This current practice, according to Herodotus, goes back to the ancient Libyan Nasamon Berbers, and it may even go back much farther in time since sacred traditions are indeed carried forward from previous generations. Oric Bates. [8] The Mauretanian pyramid is also known as "Kbour-er-Roumia" or "Tomb of the Roman Woman" mistranslated by the French colonizers as "Tomb of the Christian Woman". [19], Osiris was among the Egyptian deities who were venetrated in Libya. According to the aforementioned platform, this story is associated with Perseus, son of Zeus and slayer of the Gorgon Medusa. Herodotus stated also that Poseidon (an important Greek sea god) was adopted from the Libyans by the Greeks. [17], Osiris was among the Egyptian deities who were venerated in Libya. There are also Numidian and Phoenician names that apparently contain roots from the god Baal, such as Adherbal and Hannibal. The Berbers fought against the Romans and Byzantines. Religion Wiki is a FANDOM Lifestyle Community. Brett, Michael, and Elizabeth Fentress. King Belus ruled at Chemmis or Chamesis of Leo Africanus, Agenor migrated to Canaan (the Middle East), and Lelex became king of Megara. The Atlas mountain was worshipped by the Berbers and the Canary Islands represented to many the daughters of Atlas. The Egyptian-Libyans gods and goddesses can be distinguished according to their origin. [15] During the Roman period, Saturn was the focus of an important cult, subsuming that of Baal Hammon, a deity of Punic origin. Some legends tell that Neith was born around Lake Tritons (In modern Tunisia). The Egyptian-Berber deities can be distinguished according to their origin. Awessu) take to the sacred sea only once a year: in the Awessu day, the only magical day of the whole year where the sea takes the shape of a black mirror reflecting the dazzling stars of the Sky. Libyan god of the Laguatans on the Syrtes (Sirte), one of the nomadic tribes of Tripolitania. The highest megalith is longer than 5 meters.

Now that you have an idea about the story of the gods our ancestors worshipped, which one would be your favorite? They swore by them and consulted them. In addition to that, we also have Egyptian and Greek mythologies as a documented source, in which various references to Libyan mythology were preserved for generations to come, such as the worship of Amon, Ament, Antaeus, Bast, Nit, Poseidon and Shu. Later, Baal was united with the Libyan god Amun to become Baal-Hammon. Depictions of this deity are found in several sites across northwest Africa. But this was not the only thing that linked the titan god to Morocco. The Greeks may have believed that the Hesperides was situated in modern Morocco. An example is the inscription found in Souk Ahras (the birthplace of Saint Augustine; Tagaste in Algeria) written as: Solo Deo Invicto. Legends surrounding the life of this invincible giant say that he lived in Libya, while others claim that he resided in Morocco, and most precisely Tangier.

The Romans allied firstly with the Numidians against Carthage. These pyramid tombs have attracted the attention of some scholars, such as Mohammed Chafik who wrote a book discussing the history of several of the tombs that have survived into modern times. The worship of saints still exists among the modern Berbers in the form of Maraboutism, which is wide spread in northwest Africa, especially in Morocco. [9] The Tomb holds the graves of King Juba II and Queen Cleopatra Selene II, sovereigns of Mauretania. The Berbers and rocks.. [18], Those Berbers supposedly did not eat the swine's flesh, because it was associated with Set, while they did not eat the cow's flesh, because it was associated with Isis. Those ancient historians stated that she was originally honored by the Berbers around Lake Tritonis where she has been born from the god Poseidon and Lake Tritonis, according to the Libyan legend. Some scholars distinguish the relationships between the Phoenicians and the Berbers in two phases: When Phoenicians settled in Northwest Africa, they stayed in the coastal regions to avoid wars with the Berbers. Some scholars believe that the Egyptian goddess Neith was related to the Libyan goddess Tanit (Ta-neith). A considerable amount of the traditional lore of the matriarchal Berbers is still based on the worship of the Ancestors and the Dead. Bodies were usually buried in a fetal position. The Phoenicians of Lebanon were seafarers and they founded Carthage in 814 BC. In Awelimmiden Tuareg, the name Amanai is believed to have the meaning of "God". The hero killed the giant and had a child by his widow, Tinjis, he wrote. The Greeks influenced the eastern Libya pantheon, but they were also influenced by Libyan culture and beliefs. The Roman pantheon seems to have been adopted generally, although the cult of Saturn, as mentioned above, was perhaps the most important. Although they were fictitious heroes and figures, their names are still part of our daily lives. The Ancient Egyptians were the neighbors of the Berbers. [25] Some of them continued worshipping Amun himself. Helene Hagan, The Shining Ones: An Etymological Essay on the Amazigh Roots of the Egyptian civilization, p. 42. The traditional Berber religion is the ancient and native set of beliefs and deities adhered to by the Berbers (Amazigh autochthones) of North Africa. He tried to relate the pyramidal Berber tombs with the great Egyptian pyramids on the basis of the etymological and historical data.

The Goddess Libya had three sons by the Libyan Sea-God Poseidon: Belus, Agenor and Lelex. [3] Pomponius Mela reported that the Augelae (Modern Awjila in Libya) considered the spirits of their ancestors to be gods. They honored the war goddess Ifri or Ifru who was considered to be the protector of her worshipers and was depicted on the Berber coins, and seemed to have been an influential goddess in North Africa. The prehistoric men of northwest Africa buried bodies in little holes. Even at Cyrene, the women think it wrong to eat the flesh of the cow, honoring in this Isis, the Egyptian goddess, whom they worship both with fasts and festivals. The dead were also sometimes buried with shells of ostrich eggs, jewelry, and weapons. They later gave birth to the so-called Punic culture, which had its roots in the Berber and Phoenician cultures. O. Brogan and D. Smith, 1984, Ghirza: a Libyan Settlement in the Roman Period. [9] The megalithic culture may have been part of a cult of the dead or of star-worship. The name could have been a name of a sea deity of some sort, since the associated rite is clearly a religious ceremony to attract the good and banish the bad. 1996. Tifinagh-Tamazight, Winter Solstice 2015: 5 Facts To Know About The First Day Of Winter. Ouachi, Moustapha. This worship is common to all the Libyans.[12]. The myth tells us that Zeus, god of the sky and thunder in Greek mythology, condemned Atlas to hold the heavens forever as a punishment. Besides residing in Morocco, the myth of this Greek giant is deeply linked to the country. The Barcaean women abstain, not from cow's flesh only, but also from the flesh of swine. [9], The monument of Mzora (also spelled as Msoura) is the best known megalithic monument in northwest Africa. Three of these figures made it to history books and their myths and legends can still be heard of. There are also Massyle and Phoenician names that apparently contain roots from the god Baal, such as Adherbal and Hannibal. [10] The megalithic culture may have been part of a cult of the dead or of star-worship. He reported: They begin with the ear of the victim, which they cut off and throw over their house: this done, they kill the animal by twisting the neck. When they realized that bodies buried in unsecured holes were dug up by wild animals, they began to bury them in deeper ones. Historians believe his cult was closer to that of Baal-Hammon than that of the Roman Saturn.[33]. He wrote: [..]They swear by the men among themselves who are reported to have been the most righteous and brave, by these, I say, laying hands upon their tombs; and they divine by visiting the sepulchral mounds of their ancestors and lying down to sleep upon them after having prayed; and whatsoever thing the man sees in his dream, this he accepts.[6]. He was the son of the god Poseidon and Gaia. The prehistoric people of northwest Africa buried bodies in little holes. : Atlas),[16] rocks, caves, and rivers.[17]. The festival nowadays is no more than a commercial festivity and musical propaganda, as was the fate of so many feats the Berbers created at the dawn of time. [23] Some of them continued worshipping Ammon himself. [21] Early depictions of rams (related possibly to an early form of the cult of this deity) across North Africa have been dated to between 9600 BC and 7500 BC. James Hastings, Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics Part 4 p. 508. The legend tells that Antaeus was the undefeatable protector of the Libyans. The name of the ancient Berber tribes: Garamantes and Nasamonians are believed by some scholars to be related to the name Amon.[23]. [20] He was honored by the Ancient Greeks in Cyrenaica, and was united with the Phoenician god Baal due to Libyan influence.

The first notable appearance of Libyan influence on the Cyrenaican-Greek beliefs is the name Cyrenaica itself. Tullius Cicero (105-43 BC) also reported the same cult in On the Republic (Scipio's Dream): When I (Scipio) was introduced to him, the old man (Massinissa, king of Massyle) embraced me, shed tears, and then, looking up to heaven, exclaimed I thank thee, O supreme Sun, and you also, you other celestial beings, that before I departed from this life I behold in my kingdom, and in my palace, Publius Cornelius Scipio .[13]. Some of the ancient Amazigh beliefs still exist today subtly within the Amazigh popular culture and tradition. [2], The authors of the book The Berbers stated that the cult of the dead was one of the distinguishing characteristics of the Berbers in antiquity. Most gigantic creatures existed in northeastern Africa, including Modern Libya, e.g., the giant snakes, the Hydra and the Barbary Lions on the coast of Tripoli. The modern day Berbers may have believed that the Hesperides were situated in modern Morocco. The Greeks seem also to have met the god Triton in Libya. There were some Latin inscriptions found in Northwest Africa dedicated to the sun-god. Therefore, early Carthaginians had two important Phoenician deities, Baal and Astarte. Those ancient historians stated that she was originally honored by the Libya around Lake Tritonis where she had been born from the god Poseidon and Lake Tritonis, according to the Libyan legend. Some scholars situate them in Benghazi of Irassa where Antaeus lived, according to some myths. Herodotus also stated that Poseidon (an important Greek sea god) was adopted from the Libyans by the Greeks. According to Berber mythology, many Berber kings believed that they were the descendants of Sufax. This name was originally the name of a legendary (mythic) Berber woman warrior who was known as Cyre. Elizabeth Fentress, 1978, 'Di Mauri and Dii Patrii' Latomus 37, 2-16, H. Basset, Les influences puniques chez les Berbres, pp 367-368. Be the first one to comment on our articles Yabiladi.com 2002 - 2022 - all rights reserved |.

The Greeks and the Libyans began to break their harmony in the period of Battus II. His wife Anchinoe, daughter of the Nile-god, Nilus, bore him the twins Aegyptus and Danaus and a third son Cepheus, and one daughter: Lamia, the Libyan Snake-goddess. Some historians believe that the myth of Antaeus was a reflection of those wars between the Libyans and Greeks. Amazighs that inhabited this ancient part of the world believed in these myths, cherished its heroes and worshipped its gods for centuries. Some scholars believe that the Egyptian goddess Neith was related to the Libyan goddess Tanit (Ta-neith). When Northwest Africa was annexed to the Roman Empire, the Berber began to worship the Roman deities like Jupiter who was known as Mastiman. The kingdom of Morocco Pioneering economic growth, HYPERMEDIA PROJECTS AND TAMAZIGHT (BERBER LANGUAGE). The most famous temple of Ammon in Ancient Libya was the augural temple at Siwa in Egypt, an oasis still inhabited by Berbers. Although most modern sources ignore the existence of Amun in Berber mythology, he was maybe the greatest ancient Berber god. Antaeus is mainly known for his fight with Hercules, the divine Greek hero and the son of Zeus. The most remarkable common god of the Berbers and the Egyptians was Ammon. While some sources described Antaeus as the king of Irassa, Plutarch reported that the Libyans buried him in Tangier: In this city (Tangier) the Libyans say that Antaeus is buried; and Sertorius had his tomb dug open, the great size of which made him disbelieve the Barbarians(Plutarch, The Parallel Lives)[30]. They maintained their deities which they brought from their homelands. The Cyrenaican Greeks built temples for the Libyan god Ammon instead of their original god Zeus. Herodotus (484 BCca.425 BC) noted the same practice among the Nasamones, who inhabited the deserts around Siwa and Augila. Herodotus wrote that the Aegis and the clothes of Athena are typical for Libyan woman. The ancient historians mentioned that some Greek deities were of Libyan origin. The stone became the Atlas Mountains in what is now the country of Morocco. Feminine names begin and end with "t" in the Berber languages. Tripoli. These tombs evolved from primitive structures to much more elaborate ones, such as the pyramidal tombs spread throughout Northern Africa. They maintained their deities which they brought from their homeland. The name Tifinagh possibly means Tifinagh one ofThe Tifinagh alphabet ("Lybico-berber") has been used by Berber speaking people in North Africa and the Canary Isl BERBER MYTHOLOGY Sources of Berber Mythology List of Berber Goddesses & Gods Tannit Amazons Antaeus Gurzil Libya Be Food An exceptional melding of flavors from the Berber,Arabic, French, Spanish and Jewish cultures that left their mark on the country, Kidnapping your bride In the Sudanese Latuka tribe, when a man wants to marry a woman, he kidnaps her. [8] The best known Berber pyramids are the 19-meter pre-Roman Numidian pyramid of the Medracen and the 30-meter ancient Mauretanian pyramid. It is composed of a circle of megaliths surrounding a tumulus. The Eastern ancient Berbers worshipped Isis and Set. They later gave birth to the so-called Punic culture which had its roots in the Berber and Phoenician cultures. That was reported by Herodotus when saying: Cow's flesh, however, none of these [Libyan] tribes ever taste, but abstain from it for the same reason as the Egyptians, neither do they any of them breed swine. The goddess Astarte was replaced by a native goddess, Tanit, which is thought to be of Berber origin. Mohammed Mustapha Bazma, The Libyan influence on the Egyptian and Greek civilizations and their influence on the Libyan civilization.

A new god appears in later texts, identified with tribes such as the Austuriani outside the Roman frontiers of Libya. These tombs evolved from primitive structures to much more elaborate ones, such as the pyramidal tombs spread throughout Northern Africa. She gave her name to the city Cyrenaica. There were some Latin inscriptions found in Northwest Africa dedicated to the sun-god. He was taken by the Berbers to their battles against the Romans. Connections between the ancient Berbers and the ancient Greeks began in Cyrenaica where the Greeks had established colonies. Others call him the king of Mauretania, the Latin word for the ancient Maghreb, which stretched from present-day Algeria to Morocco. He was the husband of the Berber goddess Tinjis. The legends tell that he was the undefeatable protector of Libyans () he used to protect the land of Berbers until he was slain by the Greek hero Heracles, who married Tinjis and fathered the son Sophax (Berber-Greek son), the same book added. The Phoenicians were originally a Semitic people that once inhabited the coasts of modern Lebanon. He tried to relate the pyramidal Berber tombs with the great Egyptian pyramids on the basis of the etymological and historical data. Additionally, in 1958 University of Rome Professor Fabrizio Mori (1925-2010) discovered a Libyan mummy around 5,500 years old roughly a thousand years older than any known Ancient Egyptian mummy. Even at Cyrene, the women think it wrong to eat the flesh of the cow, honoring in this Isis, the Egyptian goddess, whom they worship both with fasts and festivals.