People of Mali
The population of present-day Mali is over 14.5 million people and encompasses a number of sub-Saharan ethnic groups. The main ethnic groups of Mali are the Mande, including the Bambara, Malinke, and Sarakole,accounting for 50% of the total population. The most dominant of these is the Bambara, making up 36.5% of the population. Mali's official language is French, however 80% of Malian people can communicate in Bambara, which is the country's lingua franca. Other groups include the Peul, accounting for 17%, the Voltaic, making up 12%, the Songhai, 6%, the Tuareg and Moor 10%, and other groups 5%. The Bambara are mainly farmers who occupy all of central Mali which is bounded by the Côte d'Ivoire frontier in the south and Nara and Nioro in the north. Malinke live mainly in the regions of Bafoulabé, Kita, and Bamako. The Peul, who are semi-sedentary herdsmen, are found throughout the republic, but mainly in the region of Mopti. The Songhai, who are mainly farmers, fishermen, and merchants, live along the banks and islands of the Niger River, east of the inland delta. The nomadic Tuareg, of Berber origin, are mainly in the north, in the Adrar des Iforas. The Minianka, largely farmers, populate the region of Koutiala, and the Senufo, also farmers, are found principally in the region of Sikasso.
Conclusion
After the death of Mansa Musa, the power of Mali began to decline. Mansa Musa’s sons could not hold the empire together. In 1430 C.E., the Berbers in the north took much of Mali’s territory, including the city of Timbuktu, and gradually Mali lost its hold on trade until the empire crumbled. The great empire that had once been the wealthiest and most powerful empire throughout the history of West Africa and had controlled the trading in this region by building a highly developed political and military structure, conquering the most important cities of those days, had now collapsed because of internal disputes and invaders. Nevertheless, the Mali Empire had many profound cultural influences on West Africa, allowing the spread of its language, laws and customs along the Niger River, which is still felt to this day.