Anakaza tribe

The Anakaza is a name for a group of clans of Toubou people branch Daza (Dazagada) and the name Anakaza literally means "mixed people" of different origins in Tudaga. “Ana” means people while “kaza” means mixed.[1] One of the largest of Daza subgroups,[2] they are a nomadic people traditionally employed in camel-herding.[3] They are mostly located in the Saharan region of Borkou in northern Chad, they can be found in a vast area from Faya-Largeau to Kirdimi and nomadizing an area which goes from Oum Chalouba to the Djourab and Mortcha.[4][5]

In modern times out of its ranks was born Hissène Habré, president of Chad between 1982 and 1990, who during his tenure in office gave the key positions to his fellow Daza, favouring among the latters his subgroup.[6] The Anakaza also formed the bulk of his élite unit, the Presidential Guard.[7]

Another prominent Anakaza is the current rebel leader Mahamat Nouri. Due to his rebellion in 2006 against the Chadian President Idriss Déby, the government began exploiting the long-standing rivalities among the Anakaza and another Daza subgroup, the Kamaya,[8] The vast majority of Kamaya clans live sedentary and semi-sedentary lifestyles which included farming and grazing who can be found in Borkou Yalla (north Borkou) oases in Kirdimi, N'Gorma, Yin, Degiure, and Faya while also a few semi-sendentary clans graze animals in the Djourab and beyond and the Kamaya are Borkou's oldest people, having lived for seven generations, and their ancestors have anciently established and are well identified with their origins. These oases are shared by two additional Daza subgroups, the Donza and the Kokorda. [9]

References

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  1. ^ Olson, James Stuart (1996); "Anakaza"; The Peoples of Africa: An Ethnohistorical Dictionary, Greenwood Press, pp. 28-29. ISBN 0-313-27918-7.
  2. ^ Buijtenhuijs, Robert (1978); Le Frolinat et les révoltes populaires du Tchad, 1965-1976, Mouton, p. 242. ISBN 90-279-7657-0.(in French)
  3. ^ Chapelle, Jean (1980); Le Peuple Tchadien: ses racines et sa vie quotidienne, L'Harmattan, p. 170. ISBN 2-85802-169-4.(in French)
  4. ^ Decalo, Samuel (1987); "Anakaza"; Historical Dictionary of Chad, Scarecrow Press, p. 41. ISBN 0-8108-1937-6.
  5. ^ Nachtigal, Gustav (1980); Sahara and Sudan: Kawar, Bornu, Kanem, Borku, Ennedi, C. Hurst, p. 404. ISBN 0-903983-96-6.
  6. ^ Macedo, Stephen (2004); Universal Jurisdiction: National Courts and the Prosecution of Serious Crimes Under International Law, University of Pennsylvania Press, pp. 133-134. ISBN 0-8122-3736-6.
  7. ^ Buijtenhuijs, Robert (1987); Le Frolinat et les guerres civiles du Tchad (1977-1984), Karthala, p. 91. ISBN 2-86537-196-4.(in French)
  8. ^ "They Came Here to Kill Us": Militia Attacks and Ethnic Targeting of Civilians in Eastern Chad, Human Rights Watch Reports, 19 (1), January 2007.
  9. ^ G. Nachtigal, p. 416.
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