Page 118 - Empires of Medieval West Africa

t h e s o n g h a y p e o p l e

The second of two famous
mosques of Timbuktu,
the Sankoré Mosque, was
financed by a wealthy
woman who was probably
Tuareg. The date of
construction is not known,
but the first imam of this
mosque was appointed
around 1480.

western part of the empire and was based at Kabara, the port of Tim-
buktu. The balma’a was specially greeted with the title tunkara, which
had been a term for Soninke royalty in the 11th century.
The hi-koi was a high-ranking military officer who was responsible
for all river traffic. The hi-koi was admiral of the fleet of riverboats that
carried many of Sii Ali’s troops when he attacked Timbuktu in 1469
and when they laid siege to Jenne. In peacetime, the big boats carried
many kinds of cargo, such as rice, from the royal plantations along the
river into Gao.

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