Mansa (N'Ko: ߡߊ߲߬ߛߊ;^[1] pl. mansaw) is a Maninka^[2] and Mandinka^[3] word for a hereditary^[1][4] ruler, commonly translated as "king".^[5][6][7] It is particularly known as the title of the rulers of the Mali Empire, such as Mansa Musa, and in this context is sometimes translated as "emperor".^[8] It is also a title held by traditional village rulers, and in this context is translated as "chief".^[1]

Mansa contrasts with another Manding word for ruler, faama. Faama emphasizes the military, coercive authority of a ruler,^[9] and can be translated as "tyrant",^[10] whereas mansa refers to a hereditary ruler whose authority is derived from tradition^[1] and mystical power.^[9] A ruler can be both a faama and a mansa, but a mansa was not necessarily a faama.^[9]

The word mansa (Arabic: منسا, romanized: mansā) was recorded in Arabic during the 14th century by North African writers such as Ibn Battuta and Ibn Khaldun, who explained it as meaning "sultan".^[11] Cognates of mansa exist in other Mandé languages, such as Soninke manga, Susu menge, and Bambara masa.^[2] Vydrin also compared it to mensey, the Guanche word for their rulers.^[1] According to Misiugin and Vydrin, the original meaning of the root word was probably "chief of hunters" or "chief of warriors".^[2]

An alternate translation of mansa, which Jansen attributes to the followers of Marcel Griaule, is that mansa means "god", "the divine principle", or "priest-king". Jansen notes that they have not provided their reasoning for choosing this translation.^[6]

List of Mansas