So anyway, the Berbers were early converts to Islam, and Islam spread along those pre-existing trade routes between North and West Africa. So the first converts in Mali were traders, who benefited from having a religious as well as a commercial connection to their trading partners in the North and the rest of the Mediterranean. And then the kings followed the traders, maybe because sharing the religion of more established kingdoms in the North and the East would give them prestige, not to mention access to scholars and administrators who could help them cement their power. So Islam became the religion of the elites in West Africa, which meant that Muslim kings were trying to extend their power over largely non-Muslim populations, which worshipped traditional African gods and spirits. In order not to seem too foreign, these African Muslim kings would often blend traditional religion with Islam, like, for instance, giving women more equality than was seen in Islam's birthplace. Anyway, the first kings we have a record of adopting Islam were from Ghana, which was probably the first empire in West Africa, and it really took off around the 11th century. As with all empires and also everything else, Ghana rose and then fell and was replaced by Mali.