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Timbuktu - A Legendary City
Many people believe that Timbuktu is a mythical place, slang for the end of the earth. However, Timbuktu (also spelled Tombouctou) is a real city in Mali. It was the legendary center of trade in West Africa for at least two centuries and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
All About Timbuktu
Timbuktu (Timbuctoo; Koyra Chiini: Tumbutu; French: Tombouctou) is a city in Tombouctou Region, in the West African nation of Mali. It was made prosperous by Mansa Musa. It is home to the prestigious Sankore University and other madrasas, and was an intellectual and spiritual capital and centre for the propagation of Islam throughout Africa in the 15th and 16th centuries. Its three great mosques, Djingareyber, Sankore and Sidi Yahya, recall Timbuktu's golden age. Although continuously restored, these monuments are today under threat from desertification. Timbuktu is primarily made of mud.Timbuktu ? World Heritage (Unesco.org)
Timbuktu is populated by Songhay, Tuareg, Fulani, and Mandé people, and is about 15 km north of the Niger River. It is also at the intersection of an east?west and a north?south Trans-Saharan trade route across the Sahara to Araouane. It was important historically (and still is today) as an entrepot for rock-salt originally from Taghaza, now from Taoudenni.
Its geographical setting made it a natural meeting point for nearby west African populations and nomadic Berber and Arab peoples from the north. Its long history as a trading outpost that linked west Africa with Berber, Arab, and Jewish traders throughout north Africa, and thereby indirectly with traders from Europe, has given it a fabled status, and in the West it was for long a metaphor for exotic, distant lands: "from here to Timbuktu."
Timbuktu's long-lasting contribution to Islamic and worl...
Where Did Timbuktu Get Its Name?
During the rainy season, the Tuaregs would leave their heavy goods with an old lady named Tin Abutut (or Tin Obutut), who stayed at the well. Over time, the name Tin Abutut became Timbuktu and become associated with the location.
Timbuktu Photos
Timbuktu pics - yes, some people have really been there!
Wesc Timbuktu Obeo
it caught my eye
TMBK
Timbuktu
Timbuktu Start
TImbuktu & Damn!...
only the essentials:...
A aerial view of the...
The Djingerayber Mos...
Hendrina Khan hotel...
A Brief History of Timbuktu's Golden Age
Timbuktu was founded by the Tuareg people in the 11th century because of its proximity to the Niger River. Located where the Niger flows into the southern edge of the desert, Timbuktu was a natural meeting point for people throughout the region. It soon became the center of the trans-Saharan trade routes, the place where gold, salt and slaves were traded.It also became a hub for education. By the 12th century, Timbuktu had become the center of Islamic learning in the region, with three universities and 180 Quranic schools.
Its golden age as a hub of commerce and intellect continued even after Timbuktu was captured by the Emperor of Mali, Mansa Mussa, in 1325. The city was an important part of the Mali Empire for over 100 years. Then, in 1464, Soni Ali Ber, ruler of the Songhai Empire, conquered the city. It remained under Songhai rule until the late sixteenth century when a Moroccan army defeated the Songhai Empire and brought an end to Timbuktu's golden era.
Books About Mali
Learn more about the country where Timbuktu is located
Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali , Longman African Writers Series (Longman African Classics)
Amazon Price: (as of 10/11/2008)
Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali (Revised Edition) (Longman African Writers)
Amazon Price: $14.40 (as of 10/11/2008)
Mali: The Bradt Travel Guide
Amazon Price: $14.93 (as of 10/11/2008)
Mali: Land of Gold and Glory
Amazon Price: $9.95 (as of 10/11/2008)
New YouTube vids
Timbuktu - The Botten Is Nådd
Timbuktu - The Botten Is Nådd
Runtime: 3:58 | 242885 views | 301 Comments
More Sites About Timbuktu
Learn more about the legendary city
History Channel - Timbuktu
UNESCO World Heritage - Timbuktu
Timbuktu Educational Foundation
More About Mali
More about the African country where Timbuktu is located
Mali, officially the Republic of Mali (), is a landlocked nation in Western Africa. Mali is the seventh largest country in Africa, bordering Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west.
Consisting of eight regions, Mali's borders on the north reach deep into the middle of the Sahara, while the country's southern region, where the majority of inhabitants live, features the Niger and Senegal rivers. The country's economic structure centers around agriculture and fishing. Some of Mali's natural resources include gold, uranium, and salt. Mali is considered to be one of the poorest nations in the world.
Present-day Mali was once part of three West African empires that controlled trans-Saharan trade: the Ghana Empire, the Mali Empire (from which Mali is named), and the Songhai Empire. In the late 1800s, Mali fell under French control, becoming part of French Sudan. Mali gained independence in 1959 with Senegal, as the Mali Federation in 1959. A year later, the Mali Federation became the independent nation of Mali in 1960. After a long period of one-party rule, a 1991 coup led t...
Timbuktu Bookmarks from Del.icio.us
What other people are reading about Timbuktu
Mali Information
Background information from the CIA World Factbook
The Sudanese Republic and Senegal became independent of France in 1960 as the Mali Federation. When Senegal withdrew after only a few months, what formerly made up the Sudanese Republic was renamed Mali. Rule by dictatorship was brought to a close in 1991 by a coup that ushered in democratic government. President Alpha Konare won Mali's first democratic presidential election in 1992 and was reelected in 1997. In keeping with Mali's two-term constitutional limit, Konare stepped down in 2002 and was succeeded by Amadou Toure.
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Tiddledeewinks
Unusual idea for a lens. I wouldn't have thought of it myself! Posted September 23, 2008 |
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anthropos
Thanks for joining "Anything and Everything Travel" Group. We look forward to seeing your other travel related lenses in our group. Keep up the good work. For a categorized list of my travel lenses and other lenses see my Lensography.. Posted September 20, 2008 |
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Billco
Very informative. So its not just an imaginary place? Posted January 31, 2008 |
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capybara
Thanks for joining Travelmania my group. I don,t know how you find the time for Squidoo, I have trouble with 3 cats some toads and two tanks of tropical fish! % stars for your lens. Posted December 08, 2007 |
