Everything about Songhai totally explained
The
Songhai are an ethnic group from western
Africa akin to the
Mandé. The
Songhai language group, however, has been connected with the
Nilo-Saharan language family, unlike their neighboring counterparts. They and the Mandé were the dominant ethnic groups in the Songhay or
Songhai Empire which dominated the western
Sahel in the
15th and
16th century. The Songhai are found primarily throughout
Mali, in the area of Africa known as the
Western Sudan (not to be confused with the country).
It was from one of Mali's former conquests, the kingdom of
Gao, that the last major empire of the western Sudan emerged. Although the city of
Gao had been occupied by a Songhai dynasty prior to being conquered by
Mansa Musa's forces in
1325, it wasn't until much later that the Songhai empire emerged. The empire saw its pre-eminent rise under the military strategist and influential Songhai king,
Sonni Ali Ber. It began its rise in
1468 when Sonni Ali conquered much of the weakening Mali empire's territory as well as
Timbuktu, famous for its Islamic universities, and the pivotal trading city of
Jenne. Among the country's most formidable scholars, professors and lecturers was
Ahmed Baba - a highly distinguished historian frequently quoted in the Tarikh-es-Sudan and other works. The people consisted of mostly fishermen and traders. Following Sonni Ali's death, Muslim factions rebelled against his successor and installed
Soninke general,
Askia Muhammad (formerly Muhammad Tuore) who was to be the first and most important ruler of the Askia dynasty (1492–1592). Under the Askias, the Songhai empire reached its zenith.
Following Askia Muhammad, or Askia the Great's death, the empire began to collapse. It was enormous and couldn't be kept under control. The kingdom of Morroco saw Songhay's still flourished salt and gold trade and decided that it would be a good asset. They invaded in 1591, marking the end of the Songhay empire.
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