Mali Bero (''Mali'' the ''Great'' or ''Eldest'') or Zarmakoy Sombo is a mythical legendary leader of the

Zarma people The Zarma people are an ethnic group predominantly found in westernmost Niger. They are also found in significant numbers in the adjacent areas of Nigeria and Benin, along with smaller numbers in Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, and Suda ...

of western

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesMali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mali ...

eastward to western Niger several centuries ago. The story of ''Mali Bero'' has appeared in various forms in the Zarma society from poems, songs and oral narratives by griots. No one, however, has published a linear version of the story of ''Mali Bero'' that is more than a few hundred lines long. Mali Bero, however, is believed to be the son of Zabarkane, another Zarma legendary figure

Oral Tradition

For the Zarmas, the most important message is their migration eastward led by ''Mali Bero'' via "Barma Daba", a flying millet silo bottom (a flat and round surface made of wooden straw that serves as foundation for a temporary silo). The incident that prompted the migration, which was the fight between the Zarma,

Tuareg The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym: ''Imuhaɣ/Imušaɣ/Imašeɣăn/Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group that principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern A ...

and

Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...

children reflects an history of an on-and-off conflict that marks relations with these three groups until today.

Migration

According to oral tradition, ''Mali Bero'' decided one day to leave his village following a fight between one of his villagers and a child from neighboring village of the

and

during a swim in the pond of "Mallé". The children of these villages had the habit of taking the clothes of the children from the village of Mali Béro to wipe their bodies after taking their baths in the pond. The children from the village of ''Mali Béro'' decided one day not to accept this and planned a revenge if the act is repeated. When the act was repeated, one child from the other village was killed by another child from the village of ''Mali Bero''. Upon hearing the news that one of his offspring has killed a child from the neighboring village, Mali Béro gathered his village and offered them to leave urgently to prevent the situation from degenerating in the event the other village decide to take revenge. He ordered them to urgently collect millet stalks for making the “Barma Daba”. Quickly, they made the "Barma Daba" in which they entered to embark on a flight in search for a new territory. After series of stops, they finally landed in Sargane, a village in present-day

Niger ) , official_languages = , languages_type = National languagesOuallam Department Ouallam is a department of the Tillabéri Region in Niger. Its capital lies at the city of Oullam, which is designated an Urban Commune. The department also includes the Rural Communes of Simiri and Tondikiwindi, as well as the towns of Bani ...

. The tomb where Mali was buried remains an attraction for tourists, students and researchers.

References

{{reflist History of Niger Zarma people 16th-century Muslims Year of birth uncertain