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Introduction These two tribes were the most notable in their resistance to French Colonialism in the region. Their combined territories where the object of French annexation to Algeria in 1900. The Dawi Mani’ were Arabs and the Ait Atta Berbers. They shared many common attributes that distinguished them form other tribes, Arab and Berber in the region. Although they both subsisted mainly through transhumant pastoralism they also engaged in caravan trading and in date and palm agriculture to a degree. Despite the involvement in agriculture, they remained nomadic tent dwellers. By the end of the 19th century the Dawi Mani’ were relying more on agriculture, therefore their attitude to outsiders became more defensive in nature. Contrastingly the Ait Atta were less involved in agriculture and expanding aggressively, attacking any weakness they encountered to expand their tribal lands.
Dawi Mani The Dawi Mani were descended for the Ma ‘qil Arab tribes who migrated to the region form Egypt in the 11th century. The Dawi Mani believed that their military success was due to their adoption of the Khams Khmas (five fifths). The Khams Khmas was essentially the dividing of the tribes into five sub tribes each of which fielded its own military corps commanded by a ca’id. The five sub tribes were the
Any spoils of battle were divided amongst the fifths proportionately to the number of warriors in each fifth that had taken part. The warriors within each fifth fought together in its own corps under the command of its ca’id. The tribal war party as a whole were under the command of an ad hoc Warlord called a Sheik who was elected by the fifths for the duration of the battle or war. The Sheik had absolute military authority for the duration of his election. While the Sheiks position was temporary, that of the ca’id was often a lifetime position. There was no overall "chieftain" of the tribe, but a representative assembly from each fifth called a Jama’a. Each Jama’a was typically comprised of an adult from each of the lineage’s within each clan and comprised the wisest and most influential men. Over and above the Sheik, elected for a military command, was the tribal "military police" system known as the Ait ‘Arabin, the people of forty.
This was itself commanded by a Sheik who had command only of his "forty warriors". This was a permanent organization whose members were provided equally by all of the fifths. The Ait ‘Arabin could conduct punitive raids on any of the fifths that failed to provide the proper number of warriors for battle. The most successful direction of expansion of the Dawi Mani up to the nineteenth century had been to the south and east towards the Tuat. They displaced the Ghananma, a small Arab tribe who had been the political overlords of a group Kasars in the Zousfana valley, known as the Beni Goumi. The last raising of the fifths for battle prior to the arrival of the French was as a retaliatory raid in 1885 on the Ghananma who had attacked one of the Kasars now controlled by the Dawi Mani.
At other times the Dawi Mani formed coalition war parties with the Ait Atta and the Ghananma and attacked the Kasars in the Tuat region from which they then extracted protection money. They continued to exact tribute from these kasars up to the end of the nineteenth century. These types of missions seemed to remain the specialty of certain groups within the tribe who became adept at it.
Towards the end of the nineteenth century, this expansion of the Dawi Mani had ceased and they controlled immense areas of territory throughout the Zousfana valley. This ranged as far as the Plain of Tamlelt in the north, the Hammada de Guir in the west and the Tuat in the east and south.
Dawi Mani The Dawi Mani were descended for the Ma ‘qil Arab tribes who migrated to the region form Egypt in the 11th century. The Dawi Mani believed that their military success was due to their adoption of the Khams Khmas (five fifths). The Khams Khmas was essentially the dividing of the tribes into five sub tribes each of which fielded its own military corps commanded by a ca’id. The five sub tribes were the
- Awlas abu ‘Anan
- Awlad bil Giz
- Awlad Yusif
- Awlad Jallul
- Idarasa
Any spoils of battle were divided amongst the fifths proportionately to the number of warriors in each fifth that had taken part. The warriors within each fifth fought together in its own corps under the command of its ca’id. The tribal war party as a whole were under the command of an ad hoc Warlord called a Sheik who was elected by the fifths for the duration of the battle or war. The Sheik had absolute military authority for the duration of his election. While the Sheiks position was temporary, that of the ca’id was often a lifetime position. There was no overall "chieftain" of the tribe, but a representative assembly from each fifth called a Jama’a. Each Jama’a was typically comprised of an adult from each of the lineage’s within each clan and comprised the wisest and most influential men. Over and above the Sheik, elected for a military command, was the tribal "military police" system known as the Ait ‘Arabin, the people of forty.
This was itself commanded by a Sheik who had command only of his "forty warriors". This was a permanent organization whose members were provided equally by all of the fifths. The Ait ‘Arabin could conduct punitive raids on any of the fifths that failed to provide the proper number of warriors for battle. The most successful direction of expansion of the Dawi Mani up to the nineteenth century had been to the south and east towards the Tuat. They displaced the Ghananma, a small Arab tribe who had been the political overlords of a group Kasars in the Zousfana valley, known as the Beni Goumi. The last raising of the fifths for battle prior to the arrival of the French was as a retaliatory raid in 1885 on the Ghananma who had attacked one of the Kasars now controlled by the Dawi Mani.
At other times the Dawi Mani formed coalition war parties with the Ait Atta and the Ghananma and attacked the Kasars in the Tuat region from which they then extracted protection money. They continued to exact tribute from these kasars up to the end of the nineteenth century. These types of missions seemed to remain the specialty of certain groups within the tribe who became adept at it.
Towards the end of the nineteenth century, this expansion of the Dawi Mani had ceased and they controlled immense areas of territory throughout the Zousfana valley. This ranged as far as the Plain of Tamlelt in the north, the Hammada de Guir in the west and the Tuat in the east and south.
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