Question

why had Europeans called Africa A Dark Continent

Answer 1

The term "Dark Continent" was used far back in the sixteenth century for places that were unexplored, little known, or uninhabited. It was also applied to places like South America or the extreme cold and night-ridden places like Greenland. But with time it got synonymous with Africa. The Europeans took Africans as different,backward, less knowledgeable, underproductive and ignorant of modernism. There were looked down upon for not embracing world religions & carrying human and animal sacrifices, superstitions, blood rituals, witchcraft, ancestral worship and veneration, and in polygamy. They lived in huts and hovels. They wore little or no clothing, slung babies on their backs. Africa meant wilderness of jungles and animals; and of tropical diseases and parasites so several Europeans were struck by maladies such as malaria during the slave trade. So Africa turned 'Black Africa' and was regarded as unsafe & dangerous place to live in during that time.

Answer 2

The term Dark Continent seems to have been the concept that is very old and is related to the sixteenth century. This term denotes unexplored, very little known or uninhabited region of the world. This term is specially applied to Africa Continent. The Europeans considered Africa as the very different from the rest of the world and ignorant also. The black Africans were denounced by the whole world because of not embracing world religions. They were also regarded as isolated from the world because of human and animal sacrifices, superstitions, blood rituals, witchcraft, ancestral worshiping etc. They were also involved in polygamy. The infrastructure was poorly built and still the situation is more or less the same in Africa. The Africans lived a very primitive and undeveloped life. They were not much aware of the growth. In reality, Europeans were not aware of this mysterious land.