The Toucouleur people are a Muslim West African ethnic group found mostly in Futa Toro region of Senegal, with some in Mali and Mauritania. The Toucouleur embraced Islam in the 11th century, their early and strong Islamic heritage is a matter of great pride for them. They have been influential in the spread of Islam to West Africa in the medieval era, later founded the vast Tukulor Empire in the 19th century under Umar Tal that led a religious war against their neighboring ethnic groups and the French colonial forces. The Toucouleur society has been patrilineal, polygynous and with high social stratification that included slavery and caste system.