A Wazīʿa () or Thawzīʿath, also known as Thamšeraṭeth (), is the term used in

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

to designate one of the cultural customs in a

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

society observed by the inhabitants of

rural area In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry are typically desc ...

s, especially the

Berbers Berbers, or the Berber peoples, also known as Amazigh or Imazighen, are a diverse grouping of distinct ethnic groups indigenous to North Africa who predate the arrival of Arab migrations to the Maghreb, Arabs in the Maghreb. Their main connec ...

Kabylia Kabylia or Kabylie (; in Kabyle: Tamurt n leqbayel; in Tifinagh: ⵜⴰⵎⵓⵔⵜ ⵏ ⵍⴻⵇⴱⴰⵢⴻⵍ; ), meaning "Land of the Tribes" is a mountainous coastal region in northern Algeria and the homeland of the Kabyle people. It is ...

Presentation

The Wazīʿa is not only widespread in Kabylia, but also in the

Aurès Aurès () is a natural region located in the mountainous area of the Aurès Mountains, Aurès range, in eastern Algeria. The region includes the provinces of Algeria, Algerian provinces of Batna Province, Batna, Tebessa Province, Tebessa, Consta ...

M'zab The M'zab, or Mzab (Mozabite language, Mozabite: ''Aghlan'', ), is a natural region of the northern Sahara Desert in Ghardaïa Province, Algeria. It is located south of Algiers and has approximately 360,000 inhabitants (2005 estimate). Geolog ...

, and elsewhere in the country. They are organized on several occasions and

mawsim ''Mawsim'' or ''moussem'' (), ''waada'', or ''raqb'', is the term used in the Maghreb to designate an annual regional festival in which worshippers usually combine the religious celebration of local Marabouts or Sufi Tariqas, with various festi ...

s, especially during

Ashura Ashura (, , ) is a day of commemoration in Islam. It occurs annually on the tenth of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. For Sunni Muslims, Ashura marks the parting of the Red Sea by Moses and the salvation of the Israelites ...

Ramadan Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. It is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting (''Fasting in Islam, sawm''), communal prayer (salah), reflection, and community. It is also the month in which the Quran is believed ...

Mawlid The Mawlid () is an annual festival commemorating the birthday of the Islamic prophet Muhammad on the traditional date of 12 Rabi' al-Awwal, the third month of the Islamic calendar. A day central to the traditions of some Sunnis, Mawlid is al ...

, and the beginning of the plowing season. The disciples slaughter several cows, which the families and philanthropists share in buying, and they distribute the meat so that all the village's families receive some. Poor people who do not share in the price of the cows get their share of the meat as well. This makes this habit more of a social solidarity event than something else and is considered an Algerian cultural heritage.

Sufi orders A ''tariqa'' () is a religious order of Sufism, or specifically a concept for the mystical teaching and spiritual practices of such an order with the aim of seeking , which translates as "ultimate truth". A tariqa has a (guide) who plays the r ...

, especially the

Rahmaniyya The Raḥmâniyya (Arabic: الرحمانية) is an Algerian Sufi order (tariqa or brotherhood) founded by Kabyle religious scholar Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥman al-Azhari Bu Qabrayn in the 1770s. It was initially a branch of the Khalwat ...

, contribute to preserving this custom in the rural regions.

Practices

Since the ''Wezeea'' is one of the customs and traditions that the inhabitants of the

region inherited from grandfathers, the villagers collect money to buy calves or bulls, and the number of bulls sometimes reaches 17 or 20 bulls. If there are many families in the village, the slaughter process takes place on a predetermined day, usually on the day of

Friday prayer Friday prayer, or congregational prayer (), is the meeting together of Muslims for communal prayer and service at midday every Friday. In Islam, the day itself is called ''Yawm al-Jum'ah'' (shortened to ''Jum'ah''), which translated from Arabic me ...

, then the meat is cut into equal portions according to the number of members of each family, and the meat rations are distributed after that to the families living in the village in equal measure, so that there is no discrimination in the division. After distributing the meat to the families, the preparation process for the harvesting of

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'' ("European olive"), is a species of Subtropics, subtropical evergreen tree in the Family (biology), family Oleaceae. Originating in Anatolia, Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean ...

s and the demonstration of ''

Tweeza Tweeza (), also Touiza or Tiwizi, is the term used in north Africa to designate the cooperation in a Sufi and cultural heritage in which a group from the tariqa or Zawiyas in Algeria, zawiya in a community or village gathers and cooperates in order ...

'' begins, which usually takes place in traditional methods at the end of the

autumn Autumn, also known as fall (especially in US & Canada), is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Southern Hemisphe ...

season, and the preparation is by cleaning the sides of the

olive tree The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'' ("European olive"), is a species of Subtropics, subtropical evergreen tree in the Family (biology), family Oleaceae. Originating in Anatolia, Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean ...

s and removing weeds and branches that are useless from them and around them. ''Wezeea'' is therefore one of the most important manifestations of solidarity that characterizes the residents of the villages, ''madashir'' and neighborhoods of the

region. It is a solidarity process in addition to being an occasion linked to land and water, where the residents used to approach their

Allah Allah ( ; , ) is an Arabic term for God, specifically the God in Abrahamic religions, God of Abraham. Outside of the Middle East, it is principally associated with God in Islam, Islam (in which it is also considered the proper name), althoug ...

Almighty Lord by slaughtering calves and cows and distributing their meat to the poor people seeking help. And now this custom has become associated with the advent of religious occasions and

Islamic holidays There are two main holidays in Islam that are celebrated by Muslims worldwide: Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. The timing of both holidays are set by the lunar Islamic calendar, which is based upon the cycle of the moon, and so is different from the ...

such as

Eid al-Fitr Eid al-Fitr () is the first of the two main Islamic holidays, festivals in Islam, the other being Eid al-Adha. It falls on the first day of Shawwal, the tenth month of the Islamic calendar. Eid al-Fitr is celebrated by Muslims worldwide becaus ...

Qadr Night In Islamic belief, Laylat al-Qadr () or Night of Power is an Islamic festival in memory of the night when the Quran was first sent down from heaven to the world, the first revelation the Islamic prophet Muhammad received from the angel Gabrie ...

, and the

, and some of them hold it to celebrate the ''Amazigh New Year'' called

Yennayer Yennayer is the first month of the Berber (Amazigh) calendar. The first day of Yennayer corresponds to the first day of January in the Julian Calendar, which is shifted thirteen days compared to the Gregorian calendar, thus falling on 12 Janua ...

corresponding to the twelfth of January of each year in the

Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It went into effect in October 1582 following the papal bull issued by Pope Gregory XIII, which introduced it as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian cale ...

References

{{Authority control Sufism Islamic terminology Religious festivals Culture of Algeria Festivals in Algeria Berber culture Berber mythology Rituals Ashura Mawlid

Presentation

Practices

See also

References