The Kel Adagh (var. Kel Adrar, Kel Adghagh, less commonly Kel Ifoghas) are a
Tuareg
The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym: ''Imuhaɣ/Imušaɣ/Imašeɣăn/Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group that principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern Al ...
confederation of clans (or "''Drum-Groups''") living in the region of the
Adrar des Iforas highlands in
Mali
Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Ma ...
. The name comes from
Tamasheq "''Kel''" ("those from/of") and "''Adagh''" ("''Mountains''"). In the modern era, not all Tuareg in the Adrar des Iforas are Kel Adagh, while some Kel Adagh are spread through northern
Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languages[Algeria
)
, image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Algiers
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, relig ...](_blank)
, with populations in the
Aïr Mountains
The Aïr Mountains or Aïr Massif ( tmh, Ayăr; Hausa: Eastern ''Azbin'', Western ''Abzin'') is a triangular massif, located in northern Niger, within the Sahara. Part of the West Saharan montane xeric woodlands ecoregion, the ...
,
Tassili n'Ajjer
Tassili n'Ajjer ( Berber: ''Tassili n Ajjer'', ar, طاسيلي ناجر; "Plateau of rivers") is a national park in the Sahara desert, located on a vast plateau in southeastern Algeria. Having one of the most important groupings of prehistoric ...
, and the
Hoggar Mountains. Most Kel Adagh derive from Noble and Warrior castes and their tributaries.
Noble Kel Adagh in Ifoghas include:
* Kel Afella (North) : tributaries of the
Amenokal of Adagh.
* Kel Taghlit
* Kel Essouk (Religious caste tributary group)
* Kel Ouzzeyn
* Ifergoumessen
* Iriyaken
Tributaries include around forty tribes, the more notable of which are :
* Taghat Mellet ("''Those of the white horse''")
* Idnan
* Ibatanaten
2012 Tuareg rebellion
In the months leading up to the 2012 Tuareg rebellion, the
Islamist Iyad ag Ghaly
Iyad Ag Ghaly ( ar, اياد اغ غالي, sometimes romanised as Ag Ghali), also known as Abū al-Faḍl ( ar, أبو الفضل ), is a Tuareg militant from Mali's Kidal Region. He has been active in Tuareg rebellions against the Malian gov ...
reportedly attempted to take on the leadership of Kel Adagh, but was rejected. He responded by founding the Islamist group
Ansar Dine
Ansar Dine ( ar, أنصار الدين ''ʾAnṣār ad-Dīn'', also transliterated ''Ançar Deen''; meaning " helpers of the religion" (Islam) also known as Ansar al-Din (abbreviated as AAD) was a Salafi jihadist group led by Iyad Ag Ghaly. An ...
.
In early 2012, the Tuareg fighters of the
National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) took control of several towns in northern Mali. The gains triggered a
coup in Mali by mutinying soldiers, allowing the MNLA to take the regional capitals of
Kidal
Kidal ( Tuareg Berber: ⴾⴸⵍ, KDL, Kidal) is a town and commune in the desert region of northern Mali. The town lies northeast of Gao and is the capital of the Kidal Cercle and the Kidal Region. The commune has an area of about and incl ...
,
Gao, and
Timbuktu
Timbuktu ( ; french: Tombouctou;
Koyra Chiini: ); tmh, label=Tuareg, script=Tfng, ⵜⵏⴱⴾⵜ, Tin Buqt a city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. The town is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrativ ...
. ''
TIME
Time is the continued sequence of existence and event (philosophy), events that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various me ...
'' describes Kel Adagh as "the Tuareg group most closely aligned with the rebellion".
See also
*
Kel Tamasheq
The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym: ''Imuhaɣ/Imušaɣ/Imašeɣăn/Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group that principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern Al ...
**
Kel Ahaggar
Kel Ahaggar ( Berber: ⴾⵍ ⵂⴴⵔ) (trans: "People of Ahaggar") is a Tuareg confederation inhabiting the Hoggar Mountains (Ahaggar mountains) in Algeria. The confederation is believed to have been founded by the Tuareg matriarch Tin Hinan, ...
**
Kel Ajjer Kel Ajjer (also Kel Azjar, Kel Azjer) is a Tuareg confederation inhabiting western Libya and eastern Algeria. Their main stronghold was Ghat, followed by Ubari. The Kel Ajjer speak Tamahaq, or Northern Tuareg.
See also
* Azjar
** Kel Adagh
**Kel A ...
**
Kel Ayr Kel Ayr (also spelled Kel Aïr) was a semi-nomadic Tuareg tribal confederation. It ruled an area centered on the Aïr Mountains (Aïr Massif) in what is today Niger.
Forming sometime after the 11th century CE, the Kel Ayr were one of the earlier T ...
**
Kel Gres Kel Gres is a tribal confederation of Tuareg clans (or "''Drum-groups''"). In the modern era, they have mostly lived in south central Niger, although they are known to have inhabited the Aïr Mountains prior to the 17th century. As pastoralists, the ...
**
Iwellemmedan
The Iwellemmedan (''Iwəlləmədǎn''), also spelled Iullemmeden, Aulliminden, Ouilliminden, Lullemmeden, and Iwellemmeden, are one of the seven major Tuareg tribal or clan confederations (called "''Drum groups''"). Their communities are histori ...
: Kel Ataram (west) and Kel Dinnik (east)
References
*Portions of this article were translated from the French language Wikipedia article
:fr:Kel Adagh, 2008-08-26.
{{Authority control
Tuareg
Tuareg confederations