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[ Home ] [ Up ] [ The Bamana ] [ Where is Mali? ] [ Earth Dyed Cloth ] [ Carvers of Mali ]
[Senufo Masks] [ Discover
Africa] [Art of Africa] [Artist
of Africa] [Dogon Ancestral Figures] [Dogon
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CLICK
HERE FOR MAP OF MALI
The Republic
of Mali is located in northwestern Africa southwest of Algeria. Niger is to the east and
Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire and Guinea border on the south. Senegal and Mauritania
are to the west of Mali. The area of Mali is approximately 1,240,192 square kilometers
(478,841 square miles), slightly less than twice the size of Texas (Mali, Republic 1998). The larger northern region-mostly flat rolling plains
covered with sand--extends into the Sahara and is arid desert or semi-desert
(approximately 65% of the land). Rugged hills are in the northeast. The central region,
known as the Sahel (Arabic for "the shore"-- on the shore of the Sahara) follows the Niger River’s annual flood cycle -- high
water between August and November. The Niger’s waters are used for irrigation of the
crops. Rainfall and rivers are more plentiful in the southwestern area- the savanna-
making it more lush than the rest of the country. The most important geographic feature-
and most valuable resource- is the Niger River traversing both the Sahel and the
southeastern section of the country. The Niger is a critical source of
sustenance--abounding in fish-- and a major transportation artery
("Introduction" I996).
Mali, one of the world’s poorest country, is
primarily agricultural with nearly eighty percent of the population ("Mali,
Republic" 1998) involved in the production of food crops such as millet, rice,
sorghum corn and sugarcane. Livestock-- cattle, sheep, goats, and poultry-- are also
important. What little industry there is, concentrates on the processing of farm
commodities- mainly cotton ginning and food processing. Fish from the Niger are important
to the diet; surplus is dried and smoked for export. Mineral resources of gold, salt,
marble, phosphate rock, and diamonds have been exploited. Other minerals that have been
detected but not extracted for the industrial world include iron ore, uranium, petroleum,
bauxite, manganese, zinc, copper, and lithium ("Mali, Republic" 1998).
While Mali is a poor country today, it has an
extremely rich heritage. For centuries, it was the crossroads for great caravans during
the ancient kingdoms of Ghana, Mali and Songhai. Slaves, gold and ivory from the south
were brought to be traded with the Middle East and Europe for weapons, jewelry and salt
("About Mali" 1995-98). The memory of ancient Mali is alive today in the tales
of the griots- the professional historians, praise-singers and musical entertainers- of
the Manding people. Descendants of the Manding Empire or Empire of Mali are spread
throughout Mali, Guinea, Gambia, Senegal, Cote d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso and
Guinea-Bissau. While they may never again know the unity they had before 1468, they still
depend on their griots -- or jelis as they are know among the Manding -- to remind them of
their place in history. The most often told history is the story of the first ruler of the
Malian Empire, Sundiata Keita ("Mali: Africa's…"
1996-97).
Learn about archeology in Mali today!
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