Mopti, city in Mali
Mopti is a port city in Mali located where the Niger and Bani rivers meet. The city with its narrow, maze-like streets, busy river port, and mud-brick Grand Mosque serves as a trading hub and transforms into a group of islands during flood season, connected by elevated paths.
Mopti was known as Sagan by the Bozo people and its name comes from a Fulfulde word meaning gathering. The town grew after the French arrived in the late 1800s and became a major port quickly, especially when the French built the mosque in 1933 in the style of Djenne.
Mopti brings together different ethnic groups including Fula, Bozo, Bambara, and Dogon people, each contributing their own customs and ways of living. The river port and markets show this blend every day: women sell vegetables, dried fish, and handmade pottery, while fishermen use traditional wooden boats and blacksmiths still forge tools by hand.
The best time to visit is between December and January when the weather is cooler and river activity is visible. Wear light, breathable clothing and drink plenty of water, as heat and dryness are intense, especially from April to May.
The Grand Mosque was built in 1933 following the design of the famous mosque in Djenne and constructed with mud bricks from local materials. Because the city becomes islands during flood season, a causeway was built to connect it to neighboring Sevaré, making it a distinctive engineering solution for the geography.
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