Red pill me on the Amazigh/Berber tribes and subgroups

[Marquis]

Haha I feel honored bro but I'm not really a huge specialist about the subject If you have some specific questions I can maybe help you

we can add :

Sanhaja : Zirid, Hammadid
Zenata : Zayyanid kingdom
Masmuda : Hafsid

Who are the ancestors of the modern Kabyle people? They are the most prominent Berber people today

 

[Tewahedo]

Who are the ancestors of the modern Kabyle people? They are the most prominent Berber people today

Here their tribe names in ancient times :

Later during the Middle Age We already see three main tribal groups.

Kutama :

After the advent of Islam in North Africa, the Kutama are first Kharijites, then they adhere to the Shia propaganda led by Abu Abd-Allah and even become the main supporters of the Fatimid dynasty which is set up in Ifriqiya (North of present-day Tunisia). It seems that the Zwawa, allies of the Kutama, have followed them in this direction.

Zwawa :

Of all these tribes or confederations of tribes having lived in the area identified as Kabyle, the Zwawa are the best known. This improved knowledge is certainly due to the fact that the writings produced during the nineteenth century by the French (soldiers, administrators, researchers, White Fathers ...) focused mainly on the historic territory of the Zwawa, that is to say the Kabylie du Djurdjura also called "Grande Kabylie".

Let us add these data drawn from the work of Leo Africanus (Hasan al Wazzan):

"Almost all of Bougie State is made up of tall, rugged mountains with lots of forests and springs. These mountains are inhabited by rich, noble and generous tribes, who have a large number of goats, oxen and horses. They have almost always lived in freedom, especially since Bougie was taken by the Christians. In this country especially, almost all the people wear a black cross tattooed on the cheek, according to the ancient usage of which we spoke. Their main food is barley bread. They have a large quantity of nuts and figs, which are found particularly in the seaside mountains, known as the Zoaoa Mountains "(II, p. 406).

Sanhaja :

The Sanhadja tribes are considered as sedentary and engaged in agriculture for those who lived in the North of the Blidean Atlas and as nomads or semi nomads for those who lived in the South (between Ouarsenis, Titteri and South of the Bibans ).