The Mali History Timeline
The history of Mali (or Mali) is the seventh largest country in Africa and has a population of approximately 12 million. Today its economy is based on agriculture and fishing in addition to having uranium and gold mines, but this does not prevent it from being one of the most impoverished countries in the world despite the fact that it was one of the great commercial powers of antiquity. Its period of greatest splendor occurred with the so-called Mali Empire and thanks to its domination of the trans-Saharan trade route, but in its past we find not one, but three great empires: The Ghana Empire, the Mali Empire and the Songhay Empire.
Who were the dyula in the Mali empire?
Who were the dyula in the Mali empire? In antiquity, the territory of present-day Mali was the will of two great West African empires, which controlled the trade of salt, gold, raw materials as well as silver and bronze. These kingdoms lacked both geopolitical borders and ethnic identities. The first of these empires was the Empire of Ghana, founded by the Sleepers, who spoke mande. The kingdom expanded throughout West Africa from the 1078th century until, when it was conquered by the Almoranians.
Prehistory of Mali Timeline: Mali Africa History
The Mali Africa History: As Europe struggled with the Black Death and tried to get out of the Middle Ages, do you know what was going on in West Africa? A kingdom prospered and enjoyed the splendor of wealth and stability. Dominating the region from the ninth to the sixteenth century, the kingdom of Mali was spectacular. It stretched from the heart of Africa to the Atlantic coast, was home to between 40 and 50 million people, and its cities of Djenne, Timbuktu and Gao were among the richest commercial and intellectual centers in the world.
While it is not a name we all know today, people of the ancient world recognized it as a global center of economic and cultural production. They might as well have called it Maliwood.
History of Ancient Mali Timeline: Mali History Africa
- What is the history of ancient Mali Timeline? Around 1000 CE, West Africa was home to three major kingdoms, Mali, Ghana and Sosso. The largest of these was Ghana. Ghana was a huge empire, sustained by trade routes that stretched across the continent. Traders along these routes were keenly interested in the high-quality gold flowing through Ghanaian markets. Mali was a smaller kingdom and a province within the Ghanaian empire. However, eventually this began to change.
- Around the thirteenth century, Ghana began to fall into decline, paving the way for new powers to emerge. One of the would-be rulers was Soumaoro, king of the city of Sosso. The Sossos began to invade and conquer other cities and managed to invade Mali. However, Soumaoro was met with opposition from a Malian leader of the Keita clan named Sundiata . Sundiata gathered an army and defeated the Sosso between 1230 and 1235 CE, and then rallied all the clans under his leadership, declaring himself the Mansa, or ruler, of all clans.
What was Mali known for?
People also ask, why is Mali known?
Mali is famous for its salt mines. In the past, Mali was one of the richest countries, home to great emperors whose wealth came mainly from the region’s position on the trade routes across the Sahara between West Africa and the North. Timbuktu was an important center of Islamic learning.
What did the kingdom of Mali trade? The main items traded were gold and salt. West African gold mines provided great wealth to West African empires such as Ghana and Mali. Other items that were commonly traded included ivory, kola nuts, cloth, slaves, metal items, and beads.
In this way, why was the kingdom of Mali important?
Mali’s great wealth came from gold and salt mines. The capital city of the empire was Niani. The Mali Empire controlled important trade routes through the Sahara desert to Europe and the Middle East. The city of Timbuktu was considered a center of education and learning and included the famous University of Sankore.
How did Mali get rich?
Mali —-> Mali had become rich from trade, merchants traveling through these lands had to pay taxes on all their goods. This also enriched the kingdom. It had become the most powerful kingdom in West Africa. His wealth and power grew when he conquered the wealthy market city of Timbuktu.
Kingdoms of Ghana and Malinké
Kingdoms in Mali history: The Ghana Empire, dominated by the Soninke or Saracolé people and centered in the region along the Mali-Mauritanian border, was a powerful trading state from about 700 to 1075 AD. The Malinké kingdom of Mali had its origins on the upper Niger River in the 11th century. Expanding rapidly in the thirteenth century under the leadership of Soundjata Keita, it reached its peak around 1325, when it conquered Timbuktu and Gao. Subsequently, the kingdom began to decline and by the fifteenth century he controlled only a small fraction of his former domain.
The Empire of Mali:
Mali History Empires: During the thirteenth century King Sumaworo tried unsuccessfully to re-unify the extinct empire of Ghana, but a coalition of 12 kings led by Sundiata Feita managed to defeat Sumaworo and carry out his unification plan. The Malian empire returned to the former splendor of Ghana thanks again to agriculture, this time including cotton, cereals and tubers crops and recovering gold mining activities.
Another important aspect for its stability was the period of peace that accompanied it for much of its history, and its period of greatest splendor being the one between 1312 and 1337 under the reign of Kanku Musa, who made great flaunting of his gold wherever he went and creating a legend about the countless riches of his country. Sadly, the empire of Mali ended up succumbing under the internal struggles and rebellions of the peoples under its rule.
-
Songhai Empire and Timbuktu
The Songhai Empire extended its power from its center in Gao during the period 1465-1530. At its peak under Askia Mohammad I, it encompassed the Hausa states up to Kano (in present-day Nigeria) and much of the territory that had belonged to the Mali Empire to the west. It was destroyed by a Moroccan invasion in 1591. Timbuktu was a center of trade and Islamic faith throughout this period, and priceless manuscripts from that time are still preserved in Timbuktu. (International donors are making efforts to help preserve these priceless manuscripts as part of Mali’s cultural heritage.)
-
The arrival of the French
French military penetration of Sudan (the French name for the region) began around 1880. Ten years later, the French made a concerted effort to occupy the interior. The timetable and the resident military governors determined the methods of their advances. A French civilian governor of Sudan was appointed in 1893, but resistance to French control did not end until 1898 when the Malinké warrior Samory Touré was defeated after 7 years of war. The French tried to rule indirectly, but in many areas they ignored traditional authorities and ruled by appointed chiefs.
From the French colony to the French community
French Colony in Mali history: As a colony of French Sudan, Mali was administered along with other French colonial territories under the name of the Federation of French West Africa. In 1956, with the adoption of the French Fundamental Law (Framework Law), the Territorial Assembly was granted extensive powers over internal affairs and was authorized to form a cabinet with executive authority over matters within the Assembly’s competence. After the French constitutional referendum of 1958, the The Sudanese Republic has become a member of the French Community and enjoys complete internal autonomy.
Independence as the Republic of Mali
In January 1959, Sudan joined Senegal to form the Federation of Mali, which became fully independent within the French Community on 20 June 1960. The federation collapsed on August 20, 1960, when Senegal seceded. On 22 September, Sudan proclaimed itself the Republic of Mali and withdrew from the French Community.
Mali Fashion And Culture
- Traditional clothing
Skirts, tunics and long silk dresses are popular choices of Malian women, especially the “pagne”, which is a skirt that wraps around the waist. Traditionally, women also wear turbans that match their dresses. The “boubou” which is a full-length tunic, is the traditional clothing of men.
- Diversity of influences
The Republic of Mali is made up of many individual tribes and ethnic groups that have developed their own colors and styles of clothing. The Tuareg tribe, for example, specializes in making clothes of a specific indigo blue and is used to make wedding fabrics.
As a result of globalization and previous colonization, Western style has also impacted Malian clothing, especially in cities. Many men wear Western pants, shirts, and tunics for work, while women wear wrapped skirts, tunics, and even, occasionally, pants.
History of Mali Culture Rahina Walet
Read Also History of France
References
Overview of Mali’s history and independence (greelane.com)
Brief history of Mali : General History (historiageneral.com)
History of Mali – Sópra-Educação (sopra-educacao.com)
▷ Ancient Mali: History and Civilization – Studying (estudyando.com)
