7th century – 12th century
Western Sahara, southern Morocco, Mauritania, and routes toward the Western Sudan
The Lamtūna were a Sanhādja Berber people whose territories extended across the western Sahara, from southern Morocco and the Sakiyyat al-Hamrāʾ region toward Mauritania and the southern caravan routes. They formed one of the principal groups of the ancient Anbiya federation and later helped conquer Awdāghust. Their political reunification in the eleventh century contributed directly to the formation of the Almoravid state.
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The Story
The Lamtūna occupied a long belt of the western Sahara, including regions identified with present-day Sakiyyat al-Hamrāʾ, Nūl in southern Morocco, and areas farther south near Kēdia d’Idjīl and southeastern Mauritania. Their territory was not a single compact urban kingdom but a network of Saharan lands connected by pasture, oases, settlements, and caravan routes. The group belonged to the broader Sanhādja or Zenaga formation.
The Lamtūna formed one of the three principal components of the Anbiya federation, alongside the Massūfa and Djuddāla. Around 446/1054 they occupied the Mauritanian Adrar, subsequently known as Djabal Lamtūna, a region with date plantations and earlier agricultural settlements attributed to the Bafour. Their expansion brought them into direct relation with Awdāghust and the routes leading from Sidjilmäsa to the Western Sudan.
After the collapse of the older Sanhādja federation, the Lamtūna participated in its eventual reconstitution. Tärsina led the reunited groups around 460/1035, followed by his brother-in-law Yahyä al-Djuddālī. Yahyä brought back the missionary ʿAbd Allah ibn Yasīn from North Africa, and the conversion of the Sanhādja tribes to Sunnism provided the religious foundation for the Almoravid movement.
7th century – 12th century
Western Sahara, southern Morocco, Mauritania, and routes toward the Western Sudan
The Lamtūna were a Sanhādja Berber people whose territories extended across the western Sahara, from southern Morocco and the Sakiyyat al-Hamrāʾ region toward Mauritania and the southern caravan routes. They formed one of the principal groups of the ancient Anbiya federation and later helped conquer Awdāghust. Their political reunification in the eleventh century contributed directly to the formation of the Almoravid state.
Continue exploring
The Story
The Lamtūna occupied a long belt of the western Sahara, including regions identified with present-day Sakiyyat al-Hamrāʾ, Nūl in southern Morocco, and areas farther south near Kēdia d’Idjīl and southeastern Mauritania. Their territory was not a single compact urban kingdom but a network of Saharan lands connected by pasture, oases, settlements, and caravan routes. The group belonged to the broader Sanhādja or Zenaga formation.
The Lamtūna formed one of the three principal components of the Anbiya federation, alongside the Massūfa and Djuddāla. Around 446/1054 they occupied the Mauritanian Adrar, subsequently known as Djabal Lamtūna, a region with date plantations and earlier agricultural settlements attributed to the Bafour. Their expansion brought them into direct relation with Awdāghust and the routes leading from Sidjilmäsa to the Western Sudan.
After the collapse of the older Sanhādja federation, the Lamtūna participated in its eventual reconstitution. Tärsina led the reunited groups around 460/1035, followed by his brother-in-law Yahyä al-Djuddālī. Yahyä brought back the missionary ʿAbd Allah ibn Yasīn from North Africa, and the conversion of the Sanhādja tribes to Sunnism provided the religious foundation for the Almoravid movement.
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