In 17th century Africa i.e before Europeans advent into Africa, Arabic language was the language of scholarship. Perhaps the best indication of this fact is the abundance presence of Arabic words in many African languages. And many of those words do not have any other synonym.
Example of Yoruba language words of Arabic Origin:
imototo-in Yoruba, imototo-in Arabic i.e cleanliness; alaafia in Yoruba and alaafiya in Arabic etc.
Bishop Ajayi Crowther, who was the first person to translate the Bible to Yoruba language...
Links:
http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/legacy_crowther.html
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