The Songhai are an ethnic group from western Africa akin to the Mandé. The Songhai language group, however, has been connected with the Nilo-Saharan language family, unlike their neighboring counterparts. They and the Mandé were the dominant ethnic groups in the Songhay or Songhai Empire which dominated the western Sahel in the 15th and 16th century. The Songhai are found primarily throughout Mali, in the area of Africa known as the Western Sudan (not to be confused with the count… (More on Songhai)