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Mali, region of the former Mali Empire, is a landlocked country in interior of Western Africa. It was also formerly called Sudanese Republic, then renamed Mali when Senegal withdrew from Mali Federation after their independence from France in 1960.

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The national flag of Mali is composed of three colors: green, gold, and red consecutively. Those colors represents the pan-African colors.

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While rice and millet serves as the staples of Mali, a food culture heavily based on cereal grains their national dish is called Tiguadege Na. It literally translates to Meat in Peanut Sauce.

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There are many religions present in Mali, but the most prevalent one is the religion of Islam. Mali is considered to a Muslim country since 94.8% of their population is a Muslim. The remaining population are Christians, Animists, Non-religious, or unspecified.

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In terms of instruments, African nations share many similarities. The kora is by far the most popular traditional instrument; similar to both harp and lute. There are also instruments called ngoni, balafon, tama, djembe, and dunun.

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Mali has an ancient musical culture. Passed down from generations of jelis (the lineage of traditional musicians), Mali is a land of mixed traditional and modern music.

Mali has unique two musical ensembles, sumu and sandiya. Sumu is preferred for weddings, while sandiya is for more common and child-naming ceremonies.

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Exterior sign of wealth, the boubou is a centerpiece of the traditional Malian costume. Also called kaftan, this garment is  carved either in "basin", or in "bogolan". It is composed of  a set consisting of trousers and a tunic. A long robe is worn above the the set.

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Football (soccer) is Mali’s most popular sport, and every neighborhood in the major towns has a team. Basketball is also popular, but, as in most other sub-Saharan African countries, wrestling is more prevalent, especially in the western and southern parts of the country.

Salif Keita, (born Dec. 6, 1942, Bamako, Mali), Malian football (soccer) player and the first recipient of the African Player of the Year award in 1970. Keita symbolized independent Africa’s football passion and prowess.

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French is the official language of Mali, but languages of the Niger-Congo family dominate. One of them, Bambara, is used as a lingua franca by some four-fifths of the population. Mande languages—including Bambara, Malinke, Khasonke, Wasulunka, and Soninke—have the largest number of speakers, but the Gur branch (which includes Bwa, Moore, Senufo, and Minianka languages) and the Atlantic branch (which includes Fula and Tukulor and may include Dogon) are also represented.

Though French is the official language, Bambara is the most spoken one.

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Malians are very proud of their traditions of hospitality toward local and international visitors, and indeed, hospitality has been raised to the level of a national value. Greetings and salutations for special occasions (births, marriages, deaths, etc.) are the subject of much social regulation.

The following are taboos to avoid in Mali:

Avoid pointing at people with your index finger, use the whole hand instead.

Giving anything to someone with the left hand is considered very rude.  Always give and receive object with the left hand.

When eating out of a communal bowl, don’t take meat or veggies from the other side.

Passing gas in public is considered rude.

When invited to dinner at someone’s home, it is rude to bring a hostess gift.  It is the responsibility of the host to provide everything for their guest.

Read more: https://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/Mali.html#ixzz6fdtytSp4

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Mali is famous for its many festivals and Djembé classes. In Ségou there is the Festival sur le Niger. This festival offers you a unique spectacle, with music, dance, masks, puppets, arts and crafts from the region, as well as very well-known Malian artists. There are also lectures, demonstrations, storytellers, exhibitions, films, puppet shows and traditional and modern dance demonstrations.

Another special festival is the Festival au Désert, where music and Tuareg culture blend seamlessly. You can fully enjoy various Malian and international artists who take the stage here. The festival site is the scene of music and dance for days, interspersed with sword fights and camel races. A unique experience, which is reinforced by the atmosphere of the desert. You can also take one or more djembé lessons with an experienced percussionist.

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The most common cultural activities involve music and dancing. Dogon dancers wear masks that are more than 10 feet  tall to act out their conception of the world’s progress, and Bambara animal-spirit masqueraders do a fertility dance in which they imitate the movements of animals.

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The Malian currency is called West African CFA franc.