The Tubu People: History, Identity, and Cultural Heritage

A deep study presented by Libyan researcher Abdulmonem Al-Mahjoub about the history of the Tubu, their origins, branches, languages, characteristics, and culture in his book “The Tubu: Identity, Language, and Unknown History.”

The “Tubu” are one of Libya’s ancient tribes whose history has been shrouded in mystery; it’s an unknown history of which we know very little. The tribe’s people themselves didn’t document anything about themselves, and their news was scattered here and there. Therefore, only Western travelers who traversed the Sahara Desert wrote about their news and traced their impact, along with very few Arab travelers. Their writings were limited to simple observations of this tribe’s life from various aspects, and what they heard from oral narratives of its inhabitants and all that was transmitted about their news.

For this reason, Libyan researcher Abdulmonem Al-Mahjoub focused on researching various historical sources to produce this study “The Tubu: Identity, Language, and Unknown History” about this tribe’s history; by investigating their unknown individual history and presenting some folkloric patterns that encapsulate their social entity, and sheds light on their identity, language, and various aspects of their life, traditions, and customs.

Al-Mahjoub sees in his study, published by Hindawi Foundation, that the mysterious history of the Tubu is part of the nature of constant nomadism that characterized the ancient Libyan tribes, whose homelands were first identified by Greek geographers and historians in the 4th century BC, after ages characterized by the spread of Stone Age patterns dominated by gathering and hunting, and marked by the absence of documentation and instability, which was only achieved after the spread of agriculture and the arrival of the Canaanites (Phoenicians).

Their migration continued southward until they settled in the Tibesti highlands, meaning these highlands became a second homeland for the Tubu, perhaps settled during the Roman penetration southward, and after Septimius Severus, who ruled the Roman Empire between 193 and 211 CE, subjected the Libyan tribes, especially the Garamantes and Nasamones tribes, and after he established advanced observation forces, fortresses, and garrisons in the interior in what became known as the Tripolitanian Limes.

He points to a connection between the Teda and the Garamantes, suggesting that the Teda were a branch of the Garamantes forced to leave their original homeland, which was located to the northwest, to settle south of Fezzan, i.e., south of the capital of the Garamantes who “controlled a vast area of Libya extending from the Red Hamada in the north, the Acacus and Tadrart mountains in the west, the Tibesti mountains in the south, and the Uweinat mountains and Kufra oases in the east.”

These regions were not ethnically uniform, as “archaeological research conducted on tomb remains tends to suggest that the Garamantes belonged to four lineage groups: two white, one black, and the fourth a mixture of these lineages.”

As for the cave-dwellers whom Herodotus (who lived between 484 and 424 BC) mentioned that the Garamantes used to chase, they are temporally distant from the Teda’s migration to the south by about 650 years. We suggest they were ancestors of the black tribes living near Lake Chad (Bornu, Kanem, etc.) after being pushed southward for the Teda tribes to occupy their territories, and after the Teda’s migration northward to their original homelands and breaching the Roman defense line called the “Tripolitanian Limes” became impossible without entering into a losing war with the Imperial Legion.

For these reasons, the precedence of the name “Teda” over “Tubu” is justified, as ages preceded their settlement in the Tibesti highlands from which their new name “Tubu” was derived, without being known before that except by an older name, “Teda,” which was abbreviated from their most ancient name “Tedamansi.” The tribe’s connection to the Garamantes consequently makes us see the Teda as successors to the Garamantes, and also makes us search for the lost Garamantes language in the Teda language alone.

Al-Mahjoub explains that some ancient Libyan tribes preserved their original names in modified forms, while most tribes replaced their names between one time and another, and rarely did tribes keep their first names as they were. He says, “Perhaps we can conclude from the previous analysis that the name that prevailed throughout history, ‘Tedamansi,’ which was then shortened to ‘Teda,’ lived until just before the seventh century.”

With the beginning of Islam’s spread in North Africa, the word “Tubu” came to indicate the Teda tribes and other tribal branches, as this word shared meanings in both Teda and Arabic languages indicating the most prominent features of these people. In Arabic, it carries the meaning of raiding, plundering, and gaining spoils. In the Teda language, it means taking refuge in mountains and settling them, thus becoming a collective proper noun accepted by both locals and neighboring peoples simultaneously. Its use became widespread to include the original Teda and tribes that later migrated southward to Lake Chad or the savanna plains, which were suitable for settlement and grazing, thereby forming an independent branch that grew and increased in number until it became much larger than the original group that fortified itself in the Tibesti highlands without exceeding the oases and valleys near this homeland.

The Southern Tubu (Daza) represent a degree closer to black Africans more than the Northern Tubu (Teda) do. There is some difficulty in determining how to assess the Zaghawa in Northern Darfur, “however, they are clearly close enough to be between the Tuareg and the coastal Berbers.”

He confirms that the demographic movement known to the Tubu tribes appears to have intertwined paths. If we assume the antiquity of the Northern Tubu over the Southern Tubu, this reinforces the hypothesis of the Teda’s connection to the ancient Tedamansi tribe, meaning that the Tibesti mountains would in this case be the Tubu’s second homeland, which they may have settled between 193-211 CE as mentioned.

The Tubu are divided into two groups into which these tribes merge, and it is socially prevalent among the tribes of these two groups to claim belonging to a single origin. They are:

“Teda,” numbering about 50,000 people, who practice herding and trade between the tribes of Libya, Chad, and Sudan. Their dialect is Tedaga, or the Teda tongue, and they call themselves relative to their language “Tedagada,” meaning those who speak Tedaga.

“Daza,” which is the larger clan, numbering about 250,000 people. They practice trade between desert tribes, in addition to herding, moving behind pastures and water in the southern desert, around the foothills of Tibesti and in Niger. Their dialect is Dazaga, or the Daza tongue, and they call themselves relative to their language “Dazagada,” meaning those who speak Dazaga.

The Douzah tribes also inhabit the Faya region, and they are closer to the Tubu, or let’s say they are a transitional race representing a middle link between the Tubu and their neighboring races. They are currently allies and in-laws of the Tubu, according to Tubu traditions that prohibit marriage between relatives up to the seventh grandfather. They also speak the Dazaga dialect, while some speak the Tedaga dialect, according to their kinship relations and proximity of settlement to either group.

He points out that the Tubu were historically known as nomadic Bedouins who practiced herding, and despite the marriage and alliance connections that make the Tubu tribes a distinct tribal block in terms of social composition, they are divided under this large social umbrella into several units according to their special grazing lands and possessions of camel and livestock herds, on one hand, and according to their tribal affiliations that pre-qualify them to assume their position within the following four categories:

• First, the notables: Their source of wealth is from trade, but they somehow represent the employers of other traders, and rarely travel.
• Second, the merchants: They are a class lower than the notables, but they represent their tribes during their trade travels and meetings with neighboring tribes and adjacent regions.
• Third, the farmers: They are few in number compared to traders.
• Fourth, the blacksmiths: They are also few in number, and blacksmithing is a despised profession among the Tubu, but blacksmiths are feared due to their association in Tubu belief with magic and the ability to invoke supernatural powers.
• Finally, the singers: They are the least numerous among the previous categories, and singers are often from the farmer class.

Al-Mahjoub believes that Tubu tribes rely on the rotation of chieftaincy (sultanate) between known tribes for determining their social reference. The sheikh or sultan (Dardai) who becomes the arbitrator becomes a reference point for all tribes to return to and arbitrate for dispute resolution and consultation. He is, in practical terms, closer to a judge, as he exercises no powers other than what we mentioned, unless he is distinguished by an aspect of prestige (charisma) that qualifies him to lead the sheikhs and notables of the tribes, and grants him authority that is met with loyalty from the Tubu people, like Sultan Shahai for example. The sultan is only replaced after his death, while everyone usually agrees on naming his successor early on. If the sultanate moves to another tribe, its sheikh automatically becomes the sultan of all tribes, and so on.

The rotation of chieftaincy is limited to three families from the Tamara tribe: Lai Duga (descendants of Lai) – Ardi Duga (descendants of Ardi) – Arami Duga (descendants of Aramah). The Tubu tribes adhere to a written law known as Kutuba, or Kutuma, also called: Tugi, or Tugi Teda, and educated Teda people call it the “Tubu Constitution.” It was established by Sultan Shahai Bughr based on Islamic Sharia provisions, to regulate most necessary transactions in the pastoral Tubu society, especially those requiring specific judicial rulings, as in cases of dispute resolution, retribution from killers, and imposing material penalties on perpetrators of crimes. The Kutuba law was written in French, and its original copy still exists to this time and is in the custody of Teda notables.

Regarding Tubu folkloric arts and their heritage in singing and music, Al-Mahjoub says they are characterized by local features that make them different from other Great Sahara tribes, even if general patterns are similar. Among these arts still performed today are:

“Hami”: A poetic singing art form focused on praise and satire, accompanied by drum rhythms.
“Shili”: A poetic singing art form performed by Tubu elderly women during wedding and circumcision occasions.

As for poetry alone – without rhythms and dance – it is considered a feature of masculinity among the Tubu, performed with a light singing style, and its purposes are distributed like in Arabic poetry between pride, boasting, and recreation, and rarely does the poet resort to love poetry.

Among the musical instruments of the Tubu:
“Kidi”: A drum known in other parts of the Sahara and North Africa as “Danga”.
It is used for rhythmic patterns of singing arts usually accompanied by dance. Among these patterns:
– “Yuri”: A rhythmic war dance
– “Tazza”: A dance accompanying wedding processions
– “Kidi Adba”: A special dance for women and girls in a circle form

“Naqara”: A drum smaller than “Kidi,” with finer and more resonant rhythms, usually used to announce occasions, call the tribe to gather, or as a trumpet to prepare for war.

“Shagani”: A stringed instrument similar to the rebab, made from palm fronds, dried desert gourd or metal vessel, and two adjacent strings.

“Kiki”: A stringed instrument similar to the violin, made of wood, and may have more than two strings added.

He reveals that marriage customs and traditions among the Tubu hardly differ from other inhabitants of the Great Sahara, but their traditions forbid marriage between relatives up to the seventh grandfather. They require agreement between the families of both fiancés and their tribes, and that there be no impediments to the marriage contract between the parties, such as blood feuds. The family of the young man wishing to marry undertakes all expected ceremonies, without requiring the young man to meet or speak with the girl.

The agreement on the dowry is the first step, received by the bride’s parents and relatives including uncles, aunts, and maternal relatives. As for clothing and jewelry, they are sent on a camel on a day called “Al-Algha” which precedes the feast day. Then the girl is secluded and prevented from going out, waiting for the wedding procession which includes camels, singers, drum-beaters, and incense carriers. From time to time, the procession stops as a semicircle of women surrounds one of the dancers accompanied by drum beats until they complete their dance, and so on until the procession reaches the house where the groom waits.

Among Tubu customs, the groom stands at the threshold of the house and whips it with a whip in his right hand, believing this drives away evil spirits. It is also their custom for the newlyweds to seclude themselves and not leave their house during the first week.