Historical Dictionaries of Peoples and Cultures #5) Historical Dictionary of the Berbers

The Berbers are the remnants of the original inhabitants of North Africa, presently living in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya, where they account for much of the population, and Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Mali, and Niger, where they are smaller minorities, with a notable diaspora in France. That much is known, but not much more, not even roughly how many of them there are, while their origins are still shrouded in mystery. This is not surprising, after surviving Punic, Roman, Byzantine, Vandal, Arab, Ottoman, French, Italian, and Spanish invasions and settlement and not really being tolerated by the governments of the modern states. They contributed heavily to the spread of Islam and are Muslims, but that, as well as pressures from a long succession of conquerors, has dampened their identity and constricted those using the language. Yet the Imazighen (or free men) are still there and still cling to the hopes of greater acceptance and representation. "Berbers are the ancient inhabitants of North Africa, but rarely have they formed an actual kingdom or separate nation state. Ranging anywhere between 15-50 million, depending on how they are classified, the Berbers have influenced the culture and religion of Roman North Africa and played key roles in the spread of Islam and its culture in North Africa, Spain, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Taken together, these dynamics have over time converted to redefine the field of Berber identity and its socio-political representations and symbols, making it an even more important issue in the new century. Through the use of maps, a list of acronyms, a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, appendixes, and hundreds of cross-referenced dictionary entries on significant persons, places, events, institutions, and aspects of culture, society, economy and politics -- past and present -- the Historical Dictionary of the Berbers (Imazighen) provides necessary information on this under-studied group of people."--Publisher description Berbers are the ancient inhabitants of North Africa, but rarely have they formed an actual kingdom or separate nation state. Ranging anywhere between 15-50 million, depending on how they are classified, the Berbers have influenced the culture and religion of Roman North Africa and played key roles in the spread of Islam and its culture in North Africa, Spain, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Taken together, these dynamics have over time converted to redefine the field of Berber identity and its socio-political representations and symbols, making it an even more important issue in the new century. Through the use of maps, a list of acronyms, a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, appendixes, and hundreds of cross-referenced dictionary entries on significant persons, places, events, institutions, and aspects of culture, society, economy and politics_past and present_the Historical Dictionary of the Berbers (Imazighen) provides necessary information on this under-studied group of people. Contents......Page 9 Editor’s Foreword......Page 11 Acknowledgments......Page 13 Reader’s Note......Page 15 Acronyms and Abbreviations......Page 17 Chronology......Page 19 Introduction......Page 31 The Dictionary......Page 41 Appendix A: Ruling Chronologies of Berber Dynasties......Page 191 Appendix B: Maps......Page 199 Appendix C: Berber Alphabet......Page 221 Bibliography......Page 223 About the Author......Page 359