Paul Moreau-Vauthier (1871-1936), Monument aux héros de l'Armée noire , 1924, place de la liberté, Bamako (Mali). Réplique du monument original érigé en 1924 à Reims…
Photo: Rgaudin, Public domain · source
Monday market in Djenne and the Great Mosque of Djenné, Mali
Photo: Ferdinand Reus from Arnhem, Holland, CC BY-SA 2.0 · source
Did you know?
Mali's northern borders reach deep into the middle of the Sahara Desert. Southern Mali, where the majority of inhabitants live, is in the Sudanian savanna and has the Niger and Senegal rivers running through it. The economy centres on agriculture and mining with its most prominent natural resources including gold (which represents 80% of its exports) and cotton. Mali is one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world.
Wikipedia: Mali – read more, CC BY-SA 4.0
Dogon mask dance
Photo: Hisashi Yuya, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Focus stacked image (composed of 50 frames) of a well elaborated arrowhead from the Neolithic , final division of the Stone Age and therefore between 6,5 and 4 thousand…
Photo: Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Etymology
The name Mali is taken from the name of the Mali Empire. Originally meaning "hippopotamus", the clanic symbol of the Keita Dynasty, it eventually came to mean "the place where the king lives". Fourteenth-century Maghrebi traveller Ibn Battuta reported that the capital of the empire was called Mali. One Mandinka tradition tells that the legendary first emperor Sundiata Keita changed himself into a hippopotamus upon his death in the Sankarani River and that it was possible to find villages in the area of this river called "old Mali".
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A Tuareg nomad and his slave in Mali. The black person to the right may be a slave.
Photo: H. Grobe, CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
This is an image of "African people at work" from
Photo: PGskot, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
History
Rock art in the Sahara suggests that northern Mali has been inhabited since 10,000 BC, when the Sahara was fertile and rich in wildlife. Early ceramics have been discovered at the central Malian site of Ounjougou dating to about 9,400 BC, and are believed to represent an instance of the independent invention of pottery in the region. Farming took place by 5000 BC, and iron was used by around 500 BC.
Wikipedia: Mali – read more, CC BY-SA 4.0
Hand der Fatima, Felsformation bei Hombori, Mali
Photo: Timm Guenther ( Timm Busshaus ), CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Fulani family from Mali.
Photo: Ferdinand Reus from Arnhem, Holland, CC BY-SA 2.0 · source
Geography
Mali is a landlocked country in West Africa. It lies between latitudes 10° and 25°N and longitudes 13°W and 5°E. Mali borders Algeria to the north-northeast, Niger to the east, Burkina Faso to the southeast, Ivory Coast to the south, Guinea to the south-west, and Senegal to the west and Mauritania to the north-west.
At 1,240,192 square kilometres (478,841 sq mi), Mali is the 24th-largest country in the world and the eighth-largest country in Africa. Most of the country lies in the southern Sahara Desert, which produces an extremely hot, dust-laden Sudanian savanna zone.
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Colorful crowd, Mali.
Photo: Ferdinand Reus from Arnhem, Holland, CC BY-SA 2.0 · source
Politics and government
Mali is led by transitional President Assimi Goïta, who is assisted by Prime Minister Abdoulaye Maïga, and the National Transitional Council that replaced the National Assembly following the 2020 coup. However, in practice, Goïta and a military junta consisting of four other officers, the National Committee for the Salvation of the People, have complete control over the political system. The 1992 constitution established a Mali as a secular constitutional republic with a separation of powers between executive, legislative, and judicial branches, and identifies eight state institutions.
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Economy
As of 2024, the country had a nominal GDP of US$26.78 billion and a PPP-adjusted GDP of $81.45 billion. Mali remains one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world and has a large informal economy. It has heavily relied on assistance from foreign donors, which have reduced their activities during the instability of the 2020s. Since then the transitional government has used regional financial markets to finance its deficit. Most Malians (95%) have informal jobs, with 80% of the population involved in farming, fishing, or raising livestock.
Wikipedia: Mali – read more, CC BY-SA 4.0
Demographics
In 2021 the population was an estimated 21.9 million, which grew from 7.7 million in 1982. The population is predominantly rural (69.7% in 2022), and 5%–10% of Malians are nomadic. More than 90% live in southern Mali, especially in Bamako, which has over 4 million residents.
In 2024, about 47% were 14 years old or younger, 50% were 15–64 years old, and 3% were 65 and older. The median age was 16.4 years. The birth rate in 2024 was 40 births per 1,000, and the total fertility rate in 2024 was 5.35 children per woman. The death rate in 2024 was 8.1 deaths per 1,000.
Wikipedia: Mali – read more, CC BY-SA 4.0
Culture
The varied everyday culture of Malians reflects the country's ethnic and geographic diversity. Most Malians wear flowing, colorful robes called boubous that are typical of West Africa. Malians frequently participate in traditional festivals, dances, and ceremonies.
Malian musical traditions are derived from the griots, who are known as "Keepers of Memories". Malian music is diverse and has several different genres.
Wikipedia: Mali – read more, CC BY-SA 4.0