Ambilobe

Ambilobe lies in the Antankarana country of northern Madagascar, on the Mahavavy River where the land opens into plains between the mountains and the sea. The river water and the rich soil of the valley supported fields of rice, sugarcane and cotton, and the riverbank became the place where people gathered to trade.

The Antankarana, who lived in the north of the island, ruled through local chiefs and lineages, and their power rested on their control of the fertile river valleys and the sea routes. Their kingdoms competed with the Sakalava to the south and west, and the coast traded cattle, rice and imported goods. Traders came up the valleys to exchange local products for cloth and metal.