Imraguen
Encyclopedia
The Imraguen are an ethnic group
or tribe
of Mauritania
and Western Sahara
. Estimated at around 5,000 in the 1970s, most members of the group live in fishing
villages on the Banc d'Arguin National Park
on the Atlantic coast of Mauritania.
They are believed to have Mande (Niger-Congo) origins and to descend from the ancient Bafour
people. The name "Imraguen" (Berber orthography
: imragen) itself is a Berber
word meaning "fishermen". They are Muslim
s of the Sunni Maliki
rite. The Imraguen language
is a divergent form of Hassaniya
Arabic
that preserves elements of the Soninke language
, reflecting their Niger-Congo heritage.
Militarily powerless, they were traditionally reduced to the degrading lower-caste
status of Znaga
, forcibly ruled and tax
ed (horma
) by more many powerful Berber, Hassane
, and Zawia tribes such as the Oulad Delim
and Ouled Bou Sbaa.
Ethnic group
An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...
or tribe
Tribe
A tribe, viewed historically or developmentally, consists of a social group existing before the development of, or outside of, states.Many anthropologists use the term tribal society to refer to societies organized largely on the basis of kinship, especially corporate descent groups .Some theorists...
of Mauritania
Mauritania
Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...
and Western Sahara
Western Sahara
Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly...
. Estimated at around 5,000 in the 1970s, most members of the group live in fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
villages on the Banc d'Arguin National Park
Banc d'Arguin National Park
The Banc d'Arguin National Park lies in Western Africa on the west coast of Mauritania between Nouakchott and Nouadhibou. The World Heritage Site is a major breeding site for migratory birds. A wide range of species include flamingos, broad-billed sandpipers, pelicans and terns. Much of the...
on the Atlantic coast of Mauritania.
They are believed to have Mande (Niger-Congo) origins and to descend from the ancient Bafour
Bafour
The Bafours were the original inhabitants of Mauritania, and the ancestors of the Imraguen and Soninke peoples of western Africa. They were primarily agriculturalist and agro-pastoralists, and were relatively stationary. At the time they lived in Mauritania, it was far more fertile than it is...
people. The name "Imraguen" (Berber orthography
Berber orthography
Berber orthography is the orthography of Berber languages. Most Berber languages were originally unwritten, preserved through oral use in rural areas, isolated from urban hubs. Berber scholars wrote in the more prestigious Arabic language, rather than their vernacular...
: imragen) itself is a Berber
Berber languages
The Berber languages are a family of languages indigenous to North Africa, spoken from Siwa Oasis in Egypt to Morocco , and south to the countries of the Sahara Desert...
word meaning "fishermen". They are Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s of the Sunni Maliki
Maliki
The ' madhhab is one of the schools of Fiqh or religious law within Sunni Islam. It is the second-largest of the four schools, followed by approximately 25% of Muslims, mostly in North Africa, West Africa, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and in some parts of Saudi Arabia...
rite. The Imraguen language
Imraguen language
The Imraguen or Imeraguen language is spoken by approximately one thousand members of an Imraguen fishing tribe in the Banc d'Arguin National Park on the Atlantic coast of Mauritania. According to Gerteiny , it is "a strange version of Hassaniyya restructured on an Azêr base"; Hassaniyya is an...
is a divergent form of Hassaniya
Hassaniya
Hassānīya is the variety of Arabic originally spoken by the Beni Hassān Bedouin tribes, who extended their authority over most of Mauritania and the Western Sahara between the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries. It has almost completely replaced the Berber languages spoken in this region...
Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
that preserves elements of the Soninke language
Soninke language
The Soninke language is a Mande language spoken by the Soninke people of West Africa. The language has an estimated 1,096,795 speakers, primarily located in Mali, and also in Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, The Gambia, Mauritania, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Ghana...
, reflecting their Niger-Congo heritage.
Militarily powerless, they were traditionally reduced to the degrading lower-caste
Caste
Caste is an elaborate and complex social system that combines elements of endogamy, occupation, culture, social class, tribal affiliation and political power. It should not be confused with race or social class, e.g. members of different castes in one society may belong to the same race, as in India...
status of Znaga
Znaga
The Znaga or Zenaga tribes were at the bottom of Sahrawi-Moorish society in today's Mauritania and Western Sahara in North Africa. They performed demeaning duties for their Hassane and Zawiya overlords, and were additionally exploited through payment of the horma tax in exchange for protection,...
, forcibly ruled and tax
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
ed (horma
Horma
The horma was a tribute paid by subservient tribes to their protectors in traditional Sahrawi-Moorish society in today's Mauritania and Western Sahara in North Africa. The powerful Hassane warrior tribes would extract it from low-caste Znaga tribes, where each member was forced to personally pay an...
) by more many powerful Berber, Hassane
Hassane
The Hassane is a name for the traditionally dominant warrior tribes of the Saharan-Moorish areas of present-day Mauritania, southern Morocco and Western Sahara...
, and Zawia tribes such as the Oulad Delim
Oulad Delim
The Oulad Delim is a Sahrawi tribe of mainly Arab origins, formerly considered of Hassane status, i.e. part of the ruling warrior stratum. They speak Hassaniya Arabic. They traditionally live in the southern regions of Western Sahara , especially in the city of Dakhla. They have extensive tribal...
and Ouled Bou Sbaa.