Madina Ly-Tall (born 25 April 1940 in Bandiagara) is a Malian educator, historian and diplomat. Ly-Tall was born into a political family, being a descendant of El Hadj Umar Tall, founder of the Toucouleur Empire and her father was a member of the Sudanese Progressive Party (PSP). She received her schooling in Koutiala from 1947 to 1952 before enrolling in a four-year course at the Modern College of Young Women in Bamako. She subsequently studied at the . She joined the African Independence Party (PAI) in 1958, before moving to Toulouse, France for further studying. While in France she was active with the Federation of Students of Black Africa in France (FEANF) before returning to Mali in 1965.