Sundiata Keita or Sundjata Keyita or Mari Djata I (c. 1217 - c. 1255) was the founder of the Mali Empire and celebrated as a hero of the Mandé people of West Africa in the semi-historical Epic of Sundiata. April 9 - Peter of Courtenay crowned emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople at Rome, by Pope Honorius III May 20 - First Barons War, royalist victory at Lincoln. ... Events Königsberg was founded Births Emperor Albert I of Germany, in July Deaths Monarchs/Presidents Aragon - James I King of Aragon and count of Barcelona (reigned from 1213 to 1276) Categories: 1255 ... The Mali Empire or Manding Empire or Manden Kurufa was a medieval West African state of the Mandinka from 1235 to 1468. ... Mandé is an ethnic group of West Africa. ...  Western Africa (UN subregion)  Maghreb[1] West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. ...

Sundjata is also known by the name Sogolon Djata. The name Sogolon is taken from his mother, the buffalo woman (so called because of her ugliness and hunchback), and Jata, meaning "lion". A common Mande naming practice combines the mother's name with the personal name to give Sonjata or Sunjata. The last name Keita is a clan name more than a surname.

The story of Sundiata is primarily known through oral tradition, transmitted by generations of traditional Mandinka griots. Oral tradition or oral culture is a way of transmitting history, literature or law from one generation to the next in a civilization without a writing system. ... The Mandinka are a people of West Africa. ... This page is about the West African poets. ...

The Epic of Sundiata

In the Epic of Sundiata (also spelled Son-Jara), Naré Maghann Konaté (also called Maghan Kon Fatta or Maghan the Handsome) was a Mandinka king who one day received a divine hunter at his court. The hunter predicted that if Konaté married an ugly woman, she would give him a son who would one day be a mighty king. Naré Maghann Konaté was already married to Sassouma Berté and had a son by her, Dankaran Toumani Keïta. However, when two Traoré hunters from the Do kingdom presented him an ugly, hunchbacked woman named Sogolon, he remembered the prophecy and married her. She soon gave birth to a son, Sundiata Keita, who was unable to walk throughout his childhood. With the death of Naré Maghann Konaté (c. 1224), his first son, Dankaran Tuman, assumed the throne despite Konaté's wishes that the prophecy be respected. Sunjata and his mother, who now had given birth to two daughters and adopted a second son from Konaté's third wife Namandjé, suffered the scorn of the new king and his mother. After an insult against Sogolon, Sundiata requested an iron rod from the blacksmith Nounfari, which he used to pull himself upright and walk for the first time. Nonetheless, the hatred of Sassouma Berté and Dankaran Toumani Keita soon drove Sundiata, his mother, and his two sisters into exile in the Mena kingdom. Naré Maghann Konaté was a semi-historical 12th-century king of the Mandinka people, in what is today Mali. ... // Foundation of the University of Naples Livonian Brothers of the Sword conquers Latgallians and the stronghold of Tartu from Ugaunian and Russian troops. ... A blacksmith A blacksmith at work A blacksmith at work A blacksmiths fire Hot metal work from a blacksmith A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from iron or steel by forging the metal; i. ...

Meanwhile, Soumaoro Kanté, cruel sorcerer king of Sosso, attacks the Mandinka kingdom, causing Dankaran Toumani Keita to take flight in fear. The oppressed Mandinka people now send for the exiled Sundiata. Forging a coalition of neighboring small kingdoms, Sundiata wages war against the Sosso, finally defeating Soumaoro Kanté at the Battle of Kirina (c. 1235). Soumaoro Kanté disappears in the Koulikoro mountains, and Sundiata assumes the title "Mansa," "king of kings," as the first ruler of the Mali Empire. Soumaoro Kanté (sometimes Sumanguru) was a thirteenth century king of the Sosso people of the Takrur region. ... The Sosso are a people of West Africa, found particularly in Guinea. ... The Battle of Kirina (c. ... Events Anglo-Norman invasion of Connacht St. ... Koulikoro is a region in Mali. ... Mansa is a Mandinka word meaning king of kings. ...

Mansa

Sundiata Keita established his capital at his home village of Niani, Mali, near the present-day Malian border with Guinea. Though he was a Muslim, Sundiata also exploited local religion, building a reputation as a man of powerful magic. Niani was the capital city of the ancient empire of Mali, located south of the Sahara. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Turkish: Müslüman, Persian and Urdu: مسلمان, Bosnian: Musliman) is an adherent of Islam. ... The Sorceress by John William Waterhouse Magic and sorcery are the influencing of events, objects, people and physical phenomena by mystical, paranormal or supernatural means. ...

Sundiata was not an absolute monarch, despite what the title implies. Though he probably wielded popular authority, the Mali Empire was reportedly run like a federation, with each tribe having a chief representative at the court. The first tribes were Mandinka clans of Traore, Kamara, Koroma, Konde, and of course Keita. The tribal council was in charge of checking the Mansa's power, enforcing his edicts among their people, and selecting the successor (usually the Mansa's brother or sister's son).

Sundiata Keita died in 1255, probably of drowning. Tradition holds that he died while crossing the Sankarini river, where a shrine remains today. He had three sons who succeeded him to the throne of the Mali Empire: Mansa Wali Keita, Ouati Keita and Khalifa Keita. The famous West African ruler Mansa Musa is his grandnephew. Events Königsberg was founded Births Emperor Albert I of Germany, in July Deaths Monarchs/Presidents Aragon - James I King of Aragon and count of Barcelona (reigned from 1213 to 1276) Categories: 1255 ... Mansa Wali Keita (died c. ... Ouati Keita was the third mansa of the Mali Empire, following the death of his brother, Wali Keita (c. ... Khalifa Keita was the fourth mansa of the Mali Empire. ... Mansa Musa depicted holding a gold nugget from a 1395 map of Africa and Europe Mansa Musa[1] was a 14th century king (or Mansa) who ruled the Mali Empire between 1312 and 1337. ...

Sundiata is also known as Mari Djata or Marijata according to Arab historian Ibn Khaldun in the late 14th century. Languages Arabic other languages (Arab minorities) Religions Predominantly Islam Some adherents of Druze, Judaism, Samaritan, Christianity Related ethnic groups Mizrachi Jews, Sephardi Jews, Ashkenazi Jews, Canaanites, other Semitic-speaking groups An Arab (Arabic: ‎; transliteration: ) is a member of a Semitic group of people whose cultural, linguistic, and in certain cases... Ibn Khaldūn (May 27, 1332/732AH to March 19, 1406/808AH) was a famous historiographer and historian born in present-day Tunisia, and is sometimes viewed as one of the forerunners of modern historiography, sociology and economics. ... This 14th-century statue from south India depicts the gods Shiva (on the left) and Uma (on the right). ...

External links

• PDF: Guide to Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali from the Boston University's African Studies Center

• Outline of the Sundiata epic by Janice Siegel

References

• Davidson, Basil. Africa in History. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1995.
• McKissack, Patricia and Fredrick. The Royal Kingdoms of Ghana, Mali and Songhay: Life in Medieval Africa. Sagebrush: 1995.
• Ancient African Legends
• Well known translations of the epic include D.T. Niane's prose version, Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali (Harlow: Longman, 2006, 1994, c1965: ISBN 1405849428) and Fa-Digi Sisoko's oral version, Son-Jara : The Mande Epic (Bloomington, Ind. : Indiana University Press, 2003).