Berbers/Amazon and henna

Posted by Kenzi on December 23, 1999 at 01:01:24:

I found the following information in one of my exhaustive web
searches, and thought you are might find it interesting since it's a
new (to me) use of henna (BTW "Amazigh" means Berber, the native
people of North Africa):

"Amazigh women are thought to be the Amazons recorded by Diodorus
Siculus: They led their men to war, mutilated their enemies, and
hennaed cowardly men. Pre-lslamic desert Amazighs were described as
entirely matriarchal. " (found at
http://www.ee.umd.edu/~sellami/JUNE96/kahena.html - lots of history
and legend)

Also, an excerpt from a Berber song sung by workers in the field:

"Usar icib ighef inw
Mahhd Itto ali tghemm imudil s lhenna d tazult

My hair will never turn gray
As long as Itto Ali dies her hair with henna and applies kohl to her
eyes"

(source: http://www.ee.umd.edu/~sellami/JUNE96/amagha.html)

The first part is in the Berber language, and the second part is the
translation.

Follow-ups:

• Re: Berbers/Amazon and henna Catherine Cartwright JOnes 15:04:10 12/24/99 (1)
  • Re: Berbers/Amazon and henna Hassan Mortazavi 05:26:50 9/05/00 (0)