Final answer:
The characteristics of the Sahara, Sahel, savanna, and tropical rain forest significantly impact trade and settlement patterns. The Sahara provides a barrier to both due to its aridity, while the savanna offers favorable conditions for settlements and agriculture. Meanwhile, the biodiversity of tropical rain forests enables trade while the availability of water in these regions significantly influences civilization development.
Step-by-step explanation:
Characteristics of the Sahara, Sahel, savanna, and tropical rain forest play a significant role in trade and the human settlement pattern in Africa. The Sahara desert, due to its harsh and arid conditions, serves as a geographical barrier affecting trade and inhibiting human habitation. Contrasringly, regions like the savanna with its temperate and wet environment, provide conducive conditions for human settlements and agriculture. The Sahel, as a transitional zone between the Sahara desert and the savanna, experiences less rainfall and less fertile soils, leading to a nomadic way of life.
The tropical rain forests near the equator, despite being hot and humid, are rich in resources, promoting small community settlements but limiting political institution's development due to the density of the habitat. The biodiversity of this region also influences the exchange of goods in trade practices.
The availability of water and the fertility of the soil in these regions is therefore a key determiner in the development of civilizations, influencing the patterns of trade routes, agricultural practices, and human settlement patterns.
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