This article is part of the History of DR Congo series

Precolonial period (-1867) Colonisation (1867-1885) Congo Free State (1885-1908) Belgian Congo (1908-1960) 1st Republic Congo Crisis (1960-1965) 2nd Republic Zaïre (1965-1996) First Congo War (1996-1998) Second Congo War (1998-)

From 2000 BC to 500 AD, waves of Bantu migrations moved into Congo, adding to the indigenous Pygmy populations. Subsequent migrations from the Darfur and Kordofan regions of Sudan into the north of Congo, as well as East Africas migrating into eastern Congo added to the mix of ethnic groups. The Bantus imported agriculture and iron-working techniques from West Africa into the area.