a landlocked republic in West Africa: conquered by the French by 1898 and incorporated (as French Sudan) into French West Africa; became independent in 1960; settled chiefly in the basins of the Rivers Senegal and Niger in the south. Official language: French. Religion: Muslim majority, also animist. Currency: franc. Capital: Bamako. Pop: 18 541 980 (2017 est). Area: 1 248 574 sq km (482 077 sq miles)
Former name (1898–1959): French Sudan
Mali in American English
(ˈmɑli)
country in W Africa, south & east of Mauritania: a former French territory ( French Sudan), it joined the French Community as the autonomous Sudanese Republic (1958); it joined with Senegal to form the Mali Federation (1959); union dissolved & full independence proclaimed (1960): 478,841 sq mi (1,240,193 sq km); pop. 9,820,000; cap. Bamako