The Textualization of the Imazighen: A Comparison of Pliny the Elder and Ibn Khaldun

This work compares the works of Pliny the Elder and Ibn Khaldun and how they perceived the Imazighen (also known as Berbers) of North Africa in their own contexts. Pliny the Elders Roman stoic values placed great importance on agriculture and urbanized life. While he described urbanized and Romanized Imazighen favorably, his portrayal of nomadic Imazighen in North Africa in his Natural History was often critical. Ibn Khaldun also knew of the destructive potential of nomads in many instances, but he also realized that they had the ability to renew and create new dynasties. Kitab al-Ibar praises the health and tribal cohesion of the nomadic groups of North Africa, which in his theory of history, drive the cycle of urbanization and the rise and falls of dynasties. Both transmit underlying themes of African agency and traditional cultures that puncture through the various changes in the region.