Sundiata Keita

Sundiata Keita (c. 1217–1255 CE) was the founder of the Mali Empire and the hero of the Sundiata Epic — one of the great oral literary traditions of Africa. His story, preserved and performed by griots (oral historians) for nearly eight centuries, tells of a prince born with disabilities who overcame persecution, exile, and impossible odds to forge one of history's greatest empires.

According to tradition, Sundiata was born the son of a Mandinka king but was unable to walk as a child. When a rival conquered his father's kingdom and killed his brothers, Sundiata and his mother fled into exile. Years later, he returned at the head of an army and defeated the tyrant Sumanguru Kante at the Battle of Kirina in 1235 — a victory that established the Mali Empire and made Sundiata its first mansa (emperor).

Sundiata's legacy extends far beyond military conquest. He is credited with establishing the Kouroukan Fouga (the Charter of Manden) — an oral constitution that organized Mali's governance, established rights and responsibilities, and codified social norms. Some scholars consider it one of the earliest declarations of human rights. Under Sundiata, Mali gained control of the trans-Saharan gold and salt trade, laying the economic foundation that his successors — most famously Mansa Musa — would build into legendary wealth.