Tuareg Profile

Total population

Between 4 and 5 million

Regions with significant populations

These numbers are all estimates, and may exclude Tuareg who are assimilated into the general population of these countries. Niger: 1.4 million Mali: 1.5 million Algeria: 590,000 Burkina Faso: 160,000 Libya: 190,000 Chad: 110.000

Languages

Tuareg language is called Tamasheq by western Tuareg in Mali, Tamahaq among Algerian and Libyan Tuareg, and Tamajaq in the Azawagh and Aïr regions, Niger. The Tamajaq writing system, Tifinagh (also called Shifinagh), descends directly from the original Berber script used by the Numidians in pre-Roman times. Religion The Tuareg have been predominantly Muslim since the 16th century. They combine Sunni Islam (specifically the Maliki madhhab, popular in North and West Africa) with certain pre-Islamic animistic beliefs, including spirits of nature (Kel Asuf) and such syncretic beliefs as divination through means of the Qur'an. Related ethnic groups Berbers West Africans Territory The Tuareg people inhabit a large area covering almost all the middle and north-central Sahel. In Tuareg terms, the Sahara is not one desert but many, so they call it Tinariwen "the Deserts". Among the many deserts in Africa there is the true desert Tenere. Then we can cite numerous deserts more and less arid, flat and mountainous: Adrar, Tagant, Tawat (Touat) Tanezruft, Adghagh n Fughas, Tamasna, Azawagh, Adar, Damargu, Tagama, Manga, Ayr, Tarramit (Termit), Kawar, Jado, Tadmait, Admer, Igharghar, Ahaggar, Tassili N'Ajjer, Tadrart, Idhan, Tanghart, Fezzan, Tibesti. Kalansho, Libyan Desert & etc. Tuareg confederations, political centers, and leaders At the turn of the 19th century the Tuareg country was organized into confederations, each ruled by a supreme Chief (Amenokal), along with a counsel of senior tribesmen elected to assist the chief. Kel Ajjer or Azjar, center Aghat (Ghat). Kel Ahaggar, in Ahaggar mountains Kel Adagh, or Kel Assuk, Kidal, and Tin Buktu Iwillimmidan Kel Ataram, Manaka, and Azawagh region Iwillimmidan Kel Denneg, In Tibaraden, Abalagh, Teliya Azawagh. Kel Gres, Zinder and Tanut (Tanout). Kel Ayr, Asode, Agadez, In Gal, Timia and Ifrwan. The most famous Tuareg leader was a woman, Tin Hinan, heroine and spiritual leader who founded a legendary kingdom in the Ahaggar mountains. The Blue Men The Tuareg are sometimes called the "Blue men" because the indigo pigment in the cloth of their traditional robes and turbans stained the wearer's skin dark blue. Today, the traditional indigo turban is still preferred for celebrations, and generally Tuaregs wear clothing and turbans in a variety of colors.

The Tuareg

The Tuareg (sometimes spelled Touareg in French, or Twareg in English) is a name for a group of people who share an Arab-Berber ethnicity and inhabit a vast area covering almost all of the middle of the Sahara called the Sahel. In Tuareg terms, the Sahara is not one desert but many, so they call it Tinariwen "the Deserts."

The Tuareg have been disrupted by the post-colonial division of nations that placed them within the separate countries of Algeria, Burkina Faso, Chad, Libya, Mali, and Niger.

The 1980s and 1990s brought much warfare and strife for them with various resolutions in the different nations. As humankind advances into a globalised society the place of the Tuareg is yet to be defined. Their old ways of trading using camel-caravans no longer support them, and an alternative way of life that preserves their identity but allows them to advance together with the human family into a world of peace and prosperity has yet to be established.

Origin and Language

The origin of the name Tuareg does not originate within the Berber group, and its meaning has been long discussed. Probably it derives from Twārəg, the "broken plural" of Tārgi, a Ḥassānīya Arabic word whose former meaning was "inhabitant of Targa" (the Tuareg name of the Libyan region commonly known as Fezzan; targa in Berber means "(drainage) channel").

The name Tuareg was applied to them by early explorers and historians, but the people call themselves variously Kel Tamajaq (Speakers of Tamajaq), Imajaghan (Tuareg people), or the Imouhar (the free people).

The Tuareg language is a southern Berber language having several dialects among the different regions. Berber is an Afro-Asiatic language closely related to Egyptian and Semitic-Canaanite languages. The language is called Tamasheq by western Tuareg in Mali, Tamahaq among Algerian and Libyan Tuareg, and Tamajaq in the Azawagh and Aïr regions, Niger. The Tamajaq writing system, tifinaɤ (also called Shifinagh), descends directly from the original Berber script used by the Numidians in pre-Roman times.

The ancient Lybico-Berber alphabet is from the Punic script, which was used in the extinct Phoenician language and was used irregularly up until the time of Augustine by various languages. Today, it survived irregular usage with the Tuareg.

Ethnic Classification

The Tuareg are classified as a Berber group, and are closely related to both Northwest African Berbers and West Africans in terms of culture and race. They do not have Arabic ethnicity.

Some argue that the Tuareg are defined by language and culture, not by race, and that predominantly Middle Eastern and/or Indigenous African Tamasheq speakers qualify as "Tuareg." By implication, individuals of Tuareg descent but who have assimilated into various countries and do not speak Tamasheq languages would not be considered Tuareg. This is part of the reason for the widely varying estimates of the number of contemporary Tuareg.