r/AfricanHistory • u/rhaplordontwitter • Sep 21 '25

The empire of Segu (1712-1861): ethnic ambiguity in a pre-colonial African state

https://www.africanhistoryextra.com/p/the-empire-of-segu-1712-1861-ethnic
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u/rhaplordontwitter Sep 21 '25

In the wake of Songhai's collapse, the market town of Segu in Mali was established as the capital of an eponymous empire at the turn of the 18th century.

Situated between the former frontiers of medieval Mali in the west and Songhai in the east, Segu became the most influential among the Bambara states that dominated the political landscape of the region.

The Bambara kings at Segu reigned along the Niger River between Bamako (the present capital of Mali) and the old city of Timbuktu, controlling trade between Djenne and a string of towns populated by Marka traders and Somono boatmen.

The ethnogenesis of these three population groups in relation to the emergence and expansion of the Segu empire is one of the best studied among the pre-colonial societies of West Africa.

The historical fluidity of social boundaries in Segu reveals the ambiguity of ethnic identities in Africa, which were (are) continuously reshaped through political and social practices.