Awraba

The Awraba were a Berber tribe in North Africa which formed part of the Baranis confederation. They were known for playing a primary role in the resistance to the Muslim conquest of the Maghreb during the 7th century, particularly during the rebellion led by their king Kusaila.^[1] After this event, having mostly converted to Islam, they were known for welcoming Idris I, an 'Alid refugee fleeing the 'Abbasids to the east, and helping him establish the Idrisid dynasty.^[2]

Origins

The Awraba are from western Algeria and probably originate from the Constantine region.^[3][4] In antiquity, Cherchell and Algiers were the western and eastern limits of the territory of the Awraba.^[5] They are described as authentic descendants of the ancient Numidians.^[6] At the time of the arrival of the Arabs, the Awraba were situated in the regions of the Zab and the western Aures.^[4] After the death of Kusaila, the Awraba were driven out of the central Maghreb and migrated to Volubilis, these Awraba called themselves descendants of the Awraba of the Aures.^[7] The Awraba were also later found to occupy the region of Tobna and the Zab during the 9th century.^[4]

References

1. Deverdun, Gaston (1980). "Awraba". The Encyclopaedia of Islam, New Edition: Supplement. Brill. pp. 102–103. ISBN 978-90-04-06167-5.
2. Abun-Nasr, Jamil M. (1987). A History of the Maghrib in the Islamic Period. Cambridge University Press. pp. 50–51. ISBN 978-0-521-33767-0.
3. Fromherz, Allen. "The Making of the Maghrib: 600–1060 CE." Oxford Research Encyclopedia of African History. 28 Mar. 2018; Accessed 25 Mar. 2023. https://oxfordre.com/africanhistory/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780190277734.001.0001/acrefore-9780190277734-e-321. “Their founder Idris bin 'Abdulla was allied with the Awraba, a Berber confederation from western Algeria.“
4. Lazarev, Grigori. "Quelques hypothèses sur les dynamiques de peuplement du Rif occidental." Critique économique 30 (2013): 65-97. “ P.149: “Cette confédération reprit, contre Hassan Ibn No'man, la lutte engagée par les Awraba, confédération de tribus guerrières cavalières (des cavaliers «<numides »?) qui, au moment de l'arrivée des Arabes, occupaient les régions du Zab et l'ouest de l'Awras” P.148: “Ce furent tout d'abord des composantes des grandes confédérations qui commandèrent les premières résistances à la conquête arabe, les Awraba, probablement originaires du Constantinois”
5. Revue africaine: journal des travaux de la société historique algérienne. Kraus Reprint, 1968.
6. L'Afrique française: bulletin mensuel du Comité de l'Afrique française et du Comité du Maroc. Siège du Comité, 1927. “les Aurebas notamment, tane, porteurs d'une vieille culture, dans une situation descendants authentiques des anciens Numides”
7. Bosworth, Clifford Edmund. The Encyclopaedia of Islam: Supplement. Brill, 1980.