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Timbuktu

Type Object Region West Africa Time c. 1100

Timbuktu, on the northern edge of the Niger bend, formed as a settlement around the early 11th century from Tuareg nomads' seasonal camps.

Timeline

  1. c. 1100–1105Timbuktu · MaliTuareg nomads set up seasonal camps in the dune terrain on the Niger's north bank; the name "Timbuktu" means "the well of Buktu," and it gradually became a small settlement and livestock watering point.
  2. c. 1106–1110Timbuktu · MaliCamel caravans came south from North Africa's Sahel, converging here with Niger River shipping and trade routes to the Ghana Empire's gold-producing regions; Timbuktu began to serve functions of goods consolidation, animal exchange, and intermediary trade, establishing the embryo of the city.

Sources