Ayyur (mythology)
| Ayyur | |
|---|---|
| Other names | IERU, Iru [1] |
| Venerated in | Algeria |
| Major cult centre | Numidia |
| Abode | Moon |
| Symbol | Crescent |
| Adherents | Berbers |
| Festivals | Yennayer |
| Genealogy | |
| Spouse | Tafukt |
| Equivalents | |
| Greek | Diana (mythology) |
| Roman | Luna (goddess) |
Ayyur (Tifinagh: ⴰⵢⵢⵓⵔ[2]) is a lunar deity[3][4] in numitheism worshipped by the Berbers during ancient times. The name ayyur literally means "the moon" in Berber languages. The name also refers to the lunar month[3]. this deity of Antiquity (Numidia) often called IERU is "represented by a personage whose head is radiated as that of an astral deity would be"[5].The rituals and semantic associations with the moon clearly indicate that the moon has preserved the trace of the ancient divinity among the Berbers, concentrating femininity, fecundity and beauty.
History
Herodotus wrote in the fifth century BC that the Berbers sacrificed to the sun and moon[6]. In addition, Ibn Khaldun reports that at the time of the Arab invasion of their territory, "those of the Berbers who had not been converted to the Christian faith worshipped the sun and the moon, as well as statues of deities".[7] The name Ayyur appears in several inscriptions left by the Berbers of antiquity.
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Symbology
For all Berbers, the moon is associated with fertility, culture, beauty, femininity and humidity, a symbolism confirmed by the study of Berber legends and rites. Among the Tuaregs, the link with water and fertility is even more explicit, as evidenced by a ritual recorded in the Hoggar at the beginning of the twentieth century by Charles de Foucauld on the occasion of the new moon.[3]
In common culture
Rather, it refers to "moonlight", "the light of the moon", or even "the full moon" in that it is at its peak of light. In its primitive form, without an initial ta-/ti- mark, ziri was used as a personal name among the Berbers, as brilliantly attested by Ziri, founder of the Zirid dynasty and the (Kabyle) ethnonym Ayt Ziri, "descendants of Ziri"[3]. This short form is also attested in incantations to the moon included in Kabyle tales (Moulieras) where a character addresses the moon in the following way:
Ziri, ziri, ma, yemma! = "Moon, Moon, mother, oh mother!".
Despite these largely feminine attributes, Ayyur remains an ambiguous entity, sometimes described as feminine or masculin,
The moon is also a symbol of (feminine) beauty: (Kabyle) tecbeḥ am waggur. In many tales, the beauty of the heroine-woman is directly compared and put in competition with that of the moon ("Which of us two is the most beautiful, O Moon?" ...).The moon is also an object of expectation and desire: "I wait for it like the moon" evokes the impatient expectation of a positive event.[3]
Moon in different Berber dialects
| Berber Dialect | Word for Moon/Month | Word for moonlight |
|---|---|---|
| Tamazight | ayur / ayuren | tiziri (moon/full moon) |
| Chaoui | ayur / iyuren | tiziri |
| Kabyle | ayyur > aggur | tiziri |
| Mozabite | yur / iyaren | tiziri |
| Ouaragla | yur / iyaren (Crescent of moon) | tiziri (Moon when not crescent) |
| Beni Snous | yur | tiziri |
| Rifi | ayur / yyur | tiziri |
| Tachelhit | ayyûr / yîren | - |
| Ghadames | ûyer / uyerâwen (Crescent Moon) | tiziri (Full moon) |
| Tuareg | éôr / éôren | - |
| Zenaga | YR / ŽR, lexical form: é'žir and é'žžer | - |
Prayer to the moon god
At the new moon, the Tuaregs pray to God. They fire guns in the new month, saying:
"Grant us victory over our enemies, whoever they may be! Give us your protection in this world and in the hereafter! God grant that you will be a blessed month. May he who plunged you into darkness make you appear to his light!" (Charles de Foucaud…, Textes touaregs en prose, Aix-en-Provence, Édisud, 1984 [texte n° 172, « Nouvelle lune », p. 293]).[8]
References
- ^ ""Iru" Moon Encyclopédie berbere". journals.openedition.org. p. 3642-3642. Retrieved 2026-02-20.
- ^ "DGLAi". tal.ircam.ma. Archived from the original on 2023-05-30. Retrieved 2026-02-20.
- ^ a b c d e "Lunar Berber Deity". journals.openedition.org. Retrieved 2026-02-20.
- ^ "Mythologie berbère :Ayyur et Tiziri et Itige, Cultes du Soleil et de la Lune chez les Libyques". MESMAR (in French). 2019-09-01. Retrieved 2026-02-20.
- ^ ""Iru" Moon Encyclopédie berbere". journals.openedition.org. p. 3642-3642. Retrieved 2026-02-20.
- ^ "Hassan Majdi, The Cult of Saints and the Pilgrimages, University of Paris 8, May 2009" (PDF).
- ^ Servier, Jean (2017-03-01). Les Berbères: « Que sais-je ? » n° 718 (in French). Humensis. ISBN 978-2-13-079523-0.
- ^ Norris, H. T. (1987). "Charles De Foucauld and Calassanti-Motylinski A. De: Textes touaregs en prose. Editions critiques avec traduction par Salem Chaker. [Revised edition.] (Collection Monde Berbère [Université de Provence].) 359 pp. Aix-en-Provence: Edisud [and] CNRS, 1984". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies. 50 (1): 145–146. doi:10.1017/s0041977x00053453. ISSN 0041-977X.
Bibliography
- S. Chaker, « Lune », dans Encyclopédie berbère, vol. 28-29 : Kirtēsii-Lutte, Édisud, 2008 (DOI 10.4000/encyclopedieberbere.368), p. 4444-4447
- Hassan Majdi (2009). "Les références et les fondements historiques du phénomène hagiographique au Maroc". Le Culte des saints et les pèlerinages des Juifs au Maroc ? (PDF). Université Paris 8. p. 174-175.