Mali+Culture



Malian Culture

Mali's population comprises a number of different peoples, including the Bambara, the Songhai, Mandinka, Senoufo, Fula, and Dogon. In the east, Songhay, Bozo , and Dogon people predominate, while the Fula people , formerly nomadic, have settled in patches across the nation. The Dogon, are world-renowned for their artwork, and a visit to their traditional cliffside villages is a fascinating experience. Tuareg and Maure peoples continue a largely nomadic desert culture, across the north of the nation. The interaction of these communities has created the Malian culture.
 * =History = || =Geography= || =Culture= || =Economics= || =Politics= || =Class Activities= || =Resources = ||

**Language**
 Most Malians speak several languages and live in a truly multilingual context. The official language of Mali is French. An educated elite speaks French, and it is the dominant language of the administration, formal education, and the media. However, Bambara has progressively become the //lingua franca// of Mali and is spoken by 80 percent of the Malian people. The development of a written literature in Bambara and the creation of newspapers and television and radio programs in Bambara after independence contributed to the domination of Bambara. Other national languages include Fulfuldé, Songhai, Senufo, Dogon, Soninké, and Tamasheq.

**Music**
Mali is renowned worldwide for having produced some of the stars of African music, most notably Salif Keita. The Festival in the Desert, which is held every year in Essakane, a Saharan oasis, celebrates this talent. Also well known are the late roots and blues guitarist Ali Farka Touré, and his successors Afel Bocoum and Vieux Farka Touré , the Tuareg band Tinariwen , and several Afro-pop artists such as the duo Amadou et Mariam , and Oumou Sangare along with Salif Keita.



**Food & Dress**
The varied everyday culture of Malians reflects the country's ethnic and geographic diversity. Most Malians wear flowing, colorful robes called boubous, that are typical of West Africa. Malians frequently participate in traditional festivals, dances, and ceremonies. Rice and millet are the staples of Malian cuisine, which is heavily based on cereal grains.Grains are generally prepared with sauces made from a variety of edible leaves, such as <span class="wiki_link_ext">spinach or <span class="wiki_link_ext">baobab, with <span class="wiki_link_ext">tomato or <span class="wiki_link_ext">peanut sauces, accompanied by pieces of grilled <span class="wiki_link_ext">meat (typically <span class="wiki_link_ext">chicken , <span class="wiki_link_ext">mutton , <span class="wiki_link_ext">beef , <span class="wiki_link_ext">pork or <span class="wiki_link_ext">goat ). Malian cuisine varies regionally.

**Literature**
Though Mali's literature is less famous than its music, Mali has always been one of Africa's liveliest intellectual centers. Mali's literary tradition is largely oral, with //<span class="wiki_link_ext">jalis // reciting or singing histories and stories from memory<span class="wiki_link_ext">.
 * <span class="wiki_link_ext">Amadou Hampâté Bâ, Mali's best-known historian, spent much of his life recording the oral traditions of his own Fula teachers, as well as those of Bambara and other Mande neighbors.
 * The best-known novel by a Malian writer is <span class="wiki_link_ext">Yambo Ouologuem 's //<span class="wiki_link_ext">Le devoir de violence //, which won the 1968 <span class="wiki_link_ext">Prix Renaudot but whose legacy was marred by accusations of plagiarism.
 * <span class="wiki_link_ext">Massa Makan Diabaté, a descendant of <span class="wiki_link_ext">griots , is known in the <span class="wiki_link_ext">Francophone world for his work on <span class="wiki_link_ext">The Epic of Sundiata as well as his "Kouta trilogy," a series of <span class="wiki_link_ext">realist novels loosely based on contemporary life in his hometown of <span class="wiki_link_ext">Kita.
 * Other well-known Malian writers include <span class="wiki_link_ext">Baba Traoré, <span class="wiki_link_ext">Modibo Sounkalo Keita , <span class="wiki_link_ext">Maryse Condé , <span class="wiki_link_ext">Moussa Konaté , and <span class="wiki_link_ext">Fily Dabo Sissoko.

**Sports**
<span class="wiki_link_ext">Football is the most popular sport in Mali. Its <span class="wiki_link_ext">national team became more prominent, after hosting the <span class="wiki_link_ext">2002 African Cup of Nations. The most popular national teams are //Djoliba//, //Stad//, and //Real//. Most towns have regular games, and Informal games are often played by children, using a bundle of rags as a ball. The country has produced several notable players for the <span class="wiki_link_ext">French team, including <span class="wiki_link_ext">Salif Keita and <span class="wiki_link_ext">Jean Tigana. <span class="wiki_link_ext">Basketball is another major sport the <span class="wiki_link_ext">Mali women's national basketball team is the only African basketball team that competed at the <span class="wiki_link_ext">2008 Beijing Olympics. Traditional <span class="wiki_link_ext">wrestling is also somewhat common, but its popularity has decreased in recent years. The game <span class="wiki_link_ext">wari, a variation of <span class="wiki_link_ext">mancala , is another common pastime.

Marriage and Family
Marriage is the most important ritual of the life cycle in Mali and entails numerous celebrations that are spread throughout a period of variable length, up to ten years. It involves major expenses on the part of the bride's and groom's extended families and friends, although the practice of bride-wealth (the transfer of gifts or money from the groom's family to the bride's family) puts more financial pressure on the groom and his family. Three different forms of marriage can be distinguished in Mali today: traditional, civil, and religious (mostly Muslim). In the cities, many couples see the ideal marriage as one that has been legitimized traditionally, civilly, and religiously. In the rural areas and to some extent in the urban areas, marriages are arranged. This practice reflects the importance of establishing alliances between families. Although the first years of marriage are frequently quite difficult for women, a woman's position within the household tends to improve over time. Age and children tend to increase a woman's status. Old women are better off, and take up managerial responsibilities in directing other women's work, and husbands and wives manage their incomes independently.

[[image:africainfo258/Mali_Family.jpg width="395" height="328" align="left"]]
Most Malian ethnic groups are run my a male head of family. In rural areas and to a large extent in the cities, domestic units are rarely limited to the nuclear family . Indeed, most often they consist of an extended family that consists of a father, his wife(ves), his sons, their wives and children, and unmarried daughters. Polygyny is legal, and couples have the option of choosing between monogamy and polygyny when they enter into a marriage. Among the Mande, relationships between mothers and their children are very intense and affectionate, and children of the same mother tend to rely on each other for help over the years. An area of potential conflict is the relationship between co-wives. Yet it is not rare to find co-wives who get along with each other and establish relationships of mutual support. In the cities it is not rare to find couples who live independently from their extended families, this typically reflects a higher social standing and Western education.

**Kin Groups**
Many Malian ethnic groups are further divided into several lineages and clans, which are represented by clusters of households sharing a common section of a village under the leadership of a respected family elder. Traditionally certain clans entertain joking relationships with one another (the Diarra and the Traoré), and recent studies show that women maintain close bonds with their family of origin through periodic visits, and the exchange of gifts and services throughout their lives. Kinship bonds continue to be important despite geographical dislocation. Malian migrants, both to the city and to foreign destinations, maintain strong links with their extended families and contribute by sending home money and gifts. Despite the poverty of the majority of the population, real or fictitious kinship links provide support and comfort for many Malians in times of need.

**Socialization and Education**
Babies are kept in close contact with their mothers and accompany them in most of their activities, usually carried on the mother's back and secured by a tightly wrapped cloth. Traditionally male and female initiation marks the passage from childhood to adulthood and entailed the passing of traditional and religious knowledge from the old to the new generations. On the other hand urban children tend to be incorporated into another set of rituals, those performed on the occasion of the naming of a child. Children's informal education is to a great extent a collective endeavor, with people other than the children's parents participating in their learning. Small children, up to two or three years, receive much affectionate attention from both family and nonfamily members and are rarely disciplined. Education is free and required for the first nine years, although private schools, which draw their students from the wealthy of the population, are expanding. In general, the attitude toward western-style schooling is ambivalent. Few opportunities for jobs requiring an education, especially in rural areas, keep families and pupils from investing resources and time in formal schooling. Traditionally, children learned about their future economic responsibilities by observing and helping older same-sex family, but in the cities boys increasingly have fewer responsibilities, while girls are still expected to help at home.



**Higher Education**
Secondary schools are concentrated in urban areas, Bamako in particular. Until 1983 the state guaranteed employment for students with a secondary-school or university diploma. Eventually the state had to face the fact that it could no longer guarantee this, and since then, enrollment has dropped. Statistics from the 1990s put the literacy rate at about 38 percent. Students' success rate is also extremely low. In the 1980s only 50 percent of the students who began primary education were likely to complete six years of schooling and go on to secondary education. Female students are rarely seen at all levels of education.

Etiquette
Malians are very proud of their traditions of hospitality toward local and international visitors. Hospitality has been raised to the level of a national value. Greetings and salutations for special occasions are the subject of much social regulation. They symbolize an individual's education and concern and respect for others. Younger people are typically expected to initiate the greeting as a sign of respect for their elders. Foreign travelers who learn at least a few greetings in Bamana or other local languages have their efforts warmly acknowledged by the local people. The majority of the Malian population is Muslim, and foreign travelers, both men and women, are encouraged to be sensitive to the local dress code. Gift-giving and sharing of resources are both important in Malian culture, however a different set of rules govern people's behavior in market places, where initial prices are typically inflated and bartering is an expected ritual.

Religion
Around 80 percent of the Malian population is Muslim, while the other 20 percent practices Christianity, or follows traditional religious practices. Islam has been present in this area since the eighth century. Under French colonization Islam's influence greatly expanded in the region. During the first phases of French colonization, colonial administrators relied upon Islamic representatives to extend their control over the local populations, and the French also aided in the establishment of new Islamic tribunals in the region. Today Mali is a secular state, but religion and in particular national Islamic religious organizations play an important role in the life of the country.
 * Moussa Traoré, Mali's second president, displayed Islamic devotion and intervened in Islamic affairs to further legitimize his power
 * President Alpha Oumar Konaré alternated public displays of faith and of Islamic piety with cautions about religious extremism

Friday and Sunday are half days at most businesses, while Saturday is usually a day of rest. Friday afternoon is the time of <span class="wiki_link_ext">Muslim weekly prayers. <span class="wiki_link_ext">Muslim, <span class="wiki_link_ext">Christian , and National celebrations are marked as <span class="wiki_link_ext">public holidays in Mali.

There are a number of celebrations that are performed on the occasion of major Islamic events, such as the anniversary of the birth of the Prophet Mohammed and of his baptism. Ramadan is concluded by a religious feast called in Bamana //selijinin//, or "small feast." Forty days after this feast is the time of //seliba//, or "big feast," in commemoration of Abraham's sacrifice. This is a time when most families sacrifice a sheep. People wear their best outfits, and everyone busily exchanges gifts of meat and prepared foods.

Resources http://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/Mali.html