We Are Imazighen

Author : Fazia Aïtel
Publisher : University Press of Florida
ISBN 13 : 0813048958
Total Pages : 326 pages
Book Rating : 4.56/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book We Are Imazighen written by Fazia Aïtel and published by University Press of Florida. This book was released on 2014-11-04 with total page 326 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: To the world they are known as Berbers, but they prefer to call themselves Imazighen, or “free people.” The claim to this unique cultural identity has been felt most acutely in Algeria in the Kabylia region, where an Amazigh consciousness gradually emerged after WWII. This is a valuable model for other Amazigh movements in North Africa, where the existence of an Amazigh language and culture is denied or dismissed in countries such as Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya. By tracing the cultural production of the Kabyle people—their songs, oral traditions, and literature—from the early 1930s to the end of the twentieth century, Fazia Aïtel shows how they have defined their own culture over time, both within Algeria and in its diaspora. She analyzes the role of Amazigh identity in the works of novelists such as Mouloud Feraoun, Tahar Djaout, and Assia Djebar, and she investigates the intersection of Amazigh consciousness and the Beur movement in France. She also addresses the political and social role of the Kabyles in Algeria and in France, where after independence it was easier for the Berber community to express and organize itself. Ultimately, Aïtel argues that the Amazigh literary tradition is founded on dual priorities: the desire to foster a genuine dialogue while retaining a unique culture.

Author : Margaret Courtney-Clarke
Publisher : Clarkson Potter Publishers
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 224 pages
Book Rating : 4.02/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Imazighen written by Margaret Courtney-Clarke and published by Clarkson Potter Publishers. This book was released on 1996 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As she has in her previous books, Ndebele: The Art of an African Tribe and African Canvas: The Art of West African Women, Margaret Courtney-Clarke turns her sensitive eye on women whose lives have seldom been observed. Her photos explore the remarkable arts and rapidly changing way of life of the Berber women of North Africa. 230 full-color photos.

Author : Katherine E. Hoffman
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
ISBN 13 : 0470693339
Total Pages : 280 pages
Book Rating : 4.39/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book We Share Walls written by Katherine E. Hoffman and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2008-04-15 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We Share Walls: Language, Land, and Gender in Berber Morocco explores how political economic shifts over the last century have reshaped the language practices and ideologies of women (and men) in the plains and mountains of rural Morocco. Offers a unique and richly textured ethnography of language maintenance and shift as well as language and place-making among an overlooked Muslim group Examines how Moroccan Berbers use language to integrate into the Arab-speaking world and retain their own distinct identity Illuminates the intriguing semiotic and gender issues embedded in the culture Part of the Blackwell Studies in Discourse and Culture Series

Author : Lisa Bernasek
Publisher : Harvard University Press
ISBN 13 : 0873654056
Total Pages : 144 pages
Book Rating : 4.50/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Artistry of the Everyday written by Lisa Bernasek and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2008-12-15 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "In Artistry of the Everyday: Beauty and Craftsmanship in Berber Art, anthropologist Lisa Bernasek gives an insightful overview of Berber history and culture, focusing on the rich aesthetic traditions of Berber craftsmen and -women. She also tells the stories of the collectors whose generosity enhanced the holdings of the Peabody Museum. In a final chapter, she looks at Berber arts in the present day, examining how traditional arts are being used in new forms by Berber artists in North Africa and Europe."--BOOK JACKET.

Author : Phillip C. Naylor
Publisher : University of Texas Press
ISBN 13 : 0292778783
Total Pages : 377 pages
Book Rating : 4.88/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book North Africa written by Phillip C. Naylor and published by University of Texas Press. This book was released on 2009-12-03 with total page 377 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: North Africa has been a vital crossroads throughout history, serving as a connection between Africa, Asia, and Europe. Paradoxically, however, the region's historical significance has been chronically underestimated. In a book that may lead scholars to reimagine the concept of Western civilization, incorporating the role North African peoples played in shaping "the West," Phillip Naylor describes a locale whose transcultural heritage serves as a crucial hinge, politically, economically, and socially. Ideal for novices and specialists alike, North Africa begins with an acknowledgment that defining this area has presented challenges throughout history. Naylor's survey encompasses the Paleolithic period and early Egyptian cultures, leading readers through the pharonic dynasties, the conflicts with Rome and Carthage, the rise of Islam, the growth of the Ottoman Empire, European incursions, and the postcolonial prospects for Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, and Western Sahara. Emphasizing the importance of encounters and interactions among civilizations, North Africa maps a prominent future for scholarship about this pivotal region.

Author : Katherine E. Hoffman
Publisher : Indiana University Press
ISBN 13 : 0253354803
Total Pages : 241 pages
Book Rating : 4.08/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Berbers and Others written by Katherine E. Hoffman and published by Indiana University Press. This book was released on 2010 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Berbers and Others offers fresh perspectives on new forms of social and political activism in today's Maghrib. In recent years, the Amazigh (Berber) movement has become a focus of widespread political, social, and cultural attention in North Africa, Europe, and the United States. Berber groups have peacefully yet persistently laid claim to ownership over broad areas of creativity in the arts, politics, literature, education, and national memory. The contributors to this volume present some of the best new thinking in the emerging field of Berber studies, offering insight into historical antecedents, language usage, land rights, household economies, artistic production, and human rights. The scope, depth, and multidisciplinary approach will engage specialists on the Maghrib as well as students of ethnicity, social and political change, and cultural innovation.

Author : Cynthia Becker
Publisher : University of Texas Press
ISBN 13 : 0292712952
Total Pages : 241 pages
Book Rating : 4.59/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Amazigh Arts in Morocco written by Cynthia Becker and published by University of Texas Press. This book was released on 2006 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In southeastern Morocco, around the oasis of Tafilalet, the Ait Khabbash people weave brightly colored carpets, embroider indigo head coverings, paint their faces with saffron, and wear ornate jewelry. Their extraordinarily detailed arts are rich in cultural symbolism; they are always breathtakingly beautiful—and they are typically made by women. Like other Amazigh (Berber) groups (but in contrast to the Arab societies of North Africa), the Ait Khabbash have entrusted their artistic responsibilities to women. Cynthia Becker spent years in Morocco living among these women and, through family connections and female fellowship, achieved unprecedented access to the artistic rituals of the Ait Khabbash. The result is more than a stunning examination of the arts themselves, it is also an illumination of women's roles in Islamic North Africa and the many ways in which women negotiate complex social and religious issues. One of the reasons Amazigh women are artists is that the arts are expressions of ethnic identity, and it follows that the guardians of Amazigh identity ought to be those who literally ensure its continuation from generation to generation, the Amazigh women. Not surprisingly, the arts are visual expressions of womanhood, and fertility symbols are prevalent. Controlling the visual symbols of Amazigh identity has given these women power and prestige. Their clothing, tattoos, and jewelry are public identity statements; such public artistic expressions contrast with the stereotype that women in the Islamic world are secluded and veiled. But their role as public identity symbols can also be restrictive, and history (French colonialism, the subsequent rise of an Arab-dominated government in Morocco, and the recent emergence of a transnational Berber movement) has forced Ait Khabbash women to adapt their arts as their people adapt to the contemporary world. By framing Amazigh arts with historical and cultural context, Cynthia Becker allows the reader to see the full measure of these fascinating artworks.

Author : Hsain Ilahiane
Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN 13 : 1442281820
Total Pages : 489 pages
Book Rating : 4.20/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Historical Dictionary of the Berbers (Imazighen) written by Hsain Ilahiane and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2017-03-27 with total page 489 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Berbers, also known as Imazighen, 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 21st century. This second edition of Historical Dictionary of the Berbers contains a chronology, an introduction, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 200 cross-referenced entries on important personalities, places, events, institutions, and aspects of culture, society, economy, and politics. This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the Berbers.

Author : Doris H. Gray
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 110841950X
Total Pages : 417 pages
Book Rating : 4.05/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Women and Social Change in North Africa written by Doris H. Gray and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2018-01-11 with total page 417 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A wide-ranging analysis of grass-roots activism, migration, legal, political and religious changes as basis for social transformation.

Author : Ramzi Rouighi
Publisher : University of Pennsylvania Press
ISBN 13 : 081225130X
Total Pages : 272 pages
Book Rating : 4.02/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Inventing the Berbers written by Ramzi Rouighi and published by University of Pennsylvania Press. This book was released on 2019-08-02 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Before the Arabs conquered northwest Africa in the seventh century, Ramzi Rouighi asserts, there were no Berbers. There were Moors (Mauri), Mauretanians, Africans, and many tribes and tribal federations such as the Leuathae or Musulami; and before the Arabs, no one thought that these groups shared a common ancestry, culture, or language. Certainly, there were groups considered barbarians by the Romans, but "Barbarian," or its cognate, "Berber" was not an ethnonym, nor was it exclusive to North Africa. Yet today, it is common to see studies of the Christianization or Romanization of the Berbers, or of their resistance to foreign conquerors like the Carthaginians, Vandals, or Arabs. Archaeologists and linguists routinely describe proto-Berber groups and languages in even more ancient times, while biologists look for Berber DNA markers that go back thousands of years. Taking the pervasiveness of such anachronisms as a point of departure, Inventing the Berbers examines the emergence of the Berbers as a distinct category in early Arabic texts and probes the ways in which later Arabic sources, shaped by contemporary events, imagined the Berbers as a people and the Maghrib as their home. Key both to Rouighi's understanding of the medieval phenomenon of the "berberization" of North Africa and its reverberations in the modern world is the Kitāb al-'ibar of Ibn Khaldūn (d. 1406), the third book of which purports to provide the history of the Berbers and the dynasties that ruled in the Maghrib. As translated into French in 1858, Rouighi argues, the book served to establish a racialized conception of Berber indigenousness for the French colonial powers who erected a fundamental opposition between the two groups thought to constitute the native populations of North Africa, Arabs and Berbers. Inventing the Berbers thus demonstrates the ways in which the nineteenth-century interpretation of a medieval text has not only served as the basis for modern historical scholarship but also has had an effect on colonial and postcolonial policies and communal identities throughout Europe and North Africa.