What does Oualata mean?

Oualata or Walata ( Arabic: ولاتة) (also Biru in 17th century chronicles) is a small oasis town in southeast Mauritania, located at the eastern end of the Aoukar basin. Oualata was important as a caravan city in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries as the southern terminus of a trans-Saharan trade route and now it is a World Heritage Site .

What was the Walata Kingdom like?

The Berber diplomat, traveller and author, Leo Africanus, who visited the region in 1509-1510 gives a description in his book Descrittione dell’Africa: “Walata Kingdom: This is a small kingdom, and of mediocre condition compared to the other kingdoms of the blacks.

What is the difference between Timbuktu and Oualata?

From the second half of the fourteenth century Timbuktu gradually replaced Oualata as the southern terminus of the trans-Sahara route and Oualata declined in importance. Walata Kingdom: This is a small kingdom, and of mediocre condition compared to the other kingdoms of the blacks.

What did Ibn Battuta find in Oualata?

Moroccan explorer Ibn Battuta found the inhabitants of Oualata were Muslim and mainly Massufa, a section of the Sanhaja. He was surprised by the great respect and independence that women enjoyed. My stay at Iwalatan (Oualata) lasted about fifty days; and I was shown honour and entertained by its inhabitants.