Knowra History of Mali History of Mali The history of Mali spans the societies and states of the western Sahel, including Ghana, Mali, and Songhai, and the modern Republic of Mali since independence in 1960.
Mali Empire : A West African empire founded in the thirteenth century, renowned for its wealth, cities, and trans-Saharan connections. It gave the region and modern country their name and became a major imperial power.
Trans-Saharan trade : A network of commercial routes crossing the Sahara and linking North Africa with sub-Saharan Africa. Gold, salt, and other goods helped sustain Sahelian states and their rulers.
Tichitt culture : An archaeological culture of stone-built settlements and farming in the western Sahara and Sahel, dating from the second millennium BCE. Its settled communities predate the medieval empires in the wider region.
Sundiata Keita : The founder of the Mali Empire, celebrated in Mandinka oral tradition and the Epic of Sundiata. Tradition credits him with uniting Mandinka forces and establishing the empire.
Ghana Empire : A medieval West African state that flourished between the Senegal and Niger rivers and controlled trans-Saharan trade routes. Its earlier power contrasts with Mali’s later imperial expansion.
French Sudan : A French colonial territory in West Africa that became the Republic of Mali in 1960. Colonial rule reshaped the region’s borders and institutions before independence.
Niger River : A major West African river that arcs through Guinea, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria before reaching the Gulf of Guinea. Its floodplains and routes anchored settlement, farming, and commerce in Mali.
Djenné-Djenno : An ancient urban settlement in the Inner Niger Delta, occupied from around 250 BCE and known for early ironworking and trade. It documents urban life and commerce centuries before Mali’s imperial era.
Sunni Ali : A fifteenth-century ruler who expanded the Songhai Empire and captured Timbuktu and Djenné. His conquests transformed Songhai into a major power after Mali’s decline.
Songhai Empire : A West African empire centered on the Niger bend that reached its height in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Songhai inherited regional dominance from Mali but built a distinct imperial state.
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