Synopsis of the M’Zab Valley

The five ksour of the M’Zab Valley, 600 kilometres south of Algiers in the Sahara Desert, form an unusually homogeneous ensemble, indicating a sedentary and urban civilisation with a unique culture that has survived the centuries. The M’Zab Valley, which is made up of ksour and palm groves from El-Atteuf, Bounoura, Melika, Ghardaa, and Beni-Isguen (all founded between 1012 and 1350), has maintained nearly the same way of life and building techniques since the 11th century, driven as much by a specific social and cultural context as by the need to adapt to a hostile environment. A mosque with a watchtower minaret dominates each of these walled citadels.

Brief About the M’Zab Valley

The M’Zab Valley property is managed and protected by the Office for the Protection and Promotion of the M’Zab Valley (OPPVM). The OPPVM’s main responsibilities include enforcing cultural heritage legislation, creating a monuments and sites data bank, and promoting, researching, and training in the domains of traditional building and artisanal crafts.

Following these responsibilities and within the parameters of Law 98/04 concerning the conservation of cultural heritage, the M’Zab Valley has been elevated to the status of Safeguarded Sector, with measures following the preservation of its completeness. Since the beginning of the 1980s, the M’Zab Valley has witnessed a significant acceleration in the urban and demographic boom that has occurred there due to its strategic location between the north and south of the country. Creating a preservation plan would make it possible to preserve and appreciate the cultural heritage of the Valley, particularly through the regulation of urban expansion in the proximity of flood plains, palm groves, and other essential components of the natural landscape.

M’Zab – South of Algiers

About 600 kilometres south of Algiers is where you’ll find the deep and narrow oasis valley known as the M’Zab valley. Along its length, the five towns of Ghardaia, Melika, Beni Isguen, Bou Noura, and El Atteuf are each built on a knoll. The pastel-coloured box-like buildings of these towns are packed tightly together in concentric circles between an outer fortification and the hill’s summit, where a fortified mosque with a slim, turreted minaret, arsenal, and adjoining granary can be found. The buildings are packed closely together; the only connections are narrow passageways and covered passages.

Between 1013 and 1355, members of a breakaway Islamic sect known as the Ibadites founded five towns dispersed along the valley’s length across a distance of around 10 kilometres. They planned for communal life within a social system that was extraordinarily egalitarian and nevertheless respected families’ privacy. These communities have been a source of motivation for modern urban planners and architects because of how they have harmoniously integrated their physical structures into their surroundings.

Branch of a large Berber tribe

The Berbers, also known as Imazighen or Amazigh, are indigenous people native to Northwest Africa. They are members of the Afroasiatic linguistic family and speak Berber languages. In its earliest use, the term “Berber” referred to a broad cultural category that the Romans applied to various distinct ethnic groups that had much in common regarding their political and economic systems. It was not a term that the group had developed on their own.

Even though two branches of a large Berber tribe emerged, the Almoravids in the eleventh century and the Almohads in the twelfth century, the Berber tribes were never able to unite for an extended period that would have allowed them to rid themselves of the numerous conquerors who invaded their lands. As a direct consequence, the Berber people’s history can only be traced back to the history of their respective tribes. The Gaetulians, Maures, Massyli, Garamantes, Aguilar, and Nasamones were some of the ancient tribes that lived at this time.

Despite most people having the impression that branches of a large Berber tribe are nomads, the bulk of Berbers works in agriculture. Because many people do not consider themselves Berber, it is challenging to accurately count the number of members of branches of large Berber tribes living around the globe today. On the other hand, it is estimated that anywhere from 14 million to 25 million people speak Berber.

Conclusion

The Mozabites are a subgroup of the much larger Iznaten Berber tribe, which once inhabited extensive portions of Algeria’s central and southern regions, specifically the south of Algiers. In and around the M’Zab Valley are many etched Tifinagh letters and symbols. Following Islam’s conquest of the Maghreb, the inhabitants of Mozabite territory converted to the Mu’tazili school of Islam. Up to the 11th century, there was still a sizable indigenous Christian community. Following the collapse of the Rustamid state, the Rustamid royal family and several other prominent residents decided to seek safety in the M’Zab Valley.