

Evaluate the given options

• coastal regions: Incorrect. Agriculture spread successfully to coastal areas.
• deserts: Correct. Hyper-arid desert environments could not support the crops cultivated by the Bantu.
• areas near rivers: Incorrect. River valleys were primary pathways and hubs for agricultural settlement.
• densely forested regions: Correct. The dense equatorial rainforests of central Africa remained largely occupied by hunter-gatherer groups (like the forest dwellers/Pygmies) because the dense canopy and soil conditions made standard Bantu agriculture extremely difficult to establish during this early period.

Formulate the final selection

Since this is a "Multiple Select Question" asking to "Select all that apply," the correct choices representing the exceptions where agriculture did not spread are "deserts" and "densely forested regions."

Answer:

• coastal regions.
• deserts. (Correct answer)
• areas near rivers.
• densely forested regions. (Correct answer)