The Mali Empire or Mandingo Empire or Manden Kurufa was a West Africa

West Africa

West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...

n empire of the Mandinka

Mandinka people

The Mandinka, Malinke are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa with an estimated population of eleven million ....

 from c. 1230 to c. 1600. The empire was founded by Sundiata Keita

Sundiata Keita

Sundiata Keita, Sundjata Keyita, Mari Djata I or just Sundiata was the founder of the Mali Empire and celebrated as a hero of the Malinke people of West Africa in the semi-historical Epic of Sundiata....

 and became renowned for the wealth

Wealth

Wealth is the abundance of valuable resources or material possessions. The word wealth is derived from the old English wela, which is from an Indo-European word stem...

 of its rulers, especially Mansa

Mansa

Mansa is a Mandinka word meaning "king of kings". It is particularly associated with the Keita Dynasty of the Mali Empire, which dominated West Africa from the thirteenth to the fifthteenth century...

 Musa I

Mansa Musa

Musa I , commonly referred to as Mansa Musa, was the tenth mansa, which translates as "king of kings" or "emperor", of the Malian Empire...

. The Mali Empire had many profound cultural influences on West Africa

Africa

Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

, allowing the spread of its language, laws and customs along the Niger River

Niger River

The Niger River is the principal river of western Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in southeastern Guinea...

. It extended over a large area and consisted of numerous vassal

Vassal

A vassal or feudatory is a person who has entered into a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. The obligations often included military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain privileges, usually including the grant of land held...

 kingdoms and provinces.
The Mali Empire grew out of an area referred to by its contemporary inhabitants as Manden.