Tin Hinan, or as her name literally means in the old Tamahak language "She/woman of the tents" , and metaphorically translated as "Mother of us all".
As the legend says, Tin Hinan is a woman renowned for her beauty, wisdom and was famous for frequently traveling.
(An oil painting entitled, The Queen Tin Hinan, by Hocine Ziani.)
Tin Hinan quit Tafilalt region in the Atlas mountains in modern day Morocco after being subjected to a series of harassments from the ruling family. Some say that she left with a group of soldiers, and her sister Takamat, others say that she left only with Takamat who's actually her maid. They went to the outskirts of Tamnrasset in southern Algeria.
After leaving Tafilalt, they stayed for a long time in the Sahara desert. Because of the lack of food and water, Tin Hinan and her companions almost perished. Historians cited that Takamat, Tin Hinan's sister or maid, found a group of ants carrying some wheat grains. She pointed it to Tin Hinan, and suggested that they walk in the opposite direction. In doing so, they arrived to Ahaggar mountains aka the Hoggar mountains where they found water and food, they settled down, and Tin Hinan decided to build her kingdom there. She then became the first Tamenokalt aka Queen of the Hoggar ruling the berber nomadic people of the Sahara aka the Tuaregs.
(image source: pixabay.com)
Is this a true story or just a Myth?
This was considered a myth until 1925, when her monumental tomb was located in the Sahara desert at Abalessa in the Hoggar region of southern Algeria by the Polish-American amateur archaeologist, Byron Khun de Prorok, and the French army.
Her tomb, a circular structure made of stone with a height of 13 feet (almost 4 m), and a diameter of 75 feet (almost 23 meters) , was located on a hill facing a dried river bed.
(miniature of Tin Hinan's Tomb at the Bardo National Museum in Algiers.)
Why didn't her tomb's discovery get more attention?
Tin Hinan's tomb, as mentioned before, was discovered in 1925. And in 1920's a lot of archaeological discoveries were made. Some of these discoveries are Tut aan khamun’s tomb by Howard Carter & the city of Ur by Leonard Woolley, who both took place in 1922. Sadly, these discoveries received all the attention, and somewhat overshadowed her unveiling.
I hope you enjoyed this humble post! Here, have some Moroccan tea ^_^
(image source: pixabay.com)
Have a nice day beautiful souls!