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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:Berbers in the Maghreb and al-Andalus: settlements and toponymy
Author:Felipe, Helena de
Year:1993
Periodical:Maghreb Review
Volume:18
Issue:1-2
Pages:57-62
Language:English
Geographic term:Maghreb
Subjects:Berber
place names
Abstract:This article examines the close link between Berber tribes and the land on which they were settled in 8th-10th-century North Africa and al-Andalus (Spain). The article is based on toponymical information derived from classical Arabic texts, in particular Ab¯u 'Ubayd al-Bakr¯i's 'Kit¯ab al-Mam¯alik wa-l-Mas¯alik'. It gives an outline of the differences in the way in which Berber settlements were organized on both sides of the Straits of Gibraltar. Throughout al-Bakr¯i's text, the population of the Maghreb is presented as separated into different settlements according to different origins. A substantial part of the population lived within the framework of a tribal structure. Berbers in al-Andalus followed two distinct patterns: groups living in frontier regions outside urban settlements, and groups which were integrated into urban structures. The latter gradually lost their onomastic idiosyncrasy. In al-Andalus, the ethnic factor was not dominant prior to the 11th century. Notes, ref.
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