By French decree Algeria has known conspicuous cruelty. Its former masters had no mercy. Even when Algerians found refuge in their caves, the French had sabotaged these petty envelopes of safety by suffocating them with fire and smoke. Today, the streets of major cities go up in flames as Algeria fights against new power, this... Continue Reading →
Jebel Sheshar
I belong to the Jebel Sheshar tribal confederation, and more specifically I am of the Banu Amrane located in Djellal. The confederation of Jebel Sheshar, composed of Chaoui populations, includes the douars Taberga, Aliennas, Oulja-Sheshar and Khanga Sidi Naji. The fractions of the douar which have been rebellious are those of the Ouled Amrane and... Continue Reading →
Old Photographs of Kabylia
Boghni Market, 1982. © A. Abbas/Magnum Photos
Linguist and Professor Amina Mettouchi: Endangered Berber Languages
Professor Amina Mettouchi, who holds the Berber Linguistics chair at Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, grew up in Azazga, Kabylia until the age of 11 where she left Algeria for France and continued her studies there. She found herself specializing in Berber linguistics, but the path there wasn't always linear. She started off with math and... Continue Reading →
At Yiraten
The At Yiraten (Arabic Banū Raten) is a tribal confederation of Great Kabylia, whose territory is bounded on the North by the Sebaou, in the West by the Wādi Aisi, which separates them from the Banū Yenni, in the South by the district of the Ait Yaḥyā and in the east by that of the At Frawsen, and... Continue Reading →
Archiving Amazigh History and Culture with Madghis Madi
Madghis Madi, a reference for many interested in preserving North African patrimony, owns the biggest personal collection of North African artifacts. Madi left Libya when he was fourteen years old and didn't return until 2011. He was there for a year and a half or so until he settled back in Canada. The question of what... Continue Reading →
