Bou-Nouh is a town and commune

Communes of Algeria

This is a list of all communes in the North African country of Algeria. Currently, there are 1,541 communes in the country. The population data is from June 25, 1998.-See also:* List of cities in Algeria* List of postal codes of Algerian cities...

 in Tizi Ouzou Province

Tizi Ouzou Province

Tizi Ouzou is a province in Algeria, named after its capital.-Administrative divisions:The province is divided into 21 districts , which are further divided into 67 communes or municipalities.-Districts:# Aïn El Hammam...

 in northern Algeria

Algeria

Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...

.

Geography

Bou-Nouh is the head commune within the Arch of Ath Smaïl which is located next to the Djurdjura National Park. Its GPS coordinates are 36.49935,3.936558. In truth, Bou-Nouh is the name of a town and, mistakenly, its name has been given a meaning to represent the whole Arch of Ath Smaïl. This Ath Smaïl should not be mistaken for a namesake in the Wilaya of Bejaïa. The Arch of Ath Smaïl is located to the south west of the Wilaya of Tizi-Ouzou and is within close proximity to the Daïras of Boghni (driving distance from Bou-Nouh is about 10.9km through Tala Oulili and Amezaourou and under 9.6km through Ighil Aanane and Amezaourou) and Draâ-El Mizan (driving distance from Bou-Nouh is roughly 13km) whereas the bird's flight distance from Bou-Nouh to Boghni is merely 5km and this is testimony of the hilly landscape. Boghni to Draâ El Mizan driving distance is 15.4km. Unfortunately, it has started to become fashionable to change the spelling of Bou-Nouh to Bounouh and this is wrong! There is also Ait Bounouh in Tiznit, Morocco .

Ait Smaïl is a mountainous region and offers many beautiful landscapes. Thala Oulili is merely 400m above sea level whilst Helouane is at an altitude of more than 1200m. Again there is a namesake Helouane within the Wilaya of Bejaïa. There are sensational panoramic views and splendid walks throughout Ath Smaïl to charm any demanding visitor. The Arch of Ath Smaïl has an area of 26.99 km2 ‎ with 80% in rural setting . The population is 9,731 inhabitants distributed over 23 villages. Ath Smaïl is bordered by Boghni to the North, Ath Mendes and Ath Kouffi to the East, The Djurdjura Mountains and Hizar (Wilaya of Bouira) to the South and finally in this order Inezliouen, Frikat, Ain Zaouïa and Tirmitine on its Western flank ‎‎.

The various locations are: Amezaourou, Amalou, Aourir, Ath Telha, Ath Si Ali, Baâli, Bou-Nouh, Bouzoula, Chebaba, Helouane, Ibouhatène, Ijebaren, Ighil Aanane, Ikaanane, Ikhelfounene, L’Merdja, Oufella, Thala Khelouf, Thala Oulili, Thamalouts, Tizi El Hed, Tizi Meden, Tizi N'Cheriat and Zaârour.

The clan system is strong in At Ath Smaïl. In the early 80s,

• Thala Oulili is dominated by mainly Chergui and others: Khendriche and Touati,
• Taghza by the Lakrimi (who moved from Tizi-El Hed) and Lamrani (Ibouhatène) and others: Bouchareb (originating from outside Ath Smaïl) and Idir (Ibouhatène),
• Tizi N Chreat by Aissani, Amokrane (Tizi El Hed) and Chemoune (Bouzoula),
• Thoulmouts exclusively by Hamoudi (Ibouhatène) and others: Merkilou,
• Thiouririne is exclusively Lamrani (Ibouhatène),
• Lemqessa by Oukil (Ath Telha) and Mokrani,
• Tizi El Hed by mainly the Ait Ali Ou Ahmed formed by Aissani, Ayad, Amrioui, Lakrimi, Amokrane and Riche (the original clan was split by the French adminsitration due to its size) and Saadi. Others: Berkane, Mahloul, Nanouche, Saadoune and Zaidi,
• Lqahwa by Ziani (Ibouhatène),
• Bouzoula by Chabni, Chahmi, Chemoun and Zourdani,
• Ath Si Ali by Baghdadi,
• Bou-Nouh by Adli, Aissaoui, Aissat, Aissi, Benchebana, Boudraa, Bouricha, Fouchal, Hadj Arab, Hamache and Meziani,
• Ikhelfounene by mostly Guirad and others: Benabi, Boumail, Bouteldja, Gadoum, Khelifi, Ouchène, Touah,
• L’Merdja dominated by Belgacem and others: Amrouz, Benamrouz and Boudissa,
• Helouane by Massaid,
• Amezaourou by Hamdi, Hamidi, Idja, Makhlouf, Mansouri and Rabia,
• Zaârour by Zerrouki,
• Baâli by Abbas, Amirat and Djemah,
• Tizi Medene by Madani and Slimani,
• etc.

Some villages even take the name of the clan itself such as

• Ichemounene: family Chemoun,
• Chebaba: family Bouchebaba and others: Hadji, Hadj Larbi and Hamia,
• Ibouhatène: family Bouha and others: Idir, Mokhtari, Semsar, and Souissi,
• Ikaânanene: family Kaanan,
• Aourir also known as Ibecharene: family Béchar and others: Akli, Amir, Hadj Ali, Lounas and Lounes,
• etc.

Driving from Boghni (36.542369,3.953723), heading to Ath Smaïl, and following the road of Ath Mendes and then the road of Frikat, one passes the following places: Thala Oulili (36.516231,3.947715), Taghza (36.517693,3.933147), Lemhella (36.517226,3.929172), Tizi N Chreat (36.517764,3.921472), Thiwririne (36.522644,3.914477), Ichemounene (36.515039,3.918961), Lemqessa (36.513539,3.923296), Tizi-El Hed (36.511828,3.928797), Chebaba (36.508725,3.929585), Issidikene et Ibouhathene (36.506845,3.928576). Just after Tizi-El Hed and before Ibouhathene, one can turn right towards Bouzoula (36.50655,3.926935), Ath Si-Ali (36.50602,3.926061), Zaarour (36.469446,3.930506), Ath Telha, Tizi Medene and Helouane (36.489414,3.921999). However, if after Tizi-El Hed and continuing straight, one passes by Ibuhatene, Bou-Nouh, L’Merdja (36.498005,3.943554), Axxam N Cheikh (Sidi Abderahmane, 36.493484,3.942578), Baâli (36.492468,3.939777), Ikaananene (36.489598,3.933982) and then finishing in Helouane. From L’Merdja, one can visit Amalou (36.496125,3.944991) and Aourir (36.502363,3.941618). From Bou-Nouh, one can return towards Taghza following the road of Ath Smaïl-Boghni and passing by Ikhalfounene (36.50155,3.935797), Amezaourou (36.511493,3.944541), Alma B-Uli (36.514571,3.935335), Lejnan N Cheikh (36.515942,3.936376), et Taghza. From Taghza, one could drive back to Boghni following the road of Ath Smaïl-Boghni also known as Ighil Aanane (36.522925,3.941939) and pass at close proximity to the forest of Tazrouts (36.522822,3.944128) and finish at the higher secondary school (Lycée) Zamoum Mohamed of Boghni.

History

Bou-Nouh used to be a commune within the District of Draâ-El Mizan during French occupation of Algeria, and ahead of the now Daïra of Boghni. The Ath Smaïl entered history at the beginning of the 16th century. The Turks (Ottoman Empire) set up a Bordj, a few hundred metres from the Lycée Zamoum (close proximity to family Terkmani) in Boghni to collect taxes but this was attacked and destroyed on 16 July 1756 by Iflissen and Ath Smaïl and consequently the Turks left the garrison. According to religious records, the Catholic Church was set-up in Bou-Nouh in 1876 and soon after the boys and girls schools (in Bou-Nouh) were founded in 1877 and 1892, respectively ‎. It is not clear from the records as to when Bou-Nouh benefited from a health clinic. The Catholic Church held a conference in 1937 in the commune ‎‎ and this denotes the importance and prestige of Bou-Nouh. However, long before the French set foot in Algeria, one could not forget the illustrious Cheikh Sidi M’hemed Ben Abderahmane who had set up his own illuminating Tariqa Rahmani in Ait Smaïl in 1769! The Rahmania, which preached a form of passive religious belief, was to play a role in Algerian insurrection against the French. Cheikh Mohand Ameziane Aheddad, from Seddouk Oufela (Bejaïa), a fervent preacher of the Rahmania which he studied in Ath Irathen and Ath Smaïl, allied himself along El Mokrani in 1871 to lead a rebellion against French invasion. After his capture, Cheikh Aheddad died on 29 April 1873 at the prison of El Koudiat (Constantine) at the age of 83 and he was initially buried in Constantine against his known wish and then later exhumed and reburied in Seddouk to fulfil his request to be buried in his beloved home town. After the conquest of Kabylia in 1871, the French embarked on founding a number of towns between Draâ-El Mizan and Larbaâ N Ath Irathen (ex Fort Napoleon and Fort National), such as Draâ-El Mizan (1873), Beauprètre (1874), Pirette (now Ain Zaouia) (1875), Tizi-Gheniff (1875) and Boghni (1876). From Larba Nath Irathen to Bejaïa were created Freha (1882), Azazga (1882) and Yakouren (1888). Then the French adopted, using a number of measures between 1871 and 1878, the American Homestead rule to confiscate and give land free to French Colons and their number swelled to 207,615 on 1 January 1888 ! This led to the beginning of the erosion of the socio-economic structure which supported Kabylia and to a larger extent Algeria. Although, it could be argued that land productivity increased, the (agricultural) food exports from Algeria to France ‎soared from 9.7 to in excess of 125million French Francs for only the ports of Algiers, Annaba, and Oran over the period of 1838-40 to 1885-87 .

The indomitable Ath Smaïl, who rose against the Turks and French colonisation, played its crucial part in the Algerian war for independence which started in 1954 and lasted until 1962. Many regional leaders originated from Ath Smaïl and several people lost their lives or have been imprisoned. Both Bou-Nouh and Boghni honoured a number of the heroes by naming streets and schools after them. The widows from Ath Smaïl often evoke a number of poems to recount the horrors of the war and their sufferings. Students at the University Mouloud Mammeri of Tizi-Ouzou originating from the Arch of Ath Smaïl took part in the foundation of the Comité Anti-Repression in 1980 and played an active role in the movement that fashioned the Berber Spring which led to the recognition of the Berber language and culture ‎, threatened with certain extinction.

After independence, the strong but not so rich Bou-Nouh lost its status of commune and the developing Boghni was promoted in its place. At Ath Smaïl, all roads pass by the side of the villages, because they came to exist first and the road network followed much later on. At Ath Smaïl, even walking paths had names such as Adjroud, Lburath, Tissamamine, Tassaount El Hed, etc. Even small patches of land carried names which are beyond comprehension such as Alma Bbuli (literally land of sheep), Lemhella, Taghza, Tabaguit Irumiyen (literally the French or Roman table), Lemqessa, etc and this demonstrates the historical heritage of Ath Smaïl. In Boghni, however, the road came to exist first as part of the link between Draâ-El Mizan and Larbaa Nath Irathen (ex- Fort Napoleon and Fort National) and then people moved in afterwards. Interestingly enough, based on knowledge from the early 1970s, a large number of the first inhabitants or the people to set up business in Boghni originated mostly from Ath Smaïl such as the families Abbas, Amrani, Ayad, Bechar, Bouha, Boukhelfa, Chabane, Chemoune, Chergui, Djebbar, Guirad, Hamoudi, Idir, Kaanane, Lamrani, Riche, Semsar, Touah, Zourdani, etc and very few from other villages such as the Families of Iouadarene, Saidani [Moh Said Nath Ou Said was the first to own a lorry in Boghni] and Yahiatene (Ath Mendes), Agdal, Dahmani, Kadri, Larbi and Yahiaoui (Ath Kouffi), followed by the Haddadi (Laazib N’Cheikh). There was only a tiny influx from neighbouring Mechtras and Ouadhias which were already benefiting from good infrastructure in terms of land, roads and water. Other families include Amarouche (from Bejaia), Belhadj Ali, Berkouk, Benamar, Dr Ben Lahreche, Benlarbi, Berkouk, Hamrani, Haroun, Kara, Lamara, Madani, Marouf (from Ath Yenni), Meghari, Mitiche, Tamimount, Touati, etc. Other families which settled in Algiers and in other parts of Algeria are Aissani, Lakrimi, Saadi, Amrioui (Tizi-El Hed) and Ziani (Ibouhatene). The Catholics established a College of Further Education (Centre de Formation Professionnelle) in Boghni where the first 20 technicians to be employed by Sonatrach when it opened the Arzew oil refinery (near Oran) were formed ‎ included pupils from Ath Smail.

It was only in 1985 following a new administrative landscape that Bou-Nouh was granted its title of commune and tied to the much prosperous and developed Boghni which had already been elevated to the status of Daïra.

Economics

Despite its glorious past and harbouring several wealthy families, people from Ath Smaïl never sought to invest locally and nowadays it is lagging severely behind other communes within the Daïra of Boghni. Its entrepreneurial citizen preferred to invest and set up their commercial ventures and industries outside Ath Smaïl, namely in Boghni and as far afield as Algiers. In truth, the landscape, road networks and lack of electricity, water and telephone were not conducive to a business environment. Despite one hydroelectric power station on its territory and another in adjacent Ath Kouffi, the homes in Ath Smaïl only received electricity in the late 80’s after much protest and people stopped lighting their candles and afegag. Drinking water remained a major problem although this matter is being settled by the very proactive local administration.

Most farming land is located in Azaghar. Azaghar represents a truly vast expanse and for land attached to Ath Smaïl this represents Thiwririne, bordering Frikat and Ain Zaouïa, Lemqessa, Thoulmouts, and Taghza where wheat, barley and fodder are cultivated. There used to be a railway line crossing this rich land and viaducts in good condition are still in existence at Thiwrine, known locally as Lghar n Tekoukt, and at Laanasser in Boghni either side of the river between Azagher (land of Saidani Moh Said N At Ou Said) and Azouggar (land of Yahiatene). As far as trees are concerned, olives yield the largest revenue in Ath Smaïl followed by dried figues and accorns. Families cultivate their small holdings from September to May and gardens along the river in the summer. People also raise chicken and sometimes sheep or cows to help supplement the family income by selling a lamb or a calf every year. Ath Smaïl is also famous for its craft in pottery, raffia, weaving and sewing of Berber dresses.

Otherwise, Ath Smaïl has little to offer in terms of jobs and industry. There is only one post office which covers all villages, two middle secondary schools and six primary schools for a sparse population scattered over 23 villages and nearly 10,000 inhabitants ‎. School children lead a demeaning life, without public transport to school; they endure long and arduous journeys, as is the case for the children from Thiwririne and Taghza to attend primary school at Ibouhathene and from Helouane or Taghza or Thala Oulili to the middle secondary school at Bou-Nouh. These walking journeys consist in a few kilometres return journey to school on a daily basis. However, children are very motivated and their dedication is unsurpassable given the miserable economic and sociological upheavals in Kabylia. Nowadays, there are still 600 pupils from Ath Smaïl commuting to the higher secondary school (Lycée Zamoum) in Boghni. However, it was not until the late 80’s that Ath Smaïl had its first children complete postgraduate studies. During French colonisation, good pupils from Ath Smaïl achieved an excellent and anvious Certificat d’Etudes Primaires (aged 12 to13) and stopped education (mostly due to family pressure and lack of means to pursue their studies).

Given the lack of employment, people feel compelled to emigrate outside the region and look for work in other parts of Algeria and even abroad. Families rely immensely on war and work pensions to stave off the nightmare of poverty. The lack of economic development at Ath Smaïl is also rendered even more difficult, in fact complicated, by its proximity to Boghni which used to be the most developed town in Algeria in the 70s. Again in the 70s and 80s, Ath Smaïl was neglected by the administrators of Boghni to the extent that the provision of public transport was withdrawn. Fortunately, the Belgacem brothers from L’Merdja stepped in with their coaches to take people to Boghni, Draa El Mizan and even to Rouiba for people employed at the public company for transport, SONACOM. Nowadays, the commune of Bou-Nouh continues to search for its destiny. It is heavily dependent on state subsidies and its administrative representatives shoulder a massive responsibility. They have just commissioned a second middle school , two health clinics at Helouane and Ath Telha, and are working towards a library, premises for the unemployed, cooking gas, a football stadium to foster the fantastic local talent, tabling a proposal for a high secondary school to share with the commune of Frikat, etc.

Arts

Ath Smaïl is well known for its pottery, despite the proximity of Maatkas and Ouadhias. Women decorate their own designs ‎; they exploit several kinds of clay which they steal from open fields, usually on the day of the market which men attend in Boghni on Sundays. Women are very entrepreneurial; they make soap using spent cooking oil and marinate olives, tomatoes and peppers. During shortages of candles, they light the afegags using again spent oil. They embraced Recycle, Reduce and Reuse from an early age; in hardship, this was their motto. Just like men went to markets in Boghni on Sundays and Draâ-El Mizan on Thursdays, women had their own market on Wednesdays. Although, men were tolerated, stalls were run by women. They sold jewellery, pottery, and craft objects, especially made using raffia. The market is held near the Catholic Church.

Rabia Ziani, a passionate, well published writer and pedagogue, is from Ath Smaïl . Several Algerian famous singers originate from Ath Smaïl. Farid Ali (né Khelifi Ali) sang the evocative a yemma sbar ur e tsru (literally: mum, be patient and don’t cry), Oukil Amar sang C’min di fir (literally: the railway lines) and the eloquent Innas im layune tawass (literally: tell the bright eyed lady), et Moh said U Belaid was famous for Takbaylit m uxelxal (literally: The Kabyl woman with jewellery) and marked by emigration a itbir siwdhessen sslem iwarac n’tmurt iw (literally: pigeon take my regards to my fellow countrymen). Mohamed Chemoune had hits with a taazizt atin hemlagh (literally: the cherished one I love) and a wahmimi (literally: my dear friend) and he is extremely well known for his party concerts. He introduced Moroccan songs. There is also the new generation, such as Rabia Brahim and many others. Less remembered nowadays is Hadjaz Youcef, a blind, whose poems only circulated from person to person as typed manuscripts.

Religious heritage

Ath Smaïl has a unique experience in the coexistence of two religions, namely the Catholic Church with the Nuns and Priests in Bou-Nouh and Islamic mosques of Sidi Ben Abderahmane barely a kilometre away, Rebaaine Wali (40 Saints) at Aourir, Sidi Mansour at Tizi-El Hed, Si Mhend U Idir at Ibouhatene, and Ath Sidi Lounis at Tala Oulili. Nowadays, it is mostly for the Cheikh Ben Abderrahmane that Ath Smaïl is most famous for. The Saint exists both at Ath Smaïl and Algiers. Even his death became a legend; the people of Algiers and of Ath Smaïl embarked in a dispute about his corpse because each side wanted him for their region and started stealing each other his corpse. Calm resumed when the inhabitant of Ath Smaïl found the Saint buried at their cemetery and the people of Algiers found the Saint at their cemetery. It was customary for the Ath Smaïl to vow on a lewli yebdan ghef sin (literally: the Saint who split in two), in reference to this mysterious doubling of the tomb. This explains why he is also known as Bou Qabrine, i.e the Saint with two tombs. Today, the two zaouïas of Bou-Nouh and Algiers which carry his name continue to draw visitors from all corners of Algeria, especially at religious festivals.

The Cheikh Sidi M’hemed Ben Aberahmane is a native of Ath Smaïl and was born around 1715 in the village of Baâli. He is said to be a descendant of Fatima Ezzahra, the daughter of Prophet Mohamed (his lineage is Cheikh Sidi M’hemed son of Abderahmane son of Ahmed son of Ben Youcef son of Abi Kacem son of Ali Ibrahim son of Abderahmane son of Ahmed son of El Hussein son of Mohamed son of El Hussein son of Fatima Ezzahra) . He studied cultural sciences at the Zaouïa of Cheikh Essedik Ouarab of Larbaâ N Ath Irathen, moved to Algiers, accomplished his Hajj at Mecca (Saudi Arabia) and then to El Azhar in Cairo (Egypt) where he spent 25 years studying and carrying out research in theology ‎. He learned the figh under Cheikh Mohamed Salem El Hafnaoui who sent him to Sudan to teach the Koran and the Sunna. He invented his own religious path called Tariqa Rahmania ‎. After fulfilling this mission, he returned to Egypt. In 1769, he returned to Algeria, further developed his path and settled himself between Algiers and Ath Smaïl where he set up the zaouïa of the Ghechtoula at Ath Smaïl. It is thus at Ath Smaïl where he established his zaouïa and taught Koran and the El Khaloutia method to his followers. After a few years he felt the urge to expand his teaching to a larger audience. He settled in El Hama (Algiers) where again he established his zaouïa. He died in 1793 at Ath Smaïl. Given the common heritage, Bou-Nouh is now twinned with Sidi M’hemed in Algiers.