The Legend of Timbuktu, Mali and Today By Matt Rosenberg Updated February 19, 2016. The word "Timbuktu" (or Timbuctoo or Tombouctou) is used in several languages to represent a far-away place but Timbuktu is an actual city in the African country of Mali . Where Is Timbuktu? Located near the edge the Niger River, Timbuktu is situated near the middle of Mali in Africa. Timbuktu has a population of approximately 30,000 and is a major Saharan Desert trading post. The Legend of Timbuktu Timbuktu was founded by nomads in the twelfth century and it rapidly became a major trading depot for the caravans of the Sahara Desert . During the fourteenth century, the legend of Timbuktu as a rich cultural center spread through the world. The beginning of the legend can be traced to 1324, when the Emperor of Mali made his pilgrimage to Mecca via Cairo. In Cairo, the merchants and traders were impressed by the amount of gold carried by the emperor, who claimed that the gold was from Timbuktu.

Furthermore, in 1354 the great Muslim explorer Ibn Batuta wrote of his visit to Timbuktu and told of the wealth and gold of the region. continue reading below our video Test Your General Science Knowledge Thus, Timbuktu became renown as an African El Dorado, a city made of gold. During the fifteenth century, Timbuktu grew in importance, but its homes were never made of gold. Timbuktu produced few of its own goods but served as the major trading center for salt trade across the desert region. The city also became a center of Islamic study and the home of a university and extensive library. The city's maximum population during the 1400s probably numbered somewhere between 50,000 to 100,000, with approximately one-quarter of the population composed of scholars and students. The Timbuktu Legend Grows The legend of Timbuktu's wealth refused to die and only grew. A 1526 visit to Timbuktu by a Muslim from Grenada, Leo Africanus, told of Timbuktu as a typical trading outpost. This only incited further interest in the city.

In 1618, a London company was formed to establish trade with Timbuktu. Unfortunately, the first trading expedition ended up with the massacre of all its members and a second expedition sailed up the Gambia River and thus never reached Timbuktu. In the 1700s and early 1800s, many explorers attempted to reach Timbuktu but none returned. Many unsuccessful and successful explorers were forced to drink camel urine, their own urine, or even blood to attempt to survive the barren Sahara Desert. Known wells would be dry or would not provide enough water upon an expedition's arrival. Mungo Park was a Scottish doctor who attempted a trip to Timbuktu in 1805. Unfortunately, his expedition team of dozens of Europeans and natives all died or abandoned the expedition along the way and Park was left to sail along the Niger River, never visiting Timbuktu, but merely shooting at people and other objects on the shore with his guns as his insanity increased along his voyage. His body was never found.

In 1824, the Geographical Society of Paris offered a reward of 7000 francs and a gold metal valued at 2,000 francs to the first European who could visit Timbuktu and return to tell their story of the mythical city. European Arrival in Timbuktu The first European acknowledged to have reached Timbuktu was Scottish explorer Gordon Laing. He left Tripoli in 1825 and traveled for a year and a month to reach Timbuktu. On the way, he was attacked by the ruling Tuareg nomads and was shot, cut by swords, and broke his arm. He recovered from the vicious attack and made his way to Timbuktu and arrived in August 1826. Laing was unimpressed with Timbuktu, which had, as Leo Africanus reported, become simply a salt trading outpost filled with mud-walled homes in the middle of a barren desert. Laing remained in Timbuktu for just over one month. Two days after leaving Timbuktu, he was murdered. French explorer Rene-Auguste Caillie had better luck than Laing.

He planned to make his trip to Timbuktu disguised as an Arab as part of a caravan, much to the chagrin of proper European explorers of the era. Caillie studied Arabic and the Islamic religion for several years. In April 1827, he left the coast of West Africa and reached Timbuktu a year later, even though he was ill for five months during the trip. Caillie was unimpressed with Timbuktu and remained there for two weeks. He then returned to Morocco and then home to France. Caillie published three volumes about his travels and was awarded the prize from the Geographical Society of Paris. German geographer Heinrich Barth left Tripoli with two other explorers in 1850 for a trek to Timbuktu but his companions both died. Barth reached Timbuktu in 1853 and did not return home until 1855 - he was feared dead by many. Barth gained fame through the publication of his five volumes of his experiences. As with previous explorers to Timbuktu, Barth found the city quite the anti-climax.

French Colonial Control of Timbuktu In the late 1800s, France took control of the Mali region and decided to take Timbuktu away from the control of the violent Tuareg who controlled trade in the area. The French military was sent to occupy Timbuktu in 1894. Under the command of Major Joseph Joffre (later a famous World War I general), Timbuktu was occupied and became the site of a French fort. Communication between Timbuktu and France was difficult, making Timbuktu an unhappy place for a soldier to be stationed. Nonetheless, the area around Timbuktu was well protected from the Tuareg so other nomad groups were able to live without fear of the hostile Tuareg. Modern Timbuktu Even after the invention of air travel, the Sahara was unyielding. The plane making an inaugural air flight from Algiers to Timbuktu in 1920 was lost. Eventually, a successful air strip was established; however, today, Timbuktu is still most commonly reached by camel, motor vehicle, or boat.

In 1960, Timbuktu became part of the independent country of Mali. The population of Timbuktu in a 1940 census was estimated at approximately 5,000 people; in 1976, the population was 19,000; in 1987 (the latest estimate available), 32,000 people resided in the city. In 1988, Timbuktu was designated a United Nations World Heritage Site and efforts are underway to preserve and protect the city and especially its centuries-old mosques. BBC NEWS | Africa | Timbuktu - city of legends Monday, 15 April, 2002, 15:07 GMT 16:07 UK Timbuktu - city of legends Camel caravans used to carry gold across the Sahara By the BBC's Joan Baxter Timbuktu, northern Mali The fabled city of Timbuktu is not a myth - it does indeed exist - in northern Mali, on the edge of the Sahara desert.

These days, it pretty much lives up to its reputation as "the end of the world" but once upon a time, it was the centre of important trade routes. Muslim merchants took gold north from West Africa to Europe and the Middle East and returned with salt and other goods. This trade made the city enormously wealthy - legend has it that the lavish golden gifts dished out in 14th century Cairo by Kankan Moussa, Emperor of the ancient state of Mali, caused the price of gold to crash. At the time, salt was worth as much as gold, pound for pound, in Timbuktu. Tales of the city's riches were spread by the Muslim traders and European explorers who heard them dreamt of making their fortunes many times over. But Timbuktu was also a great Islamic centre and non-Muslims - such as the explorers - were banned, adding greatly to the mystique which quickly grew up around the city - and which still exists to this day. But during the 16th and 17th centuries, trade switched to the Atlantic Ocean and the so-called "City of 333 saints" began its long descent.

Sand dunes Today, it is a desolate and impoverished town - renowned for its heat, isolation and sand dunes. God may turn it all around again, and Timbuktu will once again find its rightful place Chirfi Alpha Sane, historian The governor of the region complains that the only roads to the north are treacherous sandy tracks, where banditry is common. Despite a new airport in Timbuktu, flights regularly fail to materialise, stranding passengers for days. Most trade is done with neighbouring Mauritania rather than southern Mali, and crowded riverboats from Mopti take days to reach the port on the River Niger that serves Timbuktu, 10km from the town itself. Still, thousands of determined visitors from every continent do make their way to Timbuktu each year. Saints With precious few other employment opportunities, hundreds of teenage boys in Timbuktu have turned themselves into guides. Boasting nicknames such as Ali Baba George Washington, the young guides offer tourists whatever they have come to look for in Timbuktu.

There is the standard tour of the historical landmarks of the ancient city, with fanciful tales of how former French presidents ensured their re-election by consulting with powerful saints and the holy men or "marabouts" who claim to represent them. Timbuktu hosts a collection of ancient Islamic manuscripts And if the clients so wish, as the guides say they sometimes do, there can also be a discreet, romantic adventure under the desert sky on the sand dunes that surround the holy Islamic town. And they wax lyrical - in smatterings of every language from Chinese to Swedish to gangster-rap English - about Timbuktu "the mysterious". Even if the town has fallen on difficult times, Timbuktu still holds many mysteries and marvels for visitors and also for those who live there. The Sankore University, whose 50,000 Muslim scholars helped spread Islam across West Africa, is still functioning, albeit with reduced numbers of just 15,000. Cybercafe The impressive Jingereber mosque, built from mud in 1325 AD, is also still standing.

And there is the Ahmed Baba Centre, with its fantastic collection of manuscripts that capture more than a millennium of Islamic scholarship and scientific knowledge. Some say Timbuktu is Mali's melting pot Local cultures - Songhrai, Tuareg, Arab and Moor - have intermingled, but retained their distinct traditions. In the town's only cybercafe, young women wearing demure indigo veils hammer away on computers, using the internet to communicate with family members who have left for other continents. Despite the recent years of fighting that pitted ethnic Songhrai against Tuaregs, Timbuktu still has an impressive population of philosophers and Islamic scholars who maintain the city is a symbol of peace. Astronomy Chirfi Alpha Sane, an archivist in the Ahmed Baba Centre in Timbuktu, says there are lessons for the entire world in the 20,000 ancient Arabic manuscripts in the centre - some of which date back to the second century. "There is everything here. "Islamic law with lessons for peace through dialogue, as well as science, astronomy, medicine.

Timbuktu is one of the richest cities in Africa Ismael Diadie Haidara, philosopher "In Timbuktu these scholars said that gold came from the south, salt came from the north, money came from the lands of the white men, but they believed that wisdom and the word of God were to be found only in Timbuktu. "That wisdom is here, in these manuscripts." Mr Sane is a member of the Action Committee for the North, an organisation that denounces the Malian Government's "neglect" of Timbuktu and the desert north. But he is philosophical about the future of the ancient city: "In the Middle Ages this was almost the centre of the world. "Then one day God turned it all around and many people started viewing Timbuktu as the end of the world. "One day God may turn it all around again, and Timbuktu will once again find its rightful place and regain its glory." Co-existence Timbuktu philosopher and historian, Ismael Diadie Haidara, points out that Timbuktu, which was inhabited by Muslims, Christians and Jews for hundreds of years, has always been a centre of religious and racial tolerance.

For many years, he has been struggling to raise funds to preserve 3,000 ancient manuscripts in his library that detail the co-existence in Timbuktu of Muslims, Jews and Christians. He himself is directly descended from Spanish forefathers with Christian origins who converted to Islam and fled to the Niger Valley in 1468 and later intermarried with African Muslims and Hebrew merchants. The ancient city and its people have fallen on hard times Mr Haidara says he is one of 1,000 Malians today who can claim in his ancestry Christian, Muslim and Jewish blood: "All three groups co-existed peacefully in Timbuktu up until the end of the 19th century. "If today Timbuktu is one of the poorest cities in Mali, and Mali one of the poorest countries in Africa, it is also a city that shows the way of the future - tolerance and co-existence. "In this way, I think Timbuktu is one of the richest cities in Africa." See also: Timbuktu -- World Heritage Site -- National Geographic Criteria: (ii)(iv)(v) Reason: Timbuktu was a thriving center of scholarship instrumental to the spread of Islam in Africa.

It retains three notable mosques and one of the world’s great collections of ancient manuscripts. * * * This West African city—long synonymous with the uttermost end of the Earth—was added to the World Heritage List in 1988, many centuries after its apex. Timbuktu was a center of Islamic scholarship under several African empires, home to a 25,000-student university and other madrasahs that served as wellsprings for the spread of Islam throughout Africa from the 13th to 16th centuries. Sacred Muslim texts, in bound editions, were carried great distances to Timbuktu for the use of eminent scholars from Cairo, Baghdad, Persia, and elsewhere who were in residence at the city. The great teachings of Islam, from astronomy and mathematics to medicine and law, were collected and produced here in several hundred thousand manuscripts. Many of them remain, though in precarious condition, to form a priceless written record of African history. Now a shadow of its former glory, Timbuktu strikes most travelers as humble and perhaps a bit run down.

But the city’s former status as an Islamic oasis is echoed in its three great mud-and-timber mosques: Djingareyber, Sankore, and Sidi Yahia, which recall Timbuktu's golden age. These 14th- and 15th-century places of worship were also the homes of Islamic scholars known as the Ambassadors of Peace. Most of Timbuktu’s priceless manuscripts are in private hands, where they’ve been hidden for long years, and some have vanished into the black market in a trade that threatens to take with it part of Timbuktu’s soul. There is hope that libraries and cultural centers can be established to preserve the precious collection and become a source of tourist revenue. Some fledgling efforts toward this end are now under way. Religion wasn’t the city’s only industry. Timbuktu sits near the Niger River, where North African’s savannas disappear into the sands of the Sahara, and part of its romantic image is that of a camel caravan trade route. This characterization had roots in reality and in fact continues to the present in much reduced form. Salt from the desert had great value and, along with other caravan goods, enriched the city in its heyday.

It was these profitable caravans, in fact, that first brought scholars to congregate at the site. In the 16th century Moroccan invaders began to drive scholars out, and trade routes slowly shifted to the coasts. The city’s importance and prestige waned and scholars drifted elsewhere. French colonization at the close of the 19th century dealt another serious blow to the former glories of Timbuktu. Things in Timbuktu deteriorated to the point that, though recognized as a World Heritage site only a few years before, it was placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 1990. But with major improvements to the preservation of the three ancient mosques Timbuktu earned its way off that list in 2005. 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, relentless encroachment of the desert sands is also a threat to Timbuktu.

How to Get There The name Timbuktu has come to symbolize back-of-beyond remoteness, and even in this day and age it’s not an easy place to reach. The drive from Mali’s capital, Bamako, takes 20 hours and much of it is off-road. But a new airport has eased the travel considerably. Several weekly flights now operate to and from Bamako. When to Visit As you’d expect, temperatures can get quite high in this Saharan outpost. April to June is a very hot time, as is September and October. Those planning to reach Timbuktu by public boat service should keep in mind that water is usually only navigable between late July and late November. How to Visit After wandering the streets of Timbuktu, consider a desert tour for a taste of the vast, empty lands that made Timbuktu synonymous with the world’s most exotic and isolated destinations. Comment on This Story By the BBC's Joan Baxter Timbuktu, northern Mali The fabled city of Timbuktu is not a myth - it does indeed exist - in northern Mali, on the edge of the Sahara desert.

These days, it pretty much lives up to its reputation as "the end of the world" but once upon a time, it was the centre of important trade routes. Muslim merchants took gold north from West Africa to Europe and the Middle East and returned with salt and other goods. Camel caravans used to carry gold across the Sahara This trade made the city enormously wealthy - legend has it that the lavish golden gifts dished out in 14th century Cairo by Kankan Moussa, Emperor of the ancient state of Mali, caused the price of gold to crash. At the time, salt was worth as much as gold, pound for pound, in Timbuktu. Tales of the city's riches were spread by the Muslim traders and European explorers who heard them dreamt of making their fortunes many times over. But Timbuktu was also a great Islamic centre and non-Muslims - such as the explorers - were banned, adding greatly to the mystique which quickly grew up around the city - and which still exists to this day. But during the 16th and 17th centuries, trade switched to the Atlantic Ocean and the so-called "City of 333 saints" began its long descent.

Sand dunes Today, it is a desolate and impoverished town - renowned for its heat, isolation and sand dunes. God may turn it all around again, and Timbuktu will once again find its rightful place Chirfi Alpha Sane, historian The governor of the region complains that the only roads to the north are treacherous sandy tracks, where banditry is common. Despite a new airport in Timbuktu, flights regularly fail to materialise, stranding passengers for days. Most trade is done with neighbouring Mauritania rather than southern Mali, and crowded riverboats from Mopti take days to reach the port on the River Niger that serves Timbuktu, 10km from the town itself. Still, thousands of determined visitors from every continent do make their way to Timbuktu each year. Saints With precious few other employment opportunities, hundreds of teenage boys in Timbuktu have turned themselves into guides. Boasting nicknames such as Ali Baba George Washington, the young guides offer tourists whatever they have come to look for in Timbuktu.

There is the standard tour of the historical landmarks of the ancient city, with fanciful tales of how former French presidents ensured their re-election by consulting with powerful saints and the holy men or "marabouts" who claim to represent them. Timbuktu hosts a collection of ancient Islamic manuscripts And if the clients so wish, as the guides say they sometimes do, there can also be a discreet, romantic adventure under the desert sky on the sand dunes that surround the holy Islamic town. And they wax lyrical - in smatterings of every language from Chinese to Swedish to gangster-rap English - about Timbuktu "the mysterious". Even if the town has fallen on difficult times, Timbuktu still holds many mysteries and marvels for visitors and also for those who live there. The Sankore University, whose 50,000 Muslim scholars helped spread Islam across West Africa, is still functioning, albeit with reduced numbers of just 15,000. Cybercafe The impressive Jingereber mosque, built from mud in 1325 AD, is also still standing.

And there is the Ahmed Baba Centre, with its fantastic collection of manuscripts that capture more than a millennium of Islamic scholarship and scientific knowledge. Some say Timbuktu is Mali's melting pot Local cultures - Songhrai, Tuareg, Arab and Moor - have intermingled, but retained their distinct traditions. In the town's only cybercafe, young women wearing demure indigo veils hammer away on computers, using the internet to communicate with family members who have left for other continents. Despite the recent years of fighting that pitted ethnic Songhrai against Tuaregs, Timbuktu still has an impressive population of philosophers and Islamic scholars who maintain the city is a symbol of peace. Astronomy Chirfi Alpha Sane, an archivist in the Ahmed Baba Centre in Timbuktu, says there are lessons for the entire world in the 20,000 ancient Arabic manuscripts in the centre - some of which date back to the second century. "There is everything here. "Islamic law with lessons for peace through dialogue, as well as science, astronomy, medicine.

Timbuktu is one of the richest cities in Africa Ismael Diadie Haidara, philosopher "In Timbuktu these scholars said that gold came from the south, salt came from the north, money came from the lands of the white men, but they believed that wisdom and the word of God were to be found only in Timbuktu. "That wisdom is here, in these manuscripts." Mr Sane is a member of the Action Committee for the North, an organisation that denounces the Malian Government's "neglect" of Timbuktu and the desert north. But he is philosophical about the future of the ancient city: "In the Middle Ages this was almost the centre of the world. "Then one day God turned it all around and many people started viewing Timbuktu as the end of the world. "One day God may turn it all around again, and Timbuktu will once again find its rightful place and regain its glory." Co-existence Timbuktu philosopher and historian, Ismael Diadie Haidara, points out that Timbuktu, which was inhabited by Muslims, Christians and Jews for hundreds of years, has always been a centre of religious and racial tolerance.

For many years, he has been struggling to raise funds to preserve 3,000 ancient manuscripts in his library that detail the co-existence in Timbuktu of Muslims, Jews and Christians. He himself is directly descended from Spanish forefathers with Christian origins who converted to Islam and fled to the Niger Valley in 1468 and later intermarried with African Muslims and Hebrew merchants. The ancient city and its people have fallen on hard times Mr Haidara says he is one of 1,000 Malians today who can claim in his ancestry Christian, Muslim and Jewish blood: "All three groups co-existed peacefully in Timbuktu up until the end of the 19th century. "If today Timbuktu is one of the poorest cities in Mali, and Mali one of the poorest countries in Africa, it is also a city that shows the way of the future - tolerance and co-existence.

"In this way, I think Timbuktu is one of the richest cities in Africa." Timbuktuheritage.org - History of Timbuktu - A Multicultural African Legacy timbuktuheritage.org History of Timbuktu - A Multicultural African Legacy Most people think of Timbuktu as the remotest place on earth. Others even think of Timbuktu as being a legend or place which existed only in people’s imagination. Timbuktu is located in the present day Republic of Mali at the edge of the Sahara desert. Timbuktu was founded by the Tuareg Imashagan or Kel Tamasheq in the 11th century. The Kel Tamasheq roamed the desert during the rainy season in search of grazing lands for their herds and camels. During the dry season, however, they camped a few miles from the Niger river in search of water and grass for their live stock. Whenever the desert becomes green, the Turareg will leave their heavy goods with an old Tamasheq women called Tin Abutut who shortly thereafter became a warehouse or a depot for commercial goods transiting from the desert.

The city of Timbuktu has taken its name from this famous black lady. The historic town of Timbuktu is located at the precise point where the Niger flows northward into the southern edge of the Sahara desert. As a result of its unique geographical position, Timbuktu has been a natural meeting point of Songhai, Wangara, Fulani, Tuareg and Arabs. According to the inhabitants of Timbuktu, gold came from the south, the salt from the north and Divine knowledge from Timbuktu. Timbuktu is also the cross-road where the camel met the canoe. It is to this privilege position that the city owes much of its historical dynamism. From the 11th century and onward, Timbuktu became an important port where goods from West Africa and North Africa were traded. Goods coming the Mediterranean shores and salt were traded in Timbuktu for gold. The prosperity of the city attracted African and Arabs who were both scholars and merchants. This unique combination of scholarship and business were the cornerstones that made Timbuktu a city of wealth and truth and therefore a booming desert port. Salt, books and gold were the main commodities that were traded in Timbuktu.

Salt was extracted from the mines of Tegaza and Taoudenit in the north, gold from the immense gold mines of the Boure and Banbuk and books were the refined work of black and Arabs scholars. Timbuktu flourished as a result of its strategic position. It is here in Timbuktu that African merchants from Djenne traded with the Kel Tamasheq nomads and the Arabs from the north. The Kel Tamasheq and the Jenne Merchants were the first settlers of Timbuktu. The Adobe structure of the houses in Timbuktu was the product of African and Arabs architecture. Trade and knowledge were at their height. The capture and destruction of the empire of Ghana by the king of Sosso cause a mass exodus of scholars from Walata to Timbuktu. By the 12th century, Timbuktu became a celebrated center of Islamic learning and a commercial establishment. Timbuktu had a university with three main renown departments and 180 Quranic schools. These are the department of Sankore, the department of Jingaray Ber and the department of Sidi Yahya. This was the golden age of Africa.

Books were not only written in Timbuktu, but they were also imported and copied there. There was an advanced local book copying industry in the city. The universities and private libraries contained unparalleled scholarly works. The famous scholar of Timbuktu Ahmad Baba who was among those deported to Morocco said that his library of 1600 books had been plundered, and his library, according to him, was one of the smaller in the city. Timbuktu was a veritable melting pot and hub of knowledge and commerce. The city welcomed everyone. On April 20th 1628, the French explorer Rene Caille reached the legendary city of Timbuktu. Rene Caille used to say about Timbuktu: “ When I enter this mysterious city, I was overwhelmed by an incredible feeling of satisfaction, I had never felt such a feeling before in my life and my joy was extreme.” The German explorer Henry Barth had a similar experience. Today, the city is still welcoming visitors from faraway lands. The travelers have said that Timbuktu is the Rome of the Sudan, the Athena of Africa and the Mecca of the Sahara.

To sum it up, Timbuktu was the city of Divine light, the city of knowledge, the city of trade an the city of hospitality. The booming economy of Timbuktu attracted the attention of the Emperor of Mali, Mansa Mussa also known as Kan Kan Mussa. He captured the city in 1325. As a Muslim, Mansa Mussa was impressed with the Islamic legacy of Timbuktu. On his return from Mecca, Mans Mussa brought with him an Egyptian architect by the name of Abu Es Haq Es Saheli. The architect was paid 200 kg of gold to built Jingaray Ber or the Friday prayers Mosque. Mansa Musa also built a royal palace or Madugu in Timbuktu. In addition, the Emperor invited Arabs scholars to Timbuktu. To his great surprise, the Emperor realized that these scholars were unqualified to engage in debates with the black scholars of Timbuktu.

Abd Arahman Atimmi, for example, who though of himself as being an Arab scholar realized that he had such an inferior academic knowledge compared to Timbuktu’s scholars that he decided to migrate to Marrakech to complete his prerequisites so he can sit in the classes as a student. Mansa Mussa pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324 had made Mali known worldwide. The Emperor took with him 12 tones of pure gold and a large caravan of 60,000 men on horses and camels. He had so much gold with him that when he stopped in Egypt, the Egyptian currency lost its value and as result the name of Mali and Timbuktu appeared on the 14th century world map. His brother Abu Bakar the II decided to find a way by the Atlantic ocean to go to Mecca. Abu Bakar and his maritime expedition left the shores of Senegal and sailed in the Atlantic Ocean. They encountered so much difficulties and challenges that they came back to Senegal. Abu Bakar reorganized his expedition, took enough provisions and a huge army with him. This expedition has never been seen again.

Today, there is a strong historical evidence pointing to the possibility that this Malian prince was the first one to discover America. In Brazil for instance, their is a presence of the mandinka language, traditions and customs. In 1339, The Mossi king invaded Timbuktu. The Mossi caused a lot of corruption, killing and destruction in the city. The Mandika dynasty, however, succeeded in repulsing the invaders. Timbuktu remained under the protection of the descendants of Mansa Musa until 1434 when the Tuareg under the leadership of Akil Akamalwal invaded and captured the city. Akil was very pious. He respected the Ulemas or scholars. Akil reappointed Mohammad Naddi, a Sanhaja Tuareg as the governor of the city. When Mohammad Naddi died, Akil appointed his oldest son Umar to take his place. The Tuareg, later on, however, spread so much injustice, corruption and tyranny, that Umar ibn Mohammad Naddi, the new governor of Timbuktu sought the help of Soni Ali Ber, ruler of the Songhai Empire with his base in Gao.

In 1469, Soni Ali conquered the city of Timbuktu. Akil fled the city. Soni Ali put to death so many scholars that most them fled to Walata which is the actual Republic of Mauritania. This is the reason why many of the manuscripts of Timbuktu are found in Mauritania today. One of the generals of Soni Ali who is a devout Muslim by the name of Askia Mohammad could not tolerate the tragic treatment Soni inflicted on the Ulemas or scholars of Timbuktu. The Prince of the Songhai Askia Mohammad overthrew Soni Ali in 1493. Askia Mohammad recomforted the scholars, financially rehabilitated them and stood by them. In fact for all Islamic legal rulings on how to run the state, Askia Mohammad turned to these scholars. There are manuscripts in Timbuktu today where the answers to the questions of Askia are recorded. Under the Askia dynasty, Timbuktu prospered both intellectually and trade wise until 1591 when the Moroccan army under the leadership of Pasha Mahmud ibn Zarqun sacked the city of Timbuktu.

The Moroccan army plundered the wealth of the city, burned the libraries, put to death many scholars who resisted them and deported many to Fez and Marrakech including the eminent scholar of Timbuktu Ahmed Baba Es Sudane, meaning Ahmed Baba the black as he is preferred to be called. The scholars of Timbuktu were righteous, devout and were not afraid of anything accept Allah, the Most High. It was in this context that when Pasha Mahmud tried to deceive the scholars by having them sign a treacherous treaty, the black eminent scholar and fearless professor of Sidi Yahya University, Mohammad Bagayogo objected and told the Pasha: “ I would rather have you cut my hand up to the shoulder than to bear a false testimony.” A lot of manuscripts left the city of Timbuktu under the Moroccan invasion to find their way to Fez and Marrakech. In 1893, with the colonization of West Africa by France, Timbuktu was brought under the French rule until in 1960 when Mali became independent. Many of the manuscripts of Timbuktu are in the museums and universities of France.

New fears for Timbuktu in Mali conflict - CNN.com New fears for Timbuktu in Mali conflict By Teo Kermeliotis, CNN Updated 10:40 AM ET, Mon January 28, 2013 Chat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what's happening in the world as it unfolds. JUST WATCHED The fight for Timbuktu 03:02 Story highlights French forces are fighting the remaining Islamists in Timbuktu, Mali Timbuktu is a UNESCO World Heritage site of huge cultural significance Islamists have repeatedly targeted Timbuktu's ancient burial sites UNESCO has called for the protection of the ancient city of Timbuktu The offensive against Islamist militants in northern Mali gained further ground Monday as French and Malian forces reportedly took control of the airport in the ancient city of Timbuktu. The Islamists, who have controlled northern Mali for months, were reported to be fleeing Timbuktu, Mali's traditional cultural center, to the city of Kidal, more than 500 kilometers (300 miles) to the northeast.

Timbuktu is a UNESCO World Heritage site of huge historical significance, but in recent times its carefully preserved heritage has come under severe threat amid ongoing conflict. In mid-January, following France's intervention to halt the advance of Islamist fighters in the West African country, UNESCO issued calls for the protection of the fabled city, urging armed forces to safeguard the nation's historic and religious landmarks. "I ask all armed forces to make every effort to protect the cultural heritage of the country, which has already been severely damaged," said Irina Bokova, the U.N. agency's director-general. Photos: Fears for Timbuktu in Mali conflict Photos: Fears for Timbuktu in Mali conflict Timbuktu's treasures – Timbuktu, in northern Mali, is a UNESCO World Heritage site of huge cultural importance. Pictured is its famous Sankore Mosque, built in the 15th-16th centuries. Hide Caption MUST WATCH Ex-French PM concerned by troops in Mali 03:54 To the distant Western traveler, Timbuktu has for centuries conjured images of mystery and wonder, a remote Shangri-La whose tantalizing riches and intellectual wealth lured the brave and adventurous.

The city partly owes its near-mythical status to its forbidding location; sitting on the southern edge of the Sahara, Timbuktu became synonymous in the West with the farthest place someone can travel. Founded by nomads around the 12th century, the desert city's golden era came during the medieval years when it became a flourishing commercial town in the lucrative trans-Saharan gold and salt trade, as well as a major educational and spiritual center. Although Timbuktu's wealth has declined sharply since then, its rich cultural legacy has stood the test of time. The city boasts an impressive array of ancient monuments and priceless artefacts, including its striking earthen mosques -- made from mud and wood -- and a vast trove of scholarly manuscripts held in public and private collections. Historically, Timbuktu has been a major hub for the diffusion of Islam in West Africa. Scholars from around the Islamic world traveled to the oasis city to study at the prestigious University of Sankore, which had some 25,000 students and 180 Koranic schools in its heyday.

Mali was often hailed as one of the most successful democracies in West Africa until a coup toppled the president last year, leading al Qaeda-linked Islamists to capitalize on the chaos and establish themselves in the northern part of the country. In these areas, they applied a strict interpretation of Sharia law by banning music, smoking, drinking and watching sports on TV. See also: Broken limbs, torn lives in northern Mali Amid international outrage, they also repeatedly targeted Timbuktu's ancient burial sites. Islamist militants regard such shrines as idolatrous and thus prohibited by their religion. Last June, UNESCO placed the iconic city on its list of endangered world heritage sites after the Islamist militants controlling the area destroyed many of its treasured tombs and shrines . In October 2012, Timbuktu residents told CNN that Islamist fighters had attacked more mausoleums. "After the attack, the Islamists told the people that worshiping saints is not right, according to their form of Islam, and the destruction was necessary," said Ibrahim Ag Mohamed, a local guide.

See also: 'Timbuktu tomb attack is an attack on our humanity' Earlier this month Bokova sent a letter to French and Malian authorities calling on them to respect the Hague Convention of 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property that prohibits "exposing (cultural) property to destruction or damage," and calls for "refraining from any act of hostility, directed against such property." She added: "Mali's cultural heritage is a jewel whose protection is important for the whole of humanity. This is our common heritage, nothing can justify damaging it. It carries the identity and values of a people. "The destruction of World Heritage sites in Mali in 2012, especially the mausoleums in Timbuktu, sparked a wave of indignation across the world, helping to raise awareness of the critical situation facing the Malian people. The current military intervention must protect people and secure the cultural heritage of Mali." In an opinion piece written for CNN in July, Bokova said the destruction of Timbuktu's ancient shrines added a moral and cultural crisis to a desperate humanitarian situation. "The International Criminal Court calls this a war crime. We call it an attack against humanity.

This is an attempt to isolate and exclude, to sever the ties that bind peoples together," she added. Timbuktu | Mali | Britannica.com Timbuktu Africa Timbuktu, French Tombouctou, 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 . The city was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1988. In 2012, in response to armed conflict in the region, Timbuktu was added to the UNESCO List of World Heritage in Danger. Sankore mosque, Timbuktu, Mali. Timbuktu, Mali, designated a World Heritage site in 1988. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Timbuktu was founded about 1100 ce as a seasonal camp by Tuareg nomads. There are several stories concerning the derivation of the city’s name.

According to one tradition, Timbuktu was named for an old woman left to oversee the camp while the Tuareg roamed the Sahara. Her name (variously given as Tomboutou, Timbuktu, or Buctoo) meant “mother with a large navel,” possibly describing an umbilical hernia or other such physical malady. Timbuktu’s location at the meeting point of desert and water made it an ideal trading centre. In the late 13th or early 14th century it was incorporated into the Mali empire. By the 14th century it was a flourishing centre for the trans-Saharan gold and salt trade, and it grew as a centre of Islamic culture. Three of western Africa’s oldest mosques—Djinguereber (Djingareyber), Sankore, and Sidi Yahia—were built there during the 14th and early 15th centuries. After an extravagant pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324, the Mali emperor Mansa Mūsā built the Great Mosque (Djinguereber) and a royal residence, the Madugu (the former has since been rebuilt many times, and of the latter no trace remains).

The Granada architect Abū Isḥāq al-Sāḥili was then commissioned to design the Sankore mosque, around which Sankore University was established. The mosque still stands today, probably because of al-Sāḥili’s directive to incorporate a wooden framework into the mud walls of the building, thus facilitating annual repairs after the rainy season. The Tuareg regained control of the city in 1433, but they ruled from the desert. Although the Tuareg exacted sizable tributes and plundered periodically, trade and learning continued to flourish in Timbuktu. By 1450 its population increased to about 100,000. The city’s scholars, many of whom had studied in Mecca or in Egypt, numbered some 25,000. Great Mosque, built by Emperor Mūsā I of Mali in 1327, Timbuktu, Mali. L. Romano/DeA Picture Library Mopti In 1468 the city was conquered by the Songhai ruler Sonni ʿAlī .

He was generally ill disposed toward the city’s Muslim scholars, but his successor—the first ruler of the new Askia dynasty , Muḥammad I Askia of Songhai (reigned 1493–1528)—used the scholarly elite as legal and moral counselors . During the Askia period (1493–1591) Timbuktu was at the height of its commercial and intellectual development. Merchants from Ghudāmis ( Ghadamis ; now in Libya), Augila (now Awjidah, Libya), and numerous other cities of North Africa gathered there to buy gold and slaves in exchange for the Saharan salt of Taghaza and for North African cloth and horses. After it was captured by Morocco in 1591, the city declined. Its scholars were ordered arrested in 1593 on suspicion of disaffection; some were killed during a resulting struggle, while others were exiled to Morocco. Perhaps worse still, the small Moroccan garrisons placed in command of the city offered inadequate protection, and Timbuktu was repeatedly attacked and conquered by the Bambara , Fulani , and Tuareg.

European explorers reached Timbuktu in the early 19th century. The ill-fated Scottish explorer Gordon Laing was the first to arrive (1826), followed by the French explorer René-Auguste Caillié in 1828. Caillié, who had studied Islam and learned Arabic, reached Timbuktu disguised as an Arab. After two weeks he departed, becoming the first explorer to return to Europe with firsthand knowledge of the city (rumours of Timbuktu’s wealth had reached Europe centuries before, owing to tales of Mūsā’s 11th-century caravan to Mecca). In 1853 the German geographer Heinrich Barth reached the city during a five-year trek across Africa. He, too, survived the journey, later publishing a chronicle of his travels. Market in Timbuktu, Mali. Ringling Bros. Folds Its Tent Timbuktu was captured by the French in 1894. They partly restored the city from the desolate condition in which they found it, but no connecting railway or hard-surfaced road was built. In 1960 it became part of the newly independent Republic of Mali.

Africa at Random: Fact or Fiction? Timbuktu is now an administrative centre of Mali. In the late 1990s, restoration efforts were undertaken to preserve the city’s three great mosques, which were threatened by sand encroachment and by general decay. An even greater threat came in 2012 when Tuareg rebels, backed by Islamic militants, took control of the northern part of the country. The Tuaregs claimed the territory, which included Timbuktu, as the independent state of Azawad. However, the Tuareg rebels were soon supplanted by the Islamic militants, who then imposed their strict version of Sharīʾah (Islamic law) on the inhabitants. The Islamic militants—in particular, one group known as Ansar Dine—deemed many of Timbuktu’s historic religious monuments and artifacts to be idolatrous, and, to that end, they damaged or destroyed many of them, including tombs of Islamic saints housed at the Djinguereber and Sidi Yahia mosques. Work to repair the damage began after the militants were routed from the town in early 2013. Pop. (2009) 54,453.

A caretaker praying over a tomb that was damaged by Islamic militants in 2012, Timbuktu, Mali. Baba Ahmed/AP Images Timbuktu - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up) The city of Timbuktu, Mali, is located on the southern edge of the Sahara, a vast desert. The city lies about 8 miles (13 kilometers) north of the Niger River. Today, as in centuries past, few roads lead there. The city is mostly accessible by camel or boat, though it has a small airport. Timbuktu was long famous as a center of commerce and scholarship. The city was a major stop on the large caravan routes that crossed the Sahara to trade salt and gold. From about 1400 to 1600, Timbuktu was also an important center of Islamic learning and culture. Because of its historical and cultural monuments, the city was designated a World Heritage site by UNESCO (a United Nations agency) in 1988.

Article History Timbuktu - Wikiquote Timbuktu Jump to: navigation , search Sankore Mosque in Timbuktu- Kwame Nkrumah : The University of Sankore one of the foremost intellectually inspired in the world...If the University of Sankore had not been destroyed; ...If the University of Sankore had survived the ravages of foreign invasions, the academic and cultural history of Africa might have been different from what it is today. Timbuktu , formerly also spelled "Timbuctoo" and "Timbuktoo" ( Berber : Tinbuktu; French : Tombouctou; Koyra Chiini : Tumbutu), is a city in the West African nation of Mali situated 20 km (12 mi) north of the River Niger on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert . The town is the capital of the Timbuktu Region , one of the eight administrative regions of Mali. It had a population of 54,453 in the 2009 census.

Quotes[ edit ] At its zenith in the middle of the 15th Century Timbuktu was known all over the world as a repository for all sorts of knowledge, including Arabic Islamic writing, science, maths and history. What is so important about Timbuktu's literary patrimony is that it is a challenge to Western ideas that Africa is a land of song and dance and oral tradition. It reveals a continent with an immensely rich literary and scientific heritage. Lydia Syson, an expert on Mali, quoted on BBC News, "Mali: Timbuktu heritage may be threatened, Unesco says" , April 3, 2012. The popular statement, “From here to Timbuktu”, conjures up images of remote, distant parts of the earth . But Timbuktu is in fact a real city in the west African country of Mali . Kristina Chetcuti, in All the way from Timbuktu (9 July 2012) The ancient city of Timbuktu had known a lot of conquest and occupation in the past but people of Timbuktu are tolerant and pacifist and practice a tolerant Islam and live with tolerance toward other religions .

The economy of that city is essentially based on tourist activity but since kidnapping of westerners, touareg revolution and Islamist militant invasions in northern regions of Mali there is no more tourism in the region of Timbuktu. Mamadou Mangara, Governor of Timbuktu, in Visit of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in Timbuktu. ...he was very touched by the destruction of shrines and the burning of ancient manuscripts of Timbuktu. He ends his address by this quote “the united nations will always be with Mali. Ban Ki-moon , UN Secretary General in his address at Timbuktu quoted in "Visit of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in Timbuktu." Since the liberation of the ancient city of Timbuktu by the French army “operation serval” important leaders visited the historic city all focus on development, rebuilding, and restoration of its ancient historic sites. In "Visit of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in Timbuktu." ...the city was occupied by touareg revolutionaries and Islamist militants in 2012. During the occupation ancient city of Timbuktu was ruled under sharia law .

Innocent people endured all manner of inhuman abuses and humiliation . During the occupation Islamists destroyed the identity of the people of Timbuktu, which are shrines . Among these shrines there is shrine of the saint “Sidi Mahamoud”, classified shrines of UNESCO in the world. In "Visit of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in Timbuktu." ...with the donations of United Nations , PAM, UNICEF , and FAO people of Timbuktu are surviving because we were in an open sky prison . In the sector of school and administration we salute the efforts of the United Nations and other partners for the action they have been doing in Timbuktu. Within the framework of peace and security we thank the United Nations, above all populations are coming back to their homeland they also need assistance, actually we are in the process of reconciliation. Malian must be united as brothers and sisters and must walk hand by hand in order to sit on the table of brotherhood without racism or extremism . It’s important to notice [that we notable of] Timbuktu's great problems are the issues of children schooling but actually we are happy that they are going to school thanks to the support of partners.

All the population of Timbuktu thank you for the opportunity you are giving to our children to study. We also hope that the United Nations, FAO, the Oummou Sangare foundation, UNICEF continue to work together with us to overcome our difficulties. Without peace and security there is no development in Mali. It’s for Malians to work hand by hand on the table of brotherhood and overcome their difficulties in order to develop their country no one can do that for them. Abdrahamane Ben Essayouti, Imam of Timbuktu, during Timbuktu’s Future discussed by local officials and visiting big wigs, quoted in "Visit of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in Timbuktu." Centres of learning at Walala, Djenna, and Timbuktu had a singular impact on African education in d medieval times . Kwame Nkrumah at the University of Ghana inauguration in 1961, quoted in Multiculturalism and Hybridity in African Literatures (2000) , p.

55 In Timbuktu, nine mausoleums have been desecrated , including two at the Mosque of Djingareyber, the most important mosque in the town. The University of Sankore one of the foremost intellectually inspired in the world...If the University of Sankore had not been destroyed; ...If the University of Sankore had survived the ravages of foreign invasions, the academic and cultural history of Africa might have been different from what it is today. Kwame Nkrumah at the University of Ghana inauguration in 1961, quoted in "Multiculturalism and Hybridity in African Literatures (2000)", p. 55 Home of the prestigious Koranic Sankore University and other madrasas , Timbuktu was an intellectual and spiritual capital and a centre for the propagation of Islam throughout Africa in the 15th and 16th centuries. Its three great mosques, Djingareyber, Sankore and Sidi Yahia, recall Timbuktu's golden age. Although continuously restored, these monuments are today under threat from desertification .

UNESCO , in Timbuktu The World Heritage properties situated in the northern parts of Mali have been subjected to destructive attacks since they were occupied by armed rebel groups in April this year [2012]. In Timbuktu, nine mausoleums have been desecrated , including two at the Mosque of Djingareyber, the most important mosque in the town. the remnant of the priceless manuscripts in Timbuktu which was once a major intellectual centre. ...the single most important collection [priceless manuscripts] from pre-colonial West Africa . Bruce Hall, in [ Timbuktu’s treasure trove of African history (29 January 2013) on the remnant of the priceless manuscripts in Timbuktu which was once a major intellectual centre. The Europeans came very late to Timbuktu," says Marie Rodet, lecturer at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. For centuries, they tried to reach the place because it was a mythological place of trade and Islamic scholars. It had been described in Arab manuscripts in the Middle Ages so they knew about the history but they never reached it because the population never allowed them.

Marie Rodet, lecturer at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, quoted on BBC News, "Who, What, Why: Why do we know Timbuktu?" , April 2, 2012. It is a place where many, many things happened since the 12th Century. A place of knowledge... a place that tells us a lot about how great the African people were and continue to be. We need to save Timbuktu. The head of the mission to rebuild Timbuktu, Lazare Eloundou Assomo, quoted on BBC News, "Timbuktu damage to Mali historic sites 'underestimated'" , June 11, 2013. The city is quite calm nowadays, even though residual criminal acts remain. On terrorist issues we bet on Serval. People rely on Serval for this kind of issue, much more than on the UN soldiers. Aboubacrime Cisse, president of the council of Timbuktu localities, quoted on Bloomberg, "Timbuktu Seeks Rebirth After Islamist Militants’ Destruction" , March 31, 2014.

Question: The ancient town of Timbuktu is in which country?
Answer: Mali