Tuareg

The Tuaregs have a legend that their roots come from the legendary foremother and great ruler, the Queen of the Sahara - Tin-Hinan , who was an Amazon and came to Hoggar with her maid from the southern region of present-day Morocco, called Tafilalet. In 1925, in the area of ​​the ancient fortification of Abalessa in Akhaggar, a rich burial of a woman was found. Many Tuaregs believe that this is Tin-Hinan ^[11] .

The first written descriptions of the Tuareg appeared in the early Arabic texts, including the works of Ibn Haukal in the X century, Al Bakri in the XI century, and more detailed - Ibn Battuta and Ibn Khalduna in the XIV century and Leo African in the XVI century. These travelers crossed the Sahara, following the clearly laid caravan routes, which contributed to the spread of Islam in the area, starting from the 7th century ^[12] .

Middle Ages

In the XI century, Arab conquerors invaded the territory of the Tuareg settlement in North Africa, again shifting the range of the Tuareg to the west. During this period, the Tuaregs underwent Islamization and Arabization .

In the Middle Ages, the Tuaregs were engaged in trans-Saharan trade , created several short-lived state entities , such as the Sultanate of Agadez ; controlled important transshipment points, such as Takedda .

Colonial era

During the colonial era, the Tuaregs were included in French West Africa . Unlike many other nations, the Tuaregs have long resisted the new government. So, for example, the colonial power in the Niger colony was able to subjugate the Tuareg tribes only by 1923. The French colonial power controlled the Tuaregs through clan leaders, trying to use inter-clan contradictions.

Postcolonial Period

As a result of the colonial rule of France, the Tuaregs lost the opportunity to dominate the settled farmers. This reason, as well as the removal from politics of other ethnic groups, the deterioration of the economic situation as a result of the droughts of the 1970s and 1980s. led to open armed resistance in Niger , Algeria and Mali . The Tuaregs advocated the creation of the state of Azavad .

An increase in tension in northern Niger was fueled by the 1990 incident in the city of Chin Tabaraden .

In 2012, the Tuaregs revolted in Mali ; at the beginning of April they controlled a significant part of the north of the country ^[13] .

The Touareg Tuareg language belongs to the Berber languages , although outwardly the Tuareg are very different from the Berbers of the Atlas Mountains . At the same time, the Tuaregs have a special letter typhinagus (in the language of Tamas), derived from the ancient Libyan script . In the XX century, in a number of countries, tamasheks introduced Latin-based writing systems.

By religion, the Tuaregs are Sunni Muslims . However, they retained many pre-Islamic traditions, such as the matrilineal clan organization, matrilocal marriage settlement and matrilateral orthocous marriage . Despite the fact that the Tuareg profess Islam , where polygamy is allowed, a real Tuareg marries only once in a lifetime.

Women are respected in Tuareg society. Girls from an early age learn to read and write, while a man is allowed to be illiterate. The traditional Tuareg script of typhinagh , according to a number of scholars, dates back to the ancient Libyan script ^[14] .

The main occupation is hoe farming (grain, legumes, vegetables), combined with the breeding of small cattle. Part of the Tuareg inhabiting Algerian Sahara and the Tener desert roams with herds of camels and goats .

Tuaregs are famous for their jewelry: bracelets, necklaces, rings, etc. Jewelry made by Tuaregs are popular not only in the countries of the Arab world, but also in Europe and even in Indonesia ^[15] .

Dressed noble usually in a sleeveless shirt and wide pants. A blue cloak is worn over it. Two wide ribbons interlaced on the chest, woven from multi-colored silk strings, the ends of which are brushes. Men cover their heads with a white or blue shawl, which covers their faces, only eyes remain open. Hair braided in braids. Leather sandals on his feet. The noble wears a stone bracelet, sometimes a simple silver ring on his finger as jewelry.

In a Tuareg female aristocrat, her hair is braided. She is dressed in a white long shirt and blue scarf. On the woman’s neck there are silver jewelry, rings on her hands. On holidays, women and men paint antimony with eyebrows and eyelids ^[16] .

When the young man is 18 years old, his family organizes a holiday where a Tuareg is presented with a blue or white scarf - “ tagelmust ” (shash-arab.) Or foxes, whose length can reach 40 meters. From this moment he is considered an adult, it is indecent for him to appear in public without a fox, and only during a meal is it allowed to lower the foxes to the chin. In the old days, the Tuareg who saw the face was waiting for the unenviable fate of being killed by him. If this could not be done, then the Tuareg was obliged to commit suicide. Therefore, it is still considered a bad luck to meet Tuareg, for example, in Tunisian Sahara. While Tuareg women do not cover their faces.

Tuaregs retain tribal division and significant elements of the patriarchal system: the people are divided into tribal or “drum” groups, each headed by a leader whose power is symbolized by a drum. And the leader is above all groups.

The largest tribal groups are Yullemiden , Iforaz , Kael Ahaggar and Kael Adger (south of Algeria), Kael Adrar (north of Mali), Kael Air (north of Niger), Kael Geres (Gres) (lowlands), Allememeden Kel Denneck in the east, Allemeden Kel Atatam in the West ^{[ what? ]} .

The head is the leader. The leader’s power is not unlimited, most decisions are made by the meeting of the leaders of the “drum” groups, and the mother of the amenokal may impose a ban on the implementation of any decision.

• Leader - amenokal
• Amenokal mother
• Meetings of the leaders of the "drum" groups
• The leader of the "drum" group
• Tribal or “drum” group

The interaction of men and women is relatively free, women own property with the right to inherit ^[17] .

Traditional Tuareg social division also includes casting. Castes :

• Noble or noble - own herds of camels .
• The guardians of the faith or spiritual mentors are not tribal.
• vassals - imgads involved in goat breeding.
• slaves - iklans.
• the blacksmiths are ineda.

Slaves and blacksmiths have nothing to do with the Tuareg of the higher castes. They are usually dark-skinned, while the Tuareg themselves are light-skinned and tall, thin. The Tuaregs raided neighboring tribes, capturing people into slavery. Representatives of the slave caste are “slaves” by origin, they have long been sent to freedom. And the blacksmiths lived next to the Tuaregs of their own free will. Traditions forbid Tuaregs from higher castes to engage in any craft, and Tuareg women mastered leather dressing.

During cyclic movements and trade in salt, the Tuaregs move from one oasis to another, although sometimes there is a five-day journey between them. At each oasis, they also trade or replenish their caravan's supplies with the products that the servos - farmers- - supply them with - these are mainly sorghum ^[18] .

• Azawad
• Tuareg Uprising (1916-1917)
• Tuareg Uprising (1962-1964)
• Tuareg Uprising (1990-1995)
• Tuareg Uprising (2007-2009)
• Tuareg Uprising (2012-2013)

• Generals of sand pits (Rus.) . Date of treatment October 10, 2011. Archived February 9, 2012.
• Tuaregs (from the encyclopedia "Around the World")
• Tuaregs. Tea ceremony and travel around the Sahara. (Video from the World Trip Rip series)

• Travina V.I. Secrets of deserts. - M .: LLC "ROSMEN-PRESS", 2003. - 352 p. - (Interesting about the unknown).
• Ibrahim al-Kuni . A sip of blood. A collection of stories about the life of the Tuareg of the Sahara / Transl. with arab. - M., 1988.
• Kubbel L. E. Country of gold - centuries, culture, state . - 2nd ed. - M .: Nauka, Main editorship. literature, 1990 .-- 240 p. - ( In the wake of the disappeared cultures of the East ). - ISBN 5-02-016730-4 .

• James A. Standifer. Tuareg: Their Music and Dances. // The Black Perspective in Music. 1988. Vol. 16. No.1. pp. 45–62. (eng.)
• Clarke JH The Search for Timbuctoo. // The Journal of Negro Education. 1964. Vol. 33. No. 2. pp. 125-130. (eng.)
• Rasmussen SJ Between Ritual, Theater, and Play: Blacksmith Praise at Tuareg Marriage // The Journal of American Folklore, Vol. 110, No. 435 (Winter, 1997), pp. 3–27. (eng.)
• Seligman TK Art of Being Tuareg Sahara Nomads in a Modern World // African Arts, Vol. 39, No. 3 (Autumn, 2006), pp. 56–79. (eng.)
• Standifer JA The Tuareg: Their Music and Dances. // The Black Perspective in Music. Vol. 16.No. 1 1988. pp. 45–62. (eng.)
• Loughran Kristyne. Jewelry, Fashion, and Identity: The Tuareg Example. // African Arts. 2003. Vol. 36. No. 1. Memorial to Roy Sieber. Part 1. pp. 52–65 + 93.