Established around 777 AD, Chinguetti became an important trading outpost on the Timbuktu caravan route to the Mediterranean and later became an important center of Islamic learning in West Africa. Seriously threatened by desert encroachment, it continues to attract visitors who admire its traditional bare-bones architecture, surrounding sandy landscapes and ancient libraries. The town is split by a "wadi", with the old sector being one of the most outstanding and unspoilt examples of traditional Saharan architecture due to its traditional houses built of stone and mud bricks, with flat wooden roofs made of logs of palm. Many homes include patios, illustrating a traditional way of life centred on the nomadic culture of the people of the western Sahara.

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For centuries, Chinguetti was a principal gathering place for pilgrims of the Maghreb to gather, on their way to Mecca. It became known as a holy city in its own right, especially for pilgrims unable to make the long journey to the Arab Peninsula. It also became a center of Islamic religious and scientific scholarship in West Africa. The city remains one of the world's most important historical sites both in terms of the history of Islam and the history of West Africa. The old quarter of Chinguetti has five important manuscript libraries containing some 1,300 Quranic manuscripts, as well as civil records including contracts, bills of sale, and legal judgments, with many dating from the later Middle Ages. The dry desert air and dedication of generations of custodians have helped preserve the fragile parchments, often rolled inside bamboo tubes.