Origin: Tuareg Iullemmeden-Kel Denneg (Tahoua, Niger)

Local name: karhi ( in Tamashek)

Dating: early 20th century

Dimensions: height 8.5 cm, dia. of vessel opening 8.4 cm

Material: fired clay

Techniques: pottery

Acquired by: Adam Rybiński, antique shop, southern France, 2019.

Description:

According to many researchers, the name Tuareg comes from the Arabic tarek meaning "abandoned" (meaning "abandoned by God"), not following the rules of Islam [Duveyrier: 317-318]. It is now assumed that the name Tuareg used by the Arabs comes from the word targa, which the Tuareg themselves called the Fezzam region [Benhazera: 86; Foucauld 1952: Vol. II, 534]. "The Tuareg themselves never refer to themselves by the name 'Tuareg' given to them by the Arabs. When talking about themselves, they use the terms Imouhar, Kel tamahak and Kel tagoulmoust interchangeably” [Rybiński 1999: 40]. The endoethnonym of the northern Tuaregs is "Kel tamahak" and the southern ones "Kel tamachek", these names denote people who speak the Tuareg language [Nicolaisen 1963: 8]. Another endoethnonym is "Kel tagoulmoust" meaning people (men) wearing a face veil [Rybiński 1999: 40].

Clay products are rare in the inventory of nomads, the main problem is their fragility. Most containers used by the Tuareg people are made of wood or leather, which are more resistant to breakage. They acquire ceramic products through trade at fairs with the settled population (farmers), they are also made by a few Tuareg craftsmen (slaves). The resources of the Municipal Museum in Żory include only one vessel used by the Tuaregs from the vicinity of Timbuktu (Mali). Clay dishes used by the Tuareg are very rare, both in Tuareg camps, museums and on the antiquarian market.

Bibliography:

Benhazera Maurice, 1908, Six mois chez les Touareg du Ahaggar, Alger

Henri Duveyrier, 1864, Les Touareg du Nord, Paris

Foucauld de la Père Charles, 1951-1952, Dictionnaire Touareg-Français. Dialecte de l'Ahaggar, Paris

 Nicolaisen Johannes, 1963, Ecology and Culture of the Pastoral Tuareg with Particular Reference to the Tuareg of Ahaggar and Ayr, Copenhagen: The National Museum of Copenhagen

Rybiński Adam, 1999, The Tuaregs of the Sahara, Warsaw: Wydawnictwa Akademickie Dialog

Rybiński Adam, information provided during interviews (2020-2022).

 Edited by Lucjan Buchalik

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The purchase is co-financed by the Ministry of Culture, National Heritage and Sport as part of the National Institute of Museums and Collections' own program "Expansion of museum collections".