Senegal

Mali (マリ, Mali) is an OC for the series Hetalia: Axis Powers and a character in the upcoming fan fiction series Afrotalia. Her human name is Fatoumata Cissé, sometimes shortened to Fatou Cissé.

Appearance
Mali has short dark brown hair and green eyes. She is about  5' 3", which is the average height for females in Mali.

Her most common outfit is a light yellow kaftanwith gray patterns on it, a green bandana, and red sandals. She has very wide hips, and a think behind.

Personality and Interests
Mali was once an incredibly rich and powerful empire that dominated most of West Africa. But she fell after being repeatedly beat up by her neighbours, and lost all her wealth due competing trade markets. She eventually was conquered by France. Today, Mali is weak, poor, and somewhat hapless, often getting sucked into other countries' problems. Despite this, she tries to be meditator in the conflicts of her neighbors. Mali is very intellegent and phragmatic, often giving gifts to her friends and smiling.

Mali has a extreme passion for music and dance. So much so, that she spends most her free time dancing with her citizens and playing the kora. When dancing, she usually shakes her hips, which makes her butt bounce in a very Ukraine-like fashion. She usually sashays when walking, and taps her feet when sitting. Mali is also a master poet and storyteller, having a plethra of stories and poems passed down from medival times.

France
Main Article: The Scramble for Africa

During the Scramble for Africa, France heard about the gold in Mali. So he invaded Mali and made her his colony. While under his rule, France tried to make her "more French" by forcing her to speak only French and Arabic. Mali eventually got fed up and declared independence. Her current relationship with France is very ambivalent, after declaring independence, Mali distanced herself from France. But France is very invasive toward Mali, as he does with all of his former African colonies.

Senegal
Main Article: Senegal

Senegal and Mali spent a lot of their lives together, once when Senegal was part of the Mali Empire, and again when they were French colonies. Senegal eventually fell in love with Mali, and proposed that they get married after they became independent. Their marriage only lasted a few months, but the two still maintain a close platonic relationship.

Name
Mali's human name is Fatoumata Cissé. The given name Fatoumata (or Fatou) is common in West Africa, and is derived from the Arabic name Fatima. Cissé is a surname of Mandinka origin.

Trivia

 * Her birthday, September 22 corresponds with the date of Independence Day in Mali, which celebrates the date Mali gained independence from France
 * The colors of Mali's outfit (green bandana, yellow kaftan, red sandals) match the colors on the Malian flag (green, yellow, and red)
 * The design of Mali, is based off of the unnamed female French African colony that appeared in Lithuania's Outsourcing
 * Mali's large butt both represents Mali's status as a largely agricultural nation, and the stereotype of black girls having large behinds