San ( Bambara: ߛߊߣ tr. San) is an urban commune, town and capital of the Cercle of San in the

Ségou Region Ségou Region (Bambara language, Bambara: ߛߋߓߎ ߘߌߣߋߖߊ tr. Segu Dineja) is an administrative region in Mali, situated in the centre of the country with an area of , around 5% of Mali. The region is bordered by Sikasso Region on the sout ...

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

. The town lies south of the

Bani River The Bani River is the principal tributary of the Niger River in Mali. The river is formed from the confluence of the Baoulé and Bagoé rivers some east of Bamako and it merges with the Niger near Mopti. Its length is about . Geography The ...

. In the 2009 census the commune had a population of 68,078.

History

The area of San was for centuries a fishing camp for

Bozo people The Bozo () are a Mande ethnic group located predominantly along the Niger River in Mali. The name ''Bozo'' is thought to derive from Bambara ''bɔ-so'' "bamboo house"; the people accept it as referring to the whole of the ethnic group but u ...

. Around 1400 CE a trade city dependent on the kingdom of Daa began to develop at a crucial ford over the Bani linking the Inner Niger Delta to the goldfields to the south, although oral traditions conflict on whether Marka from Dia or Dyula from Djenne were responsible. The town was attacked by

Askia Ishaq I Askia Ishaq I, also known as Ishaq Ber (Ishaq the Great), was the ruler of the Songhai Empire from 1539 to 1549, elected Askia following the death of Askia Isma'il. He was the fifth ruler of the Askiya dynasty. Rise to Power Ishaq was born the ...

of the

Songhai Empire The Songhai Empire was a state located in the western part of the Sahel during the 15th and 16th centuries. At its peak, it was one of the largest African empires in history. The state is known by its historiographical name, derived from its lar ...

in 1542. At the time it may have been known under the name 'Sama', although the name could also refer to Sama Foulala. In 1690 San, a prosperous market town, was conquered by Biton Coulibaly and integrated into the growing

Bamana Empire Bambara or Bambarra may refer to: * Bambara people, an ethnic group, primarily in Mali ** Bambara language, their language, a Manding language ** Bamana Empire, a state that flourished in present-day Mali (1640s–1861) * ''Bambara'' (beetle), a ...

. In 1739, Famaghan Ouattara of the

Kong Empire The Kong Empire (1710–1898), also known as the Wattara Empire or Ouattara Empire for its founder Seku Watara, was a pre-colonial state centered in what is now northeastern Ivory Coast that also encompassed much of present-day Burkina Faso a ...

intervened in a Bamana civil war and destroyed the town. It was later rebuilt somewhat further north. San was incorporated into the

Massina Empire The Caliphate of Hamdullahi (; ; ; ; also: Dina of Massina, Sise Jihad state), commonly known as the Massina Empire (also spelled ''Maasina'' or ''Macina''), was an early nineteenth-century Sunni Muslim caliphate in West Africa centered in the ...

by Cheikhou Amadou in the 1830s, and became a theocratic state. For this reason, when El-Hajj Omar Tall destroyed Massina in the 1860s he spared the city. The Almamy of San was forced to sign a protectorate treaty with France in 1891. The city's independence was soon curtailed by the colonial administration, however. In 1915 the area witnessed a series of rebellions against forced recruitment into the French army and forced labor during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, and the town's population plummeted. San was elevated to the status of commune under the French colonial regime in November 1955.Kô Samaké, Modibo Keïta, Recherche sur l’Historique de la Décentralisation au Mali: De la Période Coloniale à la 3e République, Penser pour agir.org, 7 février 200

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Economy and Culture

San is the center for production of

bògòlanfini Bògòlanfini or bogolan (; "mud cloth"; sometimes called mud-dyed cloth or mud-painted cloth in English language, English) is a handmade Malian cotton fabric traditionally dyed with fermented mud. It has an important place in traditional Malian ...

, a traditional Malian fabric. It also is a center of

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 mi ...

breeding. The main engine of the economy, however, is trade on the main highways that pass through town and the

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

fields along the Bani river. Attractions in the town include the San Museum and the Sudanic-style

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

. The yearly Sanke Mo fishing festival takes place every June, and has been officially classified as part of the national cultural patrimony of Mali.Conseil des Ministres du 26 janvier 2011
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Climate

San has a

hot semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of sem ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''BSh'') with a wet season from late May to early October. Almost no rain falls during the long dry season from early October to late May, while afternoon temperatures are sweltering except in December and January, when they are merely hot in the afternoon and pleasant to warm in the mornings.

Notable People

* Former

President of Mali This is a list of Head of state, heads of state of Mali since the country gained independence from France in 1960 to the present day. A total of seven people have served as head of state of Mali (excluding three acting presidents). Additionall ...

Bah Ndaw Bah Ndaw (also spelled N'Daw, N'Dah, and N'Daou; born 23 August 1950) is a Malian retired military officer and politician who served as the president of Mali between 25 September 2020 and 24 May 2021 when he was overthrown during the 2021 Malia ...

, born in San on 23 August 1950 * Historian and ethnologist

Twin towns

San is twinned with: *

Chaumont, Haute-Marne Chaumont, also known Chaumont-en-Bassigny (), is a commune of France, and the prefecture of the Haute-Marne department. , it has a population of 21,847. The city stands on the river Marne and is situated on the Paris-Est–Mulhouse-Ville rail ...

, France, since 1995

References

External links

*. {{Communes of the Ségou Region Communes of Ségou Region