Mansa Musa's Millions
Historians estimate Mansa Musa’s personal net worth was around what?
What is 400 Billion
While on his hajj, Mansa Musa stopped in this city, causing massive inflation due to his extravagant spending.
What is Cairo?
This city, known as a major trade center, was among the three empires that spanned the Niger River region
What is Gao?
Professional storytellers, poets, and musicians who preserved West African history and genealogy.
What are griots
Sundiata is said to have conquered this rival leader at the Battle of Kirina
Who is Sumanguru (or Soumaoro Kanté)?
Mansa Musa was the 14th-century emperor of this West African empire, which reached its peak under his rule.
What is the Mali empire
his precious, white mineral was brought from the North by caravans and was valued equally to gold.
What is gold?
This major West African river, the third longest on the continent, was the lifeline for agriculture and transportation in the Mali Empire.
What is the Niger river
This proverb describes the death of a griot, highlighting their importance.
What is "a library burns"?
Sundiata spent his youth in exile in this kingdom after being forced away from his home in Niani.
What is Mema?
Mansa Musa’s son and successor to the throne, as recorded in Malian history.
Who is Maghan I?
Mansa Musa gave away so much of this, that its value decreased in Cairo for over a decade.
What is gold
This city, which became a famous center of Islamic learning and trade, was located near the northern bend of the Niger River.
What is Timbuktu?
A popular stringed instrument traditionally played by griots to accompany their stories.
What is the Kora?
Sundiata established this city as the capital of his new empire.
What is Niani?
Mansa Musa's wealth was built on controlling the production and trade of these two main natural resources.
: What are gold and salt?
his city became a major hub of learning and trade, where thousands of books were sold.
What is Timbuktu?
The Mali Empire’s territory extended from the Atlantic coast in the west to this modern-day country in the east.
What is Niger?
Griots functioned as these, storing complex histories and genealogies.
What are "living libraries"?
he epic of Sundiata begins with the griot doing this to show the importance of the oral tradition.
What is singing/telling history (or invocation)?
Though he was a devout Muslim, this word means "king" or "ruler" in the local Mandinka language.
What is Mansa
This West African empire that preceded Mali also built its wealth on the gold trade.
What is the Ghana empire
The Mali Empire expanded to control trade routes between the Sahara Desert and this southern ecological zone, which provided gold.
What are the savannahs/forests?
Known as the "Lion Prince" and subject of the most famous epic told by griots.
Who is Sundiata Keita?
his 1235 battle is crucial because it established the dominance of the Malinke people and united the region under Sundiata.
What is the Battle of Kirina?