The history of the African people has been indelibly stamped by their continent's geography – its deserts, Sahel, savanna, swamps, rainforests, plateaus, mountains, rivers, and lakes have shaped both the evolution of humankind in the geologic past and the historical development of African societies in the past several millennia. Africa's diverse geology and geography are reflected in the varied histories of its people.

Africa is an enormous landmass, 12 million square miles, larger than North America and four times the size of the United States. It is also the oldest continent, from which Europe, Asia, and the Americas floated away on tectonic plates many millions of years ago. They left in their wake a solid, vast, uplifted flat plateau 2,000 to 4,000 feet above sea level, which slept in its geologic continuity. Its rocks and sediments remained horizontal throughout millions of years, undisturbed by the gigantic metamorphic upheavals of the Himalayas, European Alps, and the American and Andean cordillera on the new continents.