Burkina Faso Through History: Who Ruled Its Lands
The land of today's Burkina Faso appears on 39 historical border maps from 500 BC to today. Over that time it was held, in whole or in part, by 13 different states, among them Mossi States, Burkina Faso, French West Africa, Kong Empire, Mali.
Burkina FasoExplore the history of Burkina Faso in the interactive map
Compare 1000 with today · Burkina Faso as a state on the map
Who ruled the land of Burkina Faso, map by map
Share of sample points inside today's borders held by each state on each map. Areas with no organised state on the map are left out.
| Map | Main states on this land |
|---|---|
| AD 700 | Saharan Nomadic Tribes 6% |
| 1200 | Berber Tribes 6% |
| 1300 | Mali 85% |
| 1400 | Mali 21% |
| 1492 | Mossi States 56% |
| 1500 | Mossi States 56% |
| 1600 | Mossi States 56% · Songhai 4% |
| 1650 | Mossi States 40% |
| 1700 | Mossi States 40% |
| 1783 | Kong Empire 44% · Mossi States 42% · Segu 4% |
| 1800 | Kong Empire 44% · Mossi States 42% · Segu 4% |
| 1815 | Mossi States 79% · Kaarta 15% |
| 1880 | Kong Empire 65% · Mossi States 35% |
| 1900 | Mossi States 44% · Kong 8% |
| 1914 | French West Africa 100% |
| 1920 | French West Africa 96% · Ghana 4% |
| 1930 | French West Africa 96% · Ghana 4% |
| 1938 | French West Africa 96% · Gold Coast 4% |
| 1945 | Burkina Faso 100% |
| 1960 | Burkina Faso 100% |
| 1994 | Burkina Faso 100% |
| 2010 | Burkina Faso 100% |
Questions
Which empires and states ruled the territory of Burkina Faso?
On the border maps from 500 BC to today, the largest shares of the territory of modern Burkina Faso belonged to Mossi States, Burkina Faso, French West Africa, Kong Empire, Mali, Kaarta, along with 7 other states.
What was Burkina Faso part of in 1500?
On the border map for 1500, most of the territory of today's Burkina Faso lay within Mossi States.
What was Burkina Faso part of in 1900?
On the border map for 1900, most of the territory of today's Burkina Faso lay within Mossi States.
Further reading
Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.