Mali is country located in West Africa. The history of the territory of modern Mali may be divided into:

• Pre-Imperial Mali, before the 13th century
• the history of the eponymous Mali Empire and of the Songhai Empire during the 13th to 16th centuries.

The borders of Mali are those of French Sudan, drawn in 1891. They are artificial, and unite part of the larger Sudan region with parts of the Sahara. As a consequence, Mali is a multiethnic country, with a majority of its population consisting of Mandé peoples.

Mali's history is dominated by its role in trans-Saharan trade, connecting West Africa and the Maghreb. The Malian city Timbuktu is exemplary of this: situated on the southern fringe of the Sahara and close to the River Niger, it has played an important role in the trans-Saharan trade from the 13th century on, with the establishment of the Mali Empire.

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