Tarikh al-Jazair fi al-Qadim wa al-Hadith
- Author died
- 1364 AH
- Editions
- al-Muʾassasah al-Waṭaniyyah lil-Kitāb bi-al-Jazāʾir
Tarikh al-Jazair fi al-Qadim wa al-Hadith (The History of Algeria in Ancient and Modern Times) is a seminal Arabic historical work authored by the Algerian scholar and reformist Mubarak al-Mili (ca. 1316–1364 AH / 1898–1945 CE), documenting the history of Algeria from prehistoric antiquity through the medieval Islamic dynasties up to the sixteenth century.
Composition and Purpose
The first volume of the work appeared in summer 1928 (1347 AH / 1929 CE), printed in Constantine at the Algerian Islamic Press (al-Matba'a al-Islamiyya al-Jaza'iriyya), while the second volume was published at the same press in 1350 AH / 1932 CE. The author dedicated the book to the Algerian people, particularly its thinking youth and active workers. Written shortly before the French colonial centenary of the occupation of Algeria (1830–1930), the work sought to establish a comprehensive national historical narrative that integrated pre-Islamic and Islamic history, directly refuting colonial historiography that minimized the country's national continuity, Islamic identity, and Arabic language. In his introduction, al-Mili argued that national history is essential for safeguarding collective consciousness and preventing an occupied nation from being absorbed by neighboring colonial powers.
Though titled to cover ancient and modern times, al-Mili’s text concluded around the start of the sixteenth century with the fall of the Zayyanid dynasty, before the Ottoman era and French conquest. Decades later, his son Muhammad al-Mili edited a new edition of the work and authored a third volume covering the Ottoman period.
Structure and Contents
Al-Mili divided the work into three major divisions ("books"):
- Book One (Pre-Islamic Algeria): Covers Algeria's physical geography, the Stone Age inhabitants, the origins and tribes of the Berbers, the Phoenicians and Carthaginian rule, Berber kingdoms during the Carthaginian and Roman Republic eras (highlighting figures like Masinissa, Jugurtha, and Tacfarinas), the Roman Empire, the Vandals, and the Byzantine period.
- Book Two (The Arab Era): Details the Arab-Muslim conquest of North Africa, the founding of an Arab emirate, followed by independent states within Algerian geography, including the Rustamid, Idrisid, Aghlabid, and Fatimid (Ubaydid) states, concluding with the migration of Banu Hilal.
- Book Three (The Berber Era): Comprises eight chapters exploring Algerian Berber tribes (such as Zanata, Sanhaja, Kutama, Zawawa, Lawata, and Hawwara), the Hammadid dynasty, the Almoravids, the Almohad Caliphate, Arab tribes during the Hafsid, Marinid, and Zayyanid periods, the Hafsid dynasty, the Marinid dynasty, and the Zayyanid kingdom of Tlemcen, along with cultural, literary, and urban life up to the tenth Hijri century (sixteenth century CE).
Reception
The work was hailed by leaders of the Algerian reform movement and prominent Arab figures:
- Abd al-Hamid ibn Badis praised the first volume upon its release in a letter dated 15 Muharram 1347 AH, stating that it was worthy of being titled Hayat al-Jazair ("The Life of Algeria") and characterizing it as the first book to present a complete, coherent portrait of Algeria in the Arabic tongue.
- The Lebanese-Syrian intellectual Shakib Arslan read the first volume and expressed his deep admiration in a letter to al-Tayyib al-'Uqbi, writing that he had not expected such scholarship from Algeria and ranking al-Mili alongside Ibn Badis, al-'Uqbi, and al-Zahiri as the four pillars of Algerian literature.
- Contemporary Algerian scholars and reformist figures, including Muhammad al-Abid al-Jalali and Ahmad Tawfiq al-Madani, publicized the book and organized cultural celebrations in Constantine honoring al-Mili upon its appearance.
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