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Oum Kalthoum

Um Kalthum..
On the occasion of her 47th death anniversary,
We pay homage to her..

By the way, is Um Kalthum really Amazigh?

Um Kalthum is an Egyptian singer, musician and actress. She was born around 1900 in Tumay az-Zahayira, a district of Es Senbellawein, Daqahleya Governorate, in the Nile Delta, and died on February 3, 1975 in Cairo.

Um Kalthum, the incomparable voice, remains considered among the greatest singers and musicians of all time. Even today, she enjoys legendary status among admirers of oriental music.

But, is Um Kalthum really Amazigh?

The Amazigh king of Egypt Sheshonk 1st , by marking his victory over the pharaoh Psusennes II, was enthroned as pharaoh in 950 BC. Aftermath, he got the opportunity to conquer all of Egypt and to submit the entire Nile Delta to his authority where he founded his capital Tanis. This city is currently called San El Hajar, which is in the governorate of Ash-Sharqiyah.

The two governorates Daqahleya which contains Es Senbellawein and Sharqiyah which contains Tanis constitute the same territory in the Nile Delta. This does not exclude that a very large part of the population of this territory descends directly from the Meshwesh, the family of Pharaoh Sheshonk 1st.

The XXII dynasty of Ancient Egypt was founded by the Pharaoh Sheshonk 1st. Its discoveries, in 1939 in the necropolis of the kings of Tanis by a mission of French Egyptologists, are now exhibited in the Cairo Museum. They tell the story of these Amazighs who became pharaohs of Egypt for almost two centuries.

There are many brilliant personalities of Amazigh origin around the world, such as Thomas Jefferson (1743 - 1826), the 3rd President of the United States, Ibn Khaldun, the founder of sociology; Abbas Ibn Firnas, who made the first attempt at flight in history; the Moroccan philosopher Mohamed Abed Jabri, the Algerian professional football player Zinedine Yazid Zidane.

The most recent and famous Amazigh personalities of Egypt include leader Mustafa Kamel, General Omar Suleiman, Muhammad Haidar Pasha, Minister of War during the monarchy, Dr Maher Mahran, former Minister of Health and Population; Huda Shaarawi, the pioneer of the women's movement in Egypt and the artist Suhair Al-Baruni. The first is from the Ktama tribe, the others from the Hwara tribe. Without forgetting Amani Wechahi, Member of the World Amazigh Congress.

And Um Kalthum?

There is no evidence that disproves that Um Kalthum is Amazigh. This statement remains conjecture until proof to the contrary.

-- Abdurrazzak Ajaja
Fevrier 2022