HIST103: World History (1600–Present)

The Mali Empire grew out of an area referred to by its contemporary inhabitants as Manden. Manden, named for its inhabitants, the Mandinka (initially Manden'ka with "ka" meaning "people of"), comprised most of present-day northern Guinea and southern Mali. The empire was originally established as a federation of Mandinka tribes called the Manden Kurufa (literally the Manden Federation). It later became an empire ruling millions of people from nearly every ethnic group imaginable in West Africa.