Mali

[ mah-lee ]

noun
  1. Republic of Mali, a republic in western Africa: formerly a territory of France; gained independence 1960. 463,500 sq. mi. (120,000 sq. km). Capital: Bamako.

  • Formerly French Su·dan [soo-dan] /suˈdæn/ .

Other words from Mali

  • Ma·li·an, noun, adjective

Words Nearby Mali

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How to use Mali in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for Mali

Mali

/ (ˈmɑːlɪ) /


noun
  1. a landlocked republic in West Africa: conquered by the French by 1898 and incorporated (as French Sudan) into French West Africa; became independent in 1960; settled chiefly in the basins of the Rivers Senegal and Niger in the south. Official language: French. Religion: Muslim majority, also animist. Currency: franc. Capital: Bamako. Pop: 15 968 882 (2013 est). Area: 1 248 574 sq km (482 077 sq miles): Former name (1898–1959): French Sudan

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for Mali

Mali

[ (mah-lee) ]


Republic in west Africa bordered by Algeria to the north and east, Niger to the east, Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast to the south, Guinea to the southwest, Senegal and Mauritania to the west. Its capital is Bamako. It became an independent nation in 1960.

Notes for Mali

During the Middle Ages, Mali formed a huge territorial empire, noted as a center of Islamic study and as a trade route for gold. Its center was Timbuktu.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.