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Timbuktu, city in the western African country of Mali, historically important as a trading post on the trans-Saharan caravan route and as a centre of Islamic culture ( c. 1400–1600). It is located on the southern edge of the Sahara, about 8 miles (13 km) north of the Niger River.
- Timbuktu Summary
Timbuktu, French Tombouctou, Town (pop., 2009: 54,453),...
- Mali Empire
By the 14th century the Dyula, or Wangara, as the Muslim...
- Ghadamis
Ghadames, oasis, northwestern Libya, near the Tunisian and...
- Timbuktu Summary
Timbuktu is located on the southern edge of the Sahara 15 km ( mi) north of the main channel of the River Niger. The town is surrounded by sand dunes and the streets are covered in sand. The port of Kabara is 8 km (5 mi) to the south of the town and is connected to an arm of the river by a 3 km (2 mi) canal.
- 261 m (856 ft)
- Mali
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Jul 25, 2018 · Perched on the edge of the Sahara, this West African city was a center of religion and scholarship for centuries. Get facts, photos, and travel tips for Timbuktu, a World Heritage site in Mali...
- Early History & Name
- The Mali Empire
- Mansa Musa
- A Centre of Learning
- Decline
- As Far as Timbuktu
Timbuktu is a city located near the Niger River in modern-day Mali in West Africa. The area around Timbuktu has been inhabited since the Neolithic period as evidenced by Iron Age tumuli, megaliths and remains of now abandoned villages. The Niger River regularly flooded the plains between Timbuktu and Segu to the southwest, which provided fertile la...
From the mid-13th century CE Timbuktu, then under the control of the Mali Empire (1240-1645 CE), would reach new heights of wealth and fame, becoming the most important trading city in the Sudan region (the area from the west coast to central Africa, stretching along the southern border of the Sahara desert). The Mali Empire, with its capital at Ni...
From the reign of Mansa Musa I (1312-1337 CE), mosques began to be built across the Mali Empire. A large mosque was built at Timbuktu, the 'great mosque', also known as Djinguereber or Jingereber, designed by the famous architect Ishak al-Tuedjin, who had been enticed from Cairo following Mansa Musa's visit there. The mosque was completed by 1330 C...
Islamic learning was also encouraged, with Timbuktu possessing several universities where books were accumulated in large libraries and students were trained first to memorise texts and, for higher level students, to produce commentaries and creative works based on Islamic religious texts. One noted scholar was the saint Sharif Sidi Yahya al-Tadils...
The Mali Empire was in decline by the 15th century CE as trade routes opened up elsewhere and several rival kingdoms developed to the west, notably the Songhai. European ships, especially those belonging to the Portuguese, were now regularly sailing down the west coast of Africa and so the Saharan caravans faced stiff competition as the most effici...
Timbuktu and the Mali Empire in general received international attention in the Middle Ages thanks to descriptions in the works of Muslim travellers. The region was visited and described by the famed explorer from Tangiers Ibn Battuta (1304 - c. 1369 CE), who travelled throughout West Africa amongst many other places in the world. Battuta, visiting...
- Mark Cartwright
Located at the gateway to the Sahara desert, within the confines of the fertile zone of the Sudan and in an exceptionally propitious site near to the river, Timbuktu is one of the cities of Africa whose name is the most heavily charged with history.
Jan 29, 2013 · Timbuktu conjures up images of long camel caravans out on the edge of the sand-strewn Sahara — a remoteness so legendary that the ancient city is still a byword for the end of the earth. The...
Oct 19, 2023 · Timbuktu struggles to draw tourist revenue and develop tourism in a way that preserves the past—new construction near the mosques has prompted the World Heritage Committee to keep the site under close surveillance. Perched as it is on the edge of the Sahara, Timbuktu also faces the threat of encroaching desert sands.
