West Africa had dynamic societies and a vibrant economy during the medieval era, comparable to those of Mediterranean countries. Cultural projects thrived in numerous West African cities, where bustling commerce and centers of learning attracted scholars and students from throughout the Islamic world. Three major West African kingdoms—Ghana (or Wagadu), Mali, and Songhay—thrived thanks to trans-Saharan trade. Each of these empires succeeded the previous one by taking control of the region’s trade routes. The history of medieval Africa, long ignored, distorted, and misunderstood, is the history of glorious cultures that produced many illustrious leaders. Several of these leaders are celebrated in heroic literature, but none is as paramount in Malian Mande folklore as Sundiata Keita, the visionary leader and founder of the Mali Empire. However, it was King Mansa Musa, who ruled during the golden age of the Mali Empire, who gained international fame after his pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324.

Ghana

The Soninke, a northern Mande-speaking people, founded the Kingdom of Ghana (or Wagadu) sometime in the eighth century. West African oral historians, known as griots, composed long historical poems, or epics, which often depicted Dinga Cisse as the founding ancestor of the Soninke. His descendants established the royal lineage of Ghana. The Kingdom of Ghana, centered in Kumbi, thrived under Dinga’s son, Dyabe Cisse, and his successors, who held the title magha, or hereditary ruler. North African Muslim scholars, writing in Arabic, described Ghana as the earliest kingdom of the Western Sudan (i.e., Black West Africa, in Arabic). Modern historians regard Ghana as the origin of the Soninke central government and the starting point of the region’s political history. The Soninke kingdom was located in the southern Saharan and Sahelian regions, between the Senegal and Niger Rivers, two of the largest rivers in West Africa. Its economy was based on agriculture, livestock (cattle and goats), gold mining, and trans-Saharan trade. By the end of the eighth century, Ghana was renowned in the Islamic world as “the land of gold.” Ghana’s gold mines attracted North African merchants, who exchanged salt, mined in the central Sahara, and other goods for gold. Trade between West Africa and North Africa flourished, with routes crossing the Sahara and connecting to Mediterranean countries. The Soninke had extensive contact with Saharan nomads and North African merchants. These relationships not only brought Islam into the region but also stimulated economic growth.

By the mid-eleventh century, the Kingdom of Ghana had significantly advanced its economic resources and governmental systems. This progress is documented in the earliest accounts by Arab historians, such as the historian Abu ‘Ubayd al-Bakri in 1068. Al-Bakri’s account provides us with a detailed description of Ghana’s capital, highlighting its dual urban structure. The city consisted of two main towns situated on a plain: one predominantly Muslim and the other a royal town that included a palace and small conical houses enclosed within a wall. The power dynamics between the Sanhaja Berber coalition of the Sahara and the Soninke Kingdom of Ghana shifted significantly between the ninth and eleventh centuries. Initially, the Sanhaja, centered in Awdaghust, in present-day Mauritania, held considerable influence. They controlled key trade routes for salt and gold and exerted authority over neighboring regions, including parts of Ghana. The use of camels worked to the advantage of the Berbers, who conquered the native populations of the Sahara and assumed a superior status for themselves. The Berbers, also known as the Amazigh, are considered the original inhabitants of North Africa. Trans-Saharan trade developed primarily with the spread of camels in the Sahara. It is widely accepted that camels were introduced into North Africa (and by extension, the Western Sahara) by the Romans during the first century. Diplomatic and commercial ties were essential for maintaining this trade network. However, within a century, Ghana expanded northward and brought Awdaghust under its control. This shift in power set the stage for the eventual rise of the Almoravid army—a confederation of Berber tribes—and the gradual decline of the Soninke. Awdaghust was a multicultural hub inhabited by Berbers (mainly Sanhaja and Zanata), Arab traders, and Black West Africans, characterized by significant wealth and a large enslaved population. The rise of the Berber Almoravid army and the decline of the Soninke were direct consequences of this transformation. Having risen to prominence in the first millennium CE, the Soninke kingdom lost its political dominance by the thirteenth century.

Mali

Mali succeeded Ghana as a key player in the trans-Saharan caravan trade, benefiting from a more strategic location near the gold-rich regions of Bure and Bambuk. Unlike Ghana, Islam played a significant role in Mali’s rise. Under Sundiata (r. 1235–1255), Mali became a powerful kingdom by uniting the Malinke chiefdoms. Sundiata, from the Keita clan, held the title “Mansa,” meaning “king” or “emperor.” He claimed descent from Bilal ibn Rabah, a prominent Black companion of the Prophet Muhammad and the first muezzin (caller to prayer) in Islam. Mali’s oral traditions, preserved by griots (storytellers and oral historians), assert that Bilal’s eldest son, Lawalo, settled in Mali, linking the empire to its Islamic heritage. This connection to Bilal, a revered figure in Islam, underscored Mali’s Islamic identity and political legitimacy. Under Sundiata, Islamic influence expanded in the Savanna, positioning Mali as a significant partner in the Islamic world.

His great nephew, Mansa Musa, further elevated Mali’s international status by undertaking a legendary pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324, showcasing the empire’s wealth and Islamic devotion. Mansa Musa’s rule expanded Mali’s influence by incorporating Walata, a key trade and religious hub in present-day Mauritania, which facilitated greater Islamic diffusion. Arab historians such as Ibn Khaldun (d. 1406) and al-‘Umari (d. 1349) praised Mansa Musa’s wealth, Islamic scholarship, and governance. His pilgrimage, accompanied by vast riches and thousands of enslaved people, underscored Mali’s prosperity and integration into the Islamic world, where slavery was a common social norm. Historians Ibn Khaldun and al-Maqrizi (d. 1442) noted that Mansa Musa’s spending during his pilgrimage caused the value of gold to drop in Egypt for several years. His fame even reached Europe, as illustrated in the 1375 Catalan Map by Abraham Cresques. The map portrayed him as the wealthiest and most noble king in Africa, showing him holding a gold nugget to emphasize his immense wealth and influence. The Malian era heralded significant historical connections between Africa and the Middle East, leaving a legacy of literacy that profoundly influenced culture, society, and politics. Indeed, before European colonialism, Arabic served as a primary medium of intellectual discourse and innovation in fields ranging from science and literature to religion in West Africa.

During the thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries, the rulers of Mali extended their domains westward to the Atlantic coast, eastward past the great bend of the Niger River, and northward to the commercial towns scattered along the Saharan fringe, building an empire that incorporated many non-Malinke peoples. By achieving political domination over a vast territory, they effectively controlled and taxed the north-south flow of commerce across West Africa. West Africans exported products such as gold, ivory, ostrich feathers, hides, and slaves in exchange for North African goods like salt, horses, textiles, books, and paper. From the mid-thirteenth to the mid-fourteenth century, Mali’s prosperity was closely tied to the Mediterranean world’s growing demand for gold. For instance, Italian and Catalan merchants paid increasingly high prices for gold transported across the Sahara to North African ports such as Ceuta. This demand, combined with existing markets in Islamic states, spurred greater gold production in West Africa, significantly boosting Mali’s economy. By the late medieval period, West Africa may have supplied nearly two-thirds of the world’s gold.

Songhay

The Songhay people existed in the great northward bend of the Niger River. In the thirteenth century, they were part of the Mali Empire, but in 1335, they broke away and began to conquer the surrounding areas with a well-trained army. Under leaders like Sonni Ali the Great (1464–1492), Songhay expanded its territories, taking over regions previously controlled by Mali. Sonni Ali focused on defending his dominion against threats from the Mossi, the Tuaregs, and the Fulbe. He captured Timbuktu from the Tuaregs in 1468 but faced ongoing resistance. Sonni Ali also persecuted the Fulbe and the scholars of Timbuktu (a prominent group of Malian intellectuals), suspecting them of aiding his enemies. His reign marked the foundation of the Songhay Empire, despite internal and external challenges. Like the previous empires of Ghana and Mali, Songhay’s wealth came largely from the Saharan trade in salt and gold, centered around the great trading cities of Gao, Djenné, and Timbuktu. The Songhay Empire became one of the largest African empires. Its capital was Gao, while other cities like Timbuktu and Djenné continued to serve as thriving commercial hubs. The Songhay Empire was initially ruled by the Sonni dynasty (ca. 1464–1493) and later came under the Askia dynasty (1493–1591). Under Sonni Ali, the empire expanded significantly, surpassing Mali. His successor, Askia the Great, implemented political and economic reforms, but later Songhay rulers faced internal strife, leading to decline. Despite some stability under Askia Dawud, the empire weakened due to regional conflicts and dynastic struggles. The Songhay Empire ultimately fell in 1591 after being defeated by the Moroccan army at the Battle of Tondibi (near Gao), marking the end of its dominance over trans-Saharan trade routes.