Yawan al'ummar nahiyar Afirka na da banbanci sosai ta fuskar harshe da zamantakewa da tattalin arziki da al'adu. Harsunan al'ummar Afirka za a iya raba su zuwa manyan ?ungiyoyi masu zuwa: 1) Semitic-Hamitic; 2) ?ungiyoyin harsuna da dama da suka mamaye wani yanki daga yammacin Sahara zuwa mashigin ruwan Nilu kuma a baya an lasafta su a matsayin ?ungiyar "Sudan"; Sabbin ayyukan masana harshe sun tabbatar da cewa wa?annan harsuna ba sa nuna kusanci da juna sosai, kuma wasu daga cikinsu suna kusa da harsunan Bantu; 3) Bantu a kudancin nahiyar; 4) ?ananan ?ungiyar Khoi-san a Afirka ta Kudu; 5) yawan jama'ar tsibirin Madagascar, wanda harshensu ya kasance na kungiyar Malayo-Polynesia; 6) Turawan mulkin mallaka da zuriyarsu.
A cewar daya version, kalmar "Afrika" ta fito ne daga sunan kabilar Berber Afrigia, wanda ya rayu a arewacin nahiyar Afrika, akwai kuma lardin Roman na Afirka. An kafa lardin Romawa na Afirka a shekara ta 146 BC. e. a wurin daular Carthaginian, ta mamaye arewa maso yammacin Tunisiya ta zamani. A zamanin daular, Afirka na cikin lardunan majalisar dattijai kuma wani mai mulki ne ke mulki. Zamanin daular yana da siffa da bun?asa tsarin birane. Garuruwa sun sami ha??in mallaka da gundumomi. Mafi rinjaye a cikin biranen su ne ?an mulkin mallaka na Romawa da kuma ?an ?asar Romanized na al'ummar yankin. A al'ada, a lokacin daular, lardin Afirka ya taka rawa sosai. Koyaya, ?an asalin ?auyuka sun kasance ba?o ga yaren Latin da al'adun Romawa. A cikin 4th-5th ?arni. ya zama yanki na gagarumin boren bayi da ginshi?ai, wanda ya raunana daular Rum ?warai da gaske kuma ya taimaka wajen fa?uwarta. A cikin 5 c. Vandals sun zauna a Afirka. A cikin 6 c. Sarkin Byzantine Justinian ya yi nasarar dawo da tsiri na bakin teku, amma ikon Byzantium ya kasance mai rauni. A cikin karni na 7 Larabawa ne suka mamaye lardin Afirka.
A Arewacin Afirka, baya a cikin karni na farko BC. e. akwai ?asashe masu zaman kansu da yawa: Carthage, wanda ba?i daga Phoenicia suka kafa, wa?anda ke magana da yaren Semitic kusa da Ibrananci, Mauritania da Numidia, wa?anda Libiyawa suka ?ir?ira. Bayan cin nasarar Carthage da Romawa suka yi a cikin 146 BC. e. wa?annan jahohin, bayan gwagwarmayar taurin kai, sun zama mallakin Romawa. ?arnuka ka?an kafin sabon zamani, ci gaban al'umma mai daraja ya fara a cikin ?asar Habasha ta zamani. Daya daga cikin jihohin da suka ci gaba a nan – Aksum – ta kai kololuwarta a karni na 4 BC. n. e., lokacin da dukiyarsa a yamma ta isa ?asar Meroe a cikin kwarin Nilu, kuma a gabas – "Alabiya Mai Farin Ciki" (Yaman ta zamani). A cikin karni na II da. e. Kasashe masu karfi sun bunkasa a yammacin Sudan (Ghana, Mali, Songhai da Bornu); daga baya, an kafa jihohi a gabar tekun Guinea (Ashanti, Dahomey, Kongo, da sauransu), da yammacin tafkin Chadi (jahohin Hausawa) da sauran yankuna da dama na yankin Afirka.
Harsunan al'ummomin Afirka na wurare masu zafi, da ke zaune a kudu da dangin Semitic-Hamitic, galibi ana ha?a su zuwa iyalai biyu: Nijar (Kordofan) da Nilo-Saharan. Kungiyar Neja-Kordofanian ta hada da kungiyar Niger-Congo – kungiya ce da ta fi yawa kuma ta hada kai: West Atlantic, Mande, Volts, Kwa, Benue-Congo da Adamawa-Eastern. Mutanen yammacin Atlantika sun hada da babban fulbe da ke zaune a kungiyoyi daban-daban a kusan dukkanin kasashen yammacin da tsakiyar Sudan, Wolof da Serep (Senegal), da sauransu. kogin Senegal da Nijar (Guinea, Mali, da dai sauransu). ), al'ummomin Volta (moy, loby, bobo, Senufo, da dai sauransu) – a Burkina Faso, Ghana da sauran ?asashe. Mutanen Kwa sun ha?a da manyan al'ummomin gabar tekun Guinea kamar su Yarbawa da Ibo (Nigeria), Akan (Ghana) da Ewe (Benin da Togo); kusa da Ewe su ne asalinsu, wa?anda ke zaune a kudu kuma wasu lokuta ana kiransu Dahomeans; mutanen da ke magana da harsuna (ko yare) na Kru sun mamaye wani ke?antaccen matsayi. Wa?annan su ne Bakwe, Grebo, Krahn da sauran mutanen da ke zaune a Laberiya da Ivory Coast (Ivory Coast). ?ungiyoyin jama'a da dama ne suka kafa ?ungiyar Benue-Congo, wa?anda a baya ake danganta su ga dangin Bantu na musamman da kuma ?ungiyar Bantu ta Gabas. Al'ummar Bantu, sun yi kama da juna ta fuskar harshe da al'adu, suna zaune a kasashen Tsakiya da Gabas da Kudancin Afirka (Jamhuriyar Demokradiyyar Kongo (tsohon Zaire), Angola, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Afirka ta Kudu, da sauransu). Masana harshe sun raba Bantu zuwa rukuni 15: 1st – duala, lupdu, fang, da dai sauransu; 2nd -teke, mpongwe, kele; 3rd – bangi, pgala, mongo, tetelya; 4th – Rwanda, rundi; 5th – ganda, luhya, kikuyu, kamba; 6th-nyamwezi, nyatura; 7th – Swahili, togo, hehe; 8th – Kongo, ambundu; 9th-chokwe, luena; 10-luba; 11-bemba, fipa, tonga; 12th – Malawi 13th – Yao, Makonde, Makua; 14th – ovimbundu, ambo, herero; 15th – Shona, Suto, Zulu, Spit, Swazi, da sauransu.
Har ila yau, gungun Pygmies na Kongo Basin suna magana da harsunan Bantu (Efe, Basu A, Bambuti, da dai sauransu), yawanci ana bambanta su a matsayin mutane daban. A cikin Bantus gabas da tsakiyar kasar, harshen Swahili, wanda ya sami tasirin Larabci, ya zama ruwan dare a cikin 'yan shekarun nan, adadin masu magana ya kai miliyan 60 ('yan Swahili sun kai miliyan 1.9). Adamaua, rukunin gabas, ya ha?a da Azande, Cham-Ba, Banda, da sauran wa?anda ke zaune a Tsakiya da Gabashin Sudan.
?ungiyar Kordofan, mai ?an?anta a adadi da ?asa, ya ha?a da mutanen Koalib, Tumtum, Tegali, Talodi da Katla (Jamhuriyar Sudan).
