As a province of Rome, the Imazighen became involved in the Roman Civil War between Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great in 46 BCE, and the region was subsequently controlled by Augustus Caesar (r. 27 BCE-14 CE) after 31 BCE. Aksel capitalized on his victory by expanding his territory and gaining more recruits but was killed in battle with the Muslim Arab leader Hasan ibn al Nu’man in either 686 CE or 688 CE. Now holding the northeast regions, he again attacked Kahina and was so badly defeated that he retreated either to Libya or Egypt. The Numidians under Rome became a diverse culture of religious traditions. Further, Musa is traditionally credited with completing the conquest of North Africa which Hasan had begun and also with recruiting Imazighen warriors for his conquest of Iberia and this came after Kahina’s death. Kahina is thought to have fought alongside Aksel in the 680’s CE and proven herself in battle. She further ordered orchards cut down, fields burned, and even private gardens destroyed. It is considered the first Imazighen state established in North Africa and was founded by the king Masinissa (r. c. 202-148 BCE) following the Second Punic War (218-202 BCE) between Rome and Carthage. Thank you! Pour en savoir davantage, y compris comment contrôler les cookies, voir : … In Algeria itself, a statue was erected in 2003 CE, possibly in response to the Parisian work, in the town of Baghai, Khenchela Province, honoring Kahina. Changer ), Vous commentez à l’aide de votre compte Twitter. Kahina herself would live on through the works of Arab historians, most notably the great Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406 CE), working from earlier sources. Avertissez-moi par e-mail des nouveaux articles. En continuant à utiliser ce site, vous acceptez leur utilisation. The Berbers: The North African Nomads Who Live In The Sahara Desert, Aksel of Mauretania defeats Arab forces in, Kahina, The Woman They Don’t Love by Ghania Khelifi, The Kahina: The Female Face of Berber History by Cynthia Becker, North Africa, Revised Edition: A History from Antiquity to the Present. Although she is commonly referred to as a “Berber Queen”, the indigenous people of the region know her as an Imazighen, which is the more accurate term. Changer ), Vous commentez à l’aide de votre compte Twitter. ( Déconnexion /  Ancient History Encyclopedia. The Ancient History Encyclopedia logo is a registered EU trademark. One of Kahina’s sons either defected or was captured and is said to have informed on his mother’s battle plans. At the same time, it has been argued that she practiced the indigenous religion of Numidia which included worship of the sun, moon, and veneration of one’s ancestors. At that same time, the Imazighen reasserted their claim to her as their heroine while Arab Nationalists in the region somehow managed to argue she was theirs. Mark, J. J. Legends ascribe her the gift of prophecy. (1). Scholar Ethan Malveaux comments: The word Berber was a derivative of the Greek word Kapes Bap Bapo`owoi, which meant savage (later the English would compact it into Barbary); the Arab adopted the name for these African tribes who were once subjected by the Ancient Romans and who had (before the Muslim Conquest) wrested semi-autonomy from the Byzantine Empire. Little is known of her life outside of her conflict with the Muslim Arab leader Hasan ibn al Nu’man (died c. 710 CE) whose Umayyad armies campaigned across North Africa. (2018, March 16). Web. Kahina defeated Hasan more than once and drove him from the region. Roman Africa - An Outline of the History of the Roman Occupation of... A Short History of Africa 6th edition by Oliver, Roland, Fage, J. Recognizing the direction of the wind, however, she ordered her army to set fires which the wind then carried to the enemy. Legends also claim she once married a tyrant who was persecuting her people and then murdered him on their wedding night. Retrieved from https://www.ancient.eu/Kahina/. Changer ), Vous commentez à l’aide de votre compte Google. "Kahina." Aksel had been a Christian who converted to Islam voluntarily sometime earlier because it seemed more profitable. Arab forces had already conquered Mesopotamia and Egypt by 647 CE, converting the populace to Islam, when they moved toward the Maghreb. The claim regarding her power of prophecy is in keeping with this ancient belief in which the gods, or the spirits of the dead, could communicate with certain members of the tribe who had the gift of prophecy. Changer ), Vous commentez à l’aide de votre compte Facebook. En continuant à utiliser ce site, vous acceptez leur utilisation. Entrez vos coordonnées ci-dessous ou cliquez sur une icône pour vous connecter: Vous commentez à l’aide de votre compte WordPress.com. Musa replaced Hasan as governor in North Africa but it is unclear when. It may be, however, that the Arab armies themselves used the scorched earth tactic and later Arab writers attributed the destruction of the land to Kahina. It is possible, then, that Hasan, or another commander, initiated the scorched-earth policy in North Africa to demoralize the people – just as they had elsewhere – and it worked to break the resistance. In the 7th century CE, the Arabian armies began campaigns of conquest following the establishment of the new religion of Islam. Gregory was killed at the Battle of Sufetula in 647 CE, south of Carthage, and his successor paid the Arab forces a sizeable tribute to return to Egypt. He has taught history, writing, literature, and philosophy at the college level. ( Déconnexion /  Legend then claims that she engaged in a scorched earth policy to deprive the invading Muslims of any profitable goods and that this course led to a loss of support from her people. Numidia continued as a Roman province after the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 CE. In 2001 CE a statue of Kahina was raised in the Parc de Bercy, Paris as one of a number in an exhibit called “Children of the World” (Les Enfants du Monde). It is also possible that, by this time, the people simply saw a Muslim Arab victory as inevitable; Kahina herself may have felt this same way as evidenced by the later surrender of her sons to Hasan. Last modified March 16, 2018. Commanding a greatly diminished force against overwhelming numbers, Kahina was defeated. Judaism, Christianity, and the indigenous religion of the ancient Imazighen seem to have coexisted harmoniously or, at least, there is no evidence of religious turmoil in the region during this time. Their homes and businesses were destroyed and the only option given them was a nomadic wandering in a region which had been largely destroyed by war even before Kahina set it on fire. ( Déconnexion /  Written by Joshua J. ( Déconnexion /  Please note that content linked from this page may have different licensing terms. At this time, he may have been succeeded by his wife (or another female relative) named Koceila who reigned as queen. This license lets others remix, tweak, and build upon this content non-commercially, as long as they credit the author and license their new creations under the identical terms. It is said that by using her powers, Kahina may have won a third victory against Hasan, or perhaps an army under another leader while Hasan was in Egypt or Libya. Related Content Small pockets of resistance still held out - and many of the wives of Numidian chiefs are said to have killed themselves rather than be taken by the Arabs - but between c. 705-750 CE North Africa was fully conquered and the people converted to Islam. En continuant à utiliser ce site, vous acceptez leur utilisation. If Koceila did succeed Aksel, it was not for long as Kahina was in command of the army by c. 690 CE. Avertissez-moi par e-mail des nouveaux commentaires. Confidentialité & Cookies : Ce site utilise des cookies. ( Déconnexion /  Kahina is thought to have fought alongside Aksel in the 680’s CE & proven herself in battle. Many of Kahina’s former allies had gone over to Hasan whether due to the scorched-earth tactics which demoralized them or bribery. Dates given for her death vary between 698, 702, and 705 CE, although the historical evidence suggests that the date of 698 CE is too early and her final battle was in either 702 or 705 CE. Découvrez avec humour son portrait. Confidentialité & Cookies : Ce site utilise des cookies. It has also been claimed that the Muslim Arabs had no motive for forced conversion because non-believers were forced to pay a tax (the jizya) to live among Muslims and this was more profitable than forced conversion. His life was spared but he was ordered to disband his troops and convert them to Islam. She was the daughter (or niece) of the Berber king Aksel (died c. 688 CE, also known as Kusaila, Caecilius, Kusiela) who was a famous freedom fighter of the Imazighen people (also known as the Amazigh, “the Free People”, the indigenous name of the Berbers). Mark, Joshua J. These historians, as well as other legends, claim that she was a Jewish sorceress who descended from the Beta Israel community of Ethiopian Jews. 28 Sep 2020. Books According to legend, during this engagement she was outnumbered by the Arab forces and fell back in retreat. The other possible narrative is that the Arab historians are attributing to Kahina a tactic known to have been used by invading Arab armies elsewhere. Kahina is usually described as tall and “great of hair”, which is usually interpreted to mean she wore her hair long and bunched in dreadlocks. Although Kahina is commonly referred to as a “Berber Queen”, the indigenous people of the region know her as an Imazighen, which is the more accurate term. Umayyad Conquest, 7th & 8th Centuries CEby Romain0 (Public Domain). The resistance would soon shift their strategy to open war, however, under the leadership of Aksel of Mauretania. Changer ), Vous commentez à l’aide de votre compte Google. Her birth name was Dihya, or some variant thereof (“the beautiful gazelle” in the Tamazight language of the Imazighen) while “Kahina” is an Arabic title meaning “prophetess” or “seer” or “witch”. Kahina. In-fighting among Arab factions prevented any further campaigns until c. 665 CE. Accounts vary concerning her death; she may have been captured and later executed or may have poisoned herself, but the most commonly accepted account is that she died in battle with her troops, still clutching her sword. Pour en savoir davantage, y compris comment contrôler les cookies, voir : … Entrez vos coordonnées ci-dessous ou cliquez sur une icône pour vous connecter: Vous commentez à l’aide de votre compte WordPress.com. Kahina’s alleged gift of prophecy is said to have enabled her to foreknow how her opponent would form troops, how they would be reinforced, and what direction they would come from. Mark, published on 16 March 2018 under the following license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike. Mark has lived in Greece and Germany and traveled through Egypt. Although later artists have depicted her as fair-skinned or even white, she was a black, African queen and would have dressed in the attire of the royalty of ancient Numidia: a loose-fitting tunic or robe worn with sandals and sometimes belted. Kahina’s people, on the other hand, did not fare so well as 30,000 – 60,000 of them were sold into slavery by the conquerors and shipped out of their native land. It seems it was Hasan, then, who after reforming his army following Kahina’s victory returned to meet her a final time. Throughout history, Arabs, Berbers, Muslims, Jews, and French colonial writers, from the medieval historian Ibn Khaldūn to the modern Algerian writer Kateb Yacine, rewrote the legend of the Kahina, and, in the process, voiced their own vision of North Africa’s history. License. Using the native religion as a rallying point, he was able to attract more recruits to his army. Créez un site Web ou un blog gratuitement sur WordPress.com. Changer ). She is said to have had supernatural powers which enabled her to foretell the future. Aksel mounted a defense and held his kingdom against the invaders but then went on the offensive, driving them back from his borders. Mais votre journaliste cache bien des mystères. As her name becomes more widely known, Dihya al-Kahina of the Imazighen inspires not only her own people but those everywhere who honor her memory and sacrifice for the cause of freedom. She therefore commanded her army to tear down the fortifications, destroy the cities and towns, and melt down the gold and silver. The site was chosen for its relative safety from attacks by the Imazighen who had already mobilized to resist the Arabs through guerilla tactics. Sources differ on whether the Arab general who defeated Kahina was Hasan or Musa bin Nusayr (died c. 716 CE). At the same time, however, control over the resources and population of a region could prove far more profitable than a tax on unbelievers. He was captured by the Arab forces but was allowed to live, perhaps because of his knowledge of their religion or perhaps he pretended to still be Muslim. As the Arab Invasion spread and threatened his autonomy, however, he abandoned the faith and returned to the indigenous religion of the Imazighen. Avertissez-moi par e-mail des nouveaux commentaires. Although she is a champion of the native North African Imazighen people, she is best known by the title given her by her Arab enemies: al-Kahina. Our latest articles delivered to your inbox, once a week: Our mission is to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide. Qui est vraiment Kahina Kanoun ? Hasan remobilized his troops and furiously took the city of Carthage in 698 CE. Please support Ancient History Encyclopedia Foundation. "Kahina." The Arab army was forced to retreat and the land was so badly burned that any future campaigns would have to cross an arid wasteland without resources. ( Déconnexion /  Dihya or Al-Kahina (The Prophetess, Arabic: الكاهنة ‎), was a Berber queen and a religious and military leader who led indigenous resistance to the Muslim conquest of the Maghreb, the region then known as Numidia. Kahina’s life is only known through later Arab historians writing on the Muslim conquest of Africa. ( Déconnexion /  The battle went against Kahina from the beginning as she was badly outnumbered but her army fought valiantly and won the admiration of the enemy. Masinissa united these tribes as the Kingdom of Numidia which was later divided between Mauretania and Rome following the so-called Jugurthine War (112-105 BCE) initiated by Masinissa's grandson Jugurtha (r. 118-105 BCE) against Rome.