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Bambara

American  
[bahm-bahr-ah, -bahr-uh] / bɑmˈbɑr ɑ, -ˈbɑr ə /

noun

  1. a Mande language that is used as a trade language in the upper Niger drainage basin in Africa.

  2. a member of an agricultural, Mande-speaking people of Mali.


Bambara British  
/ bɑːmˈbɑːrə /

noun

  1. a member of a Negroid people of W Africa living chiefly in Mali and by the headwaters of the River Niger in Guinea

  2. the language of this people, belonging to the Mande branch of the Niger-Congo family

"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

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He delivered the message in both the Bambara and Fulani languages, a sign that he hopes to unite the different communities in Mali.

From Barron's • Jan. 14, 2026

Dozens of immigrants listened to proceedings on headsets with access to simultaneous translations in Wolof, Haitian Creole, Arabic, French, Fula and Bambara.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 16, 2024

In 2019, a video of Keïta, speaking in the Bambara language and addressing IBK directly, went viral.

From BBC • Aug. 28, 2023

With its deep Bambara foundations, the song is certain of where it comes from; it’s just as certain that its passion will be understood anywhere.

From New York Times • Feb. 17, 2022

The first town he came to was Wawra, which properly belongs to Kaarta, but was then paying tribute to Mansong, King of Bambara.

From Celebrated Travels and Travellers Part 2. The Great Navigators of the Eighteenth Century by Benett, Léon