The name Aír, exactly as it is written and pronounced by the natives at the present day, first occurs in the description of Leo, which was written in 1526. The country Káher, mentioned by the traveller Ebn Batúta on his home journey from Tekádda by way of the wells of Asïu, is evidently somewhere hereabouts, but seems rather to denote the region a few days’ journey west from Tin-téllust, and to be identical with the “Ghir” of Leo, though this extended more to the south-west. The name being written by the Arabs with an h (Ahír), most historical geographers have erroneously concluded that this is the true indigenous form of the name.

Aïr, however, does not appear to be the original name of the country, but seems to have been introduced by the Berber conquerors, the former name being Asben or Absen, as it is still called by the black and the mixed population. Asben was formerly the country of the Góberáwa, the most considerable and noble portion of the Háusa nation, which does not seem to belong to the pure Negro races, but to have originally had some relationship with North Africa; and from this point of view the statement of Sultan Bello cannot be regarded as absurd, when in the introduction to his historical work on the conquests of the Fulbe, “Infák él misúri fi fat hah el Tekrúri,” he calls the people of Góber Copts, though only one family is generally considered by the learned men of the country as of foreign origin. The capital of this kingdom of Asben, at least since the sixteenth century, was Tin-shamán, at present a village a little to the west of the road from Aúderas to Ágades, and about twenty miles from the latter place. The name is evidently a Berber one; and the Berber influence is still more evident from the fact that a portion, at least, of the population of the town were Masúfa, a well-known Berber tribe who in former times were the chief guides on the road from Sejilmésa to Waláta. Be this as it may, several learned men, inhabitants of this place, are mentioned by the native historians of Negroland, which shows that there existed in it some degree of comparative civilization. In the middle of the fourteenth century not only Tekádda, but even Káhír was in the hands of the Berbers, as we see from Batúta’s narrative; and this eminent traveller mentions a curious custom with regard to the Berber prince, whom he styles el Gérgeri, or Tegérgeri, which even at the present moment is in full operation in this country, viz. that the succession went not to his own sons, but to his sister’s sons. This remarkable fact is a certain proof that it was not a pure Berber state, but rather a Berber dominion engrafted upon a Negro population, exactly as was the case in his time in Waláta. Leo, who first calls the country by its present Berber name Aïr, states also expressly that it was then occupied by Tuarek, “Targa populo;” and we learn also from him that the ruler of Ágades (a town first mentioned by him) was likewise a Berber; so that it might seem as if the state of the country at that time was pretty nearly the same as it is now; but such was not the case.

The name of the Kél-owí is not mentioned either by Leo or any other writer before the time of Horneman, who, before he set out from Fezzán on his journey to Bórnu, obtained some very perspicuous information about these people, as well as about their country, Asben. At that time, before the rise of the Fulbe under their reformer (el Jihádi), Othmán, the son of Fódiye, it was a powerful kingdom, to which Góber was tributary. From Horneman’s expression it would seem that the Kél-owí had conquered the country only at a comparatively recent date; and this agrees perfectly with the results of my inquiries, from which I conclude that it took place about A.D. 1740. However, we have seen that four centuries before that time the country was in the hands of the Berbers.

It appears that the Kél-owí are traceable from the north-west, and the nobler part of them belong to the once very powerful and numerous tribe of the Aurághen, whence their dialect is called Auraghíye even at the present day. Their name signifies “the people settled in (the district or valley of) Owí;” for “kél” is exactly identical with the Arabic word áhel, and seems besides to be applied with especial propriety to indicate the settled, in opposition to the nomadic tribes. For in general the characteristic mark of the Kél-owí and their kinsmen is, that they live in villages consisting of fixed and immovable huts, and not in tents made of skins, like the other tribes, or in movable huts made of mats, like the Tagáma and many of the Imghád of the Awelímmiden. With this prefix kél may be formed the name of the inhabitants of any place or country: Ferwán, Kél-ferwán; Bághzen, Kél-bághzen; Afélle (the north), Kél-afélle, “the people of the north,” whom the Arabs in Timbúktu call Áhel eʾ Sáhel; and no doubt a Targi, at least of the tribe of the Awelímmiden or Kél-owí, would call the inhabitants of London Kél-london or Kél-londra, just as he says Kél-ghadámes, Kél-tawát.

But there is something indeterminate in the name Kél-owí, which has both a narrower and a wider sense, as is frequently the case with the names of those tribes which, having become predominant, have grouped around them and, to a certain extent, even incorporated with themselves many other tribes which did not originally belong to them. In this wider sense the name Kél-owí comprises a great many tribes, or rather sections, generally named after their respective settlements.

I have already observed that the Berbers, in conquering this country from the Negro, or I should rather say the sub-Libyan race (the Leucæthiopes of the ancients), did not entirely destroy the latter, but rather mingled with them by intermarriage with the females, thereby modifying the original type of their race, and blending the severe and austere manners and the fine figure of the Berber with the cheerful and playful character and the darker colour of the African. The way in which they settled in this country seems to have been very similar to that in which the ancient Greeks settled in Lycia. For the women appear to have the superiority over the male sex in the country of Asben, at least to a certain extent; so that when a ba-Ásbenchi marries a woman of another village she does not leave her dwelling-place to follow her husband, but he must come to her in her own village. The same principle is shown in the regulation that the chief of the Kél-owí must not marry a woman of the Targi blood, but can rear children only from black women or female slaves.

With respect to the custom that the hereditary power does not descend from the father to the son, but to the sister’s son—a custom well known to be very prevalent not only in many parts of Negroland, but also in India, at least in Malabar—it may be supposed to have belonged originally to the Berber race; for the Azkár, who have preserved their original manners tolerably pure, have the same custom, but they also might have adopted it from those tribes (now their subjects—the Imghád) who conquered the country from the black natives. It may therefore seem doubtful whether, in the mixed empires of Ghánata, Melle, and Waláta, this custom belonged to the black natives or was introduced by the Berbers. Be this as it may, it is certain that the noble tribe of the Awelímmiden deem the custom in question shameful, as exhibiting only the man’s mistrust of his wife’s fidelity; for such is certainly its foundation.

As for the male portion of the ancient population of Asben, I suppose it to have been for the most part exterminated, while the rest was degraded into the state of domestic slavery, with the distinct understanding that neither they nor their children should ever be sold out of the country. The consequence of this covenant has been an entire mixture between the Berber conquerors and the female part of the former population, changing the original Berber character entirely, as well in manners and language as in features and complexion. Indeed, the Háusa language is as familiar to these people as their Auraghíye, although the men, when speaking among themselves, generally make use of the latter. The consequence is that the Kél-owí are regarded with a sort of contempt by the purer Berber tribes, who call them slaves (íkelán). But there is another class of people, not so numerous, indeed, in Asben itself as in the districts bordering upon it; these are the Búzawe, or Abogelíte, a mixed race, with generally more marked Berber features than the Kél-owí, but of darker colour and lower stature, while in manners they are generally debased, having lost almost entirely the noble carriage which distinguishes even the most lawless vagabond of pure Targi blood. These people, who infest all the regions southwards and south-eastwards from Asben, are the offspring of Tuarek females with black people, and may, belong either to the Háusa or to the Sónghay race.

What I have here said sets forth the historical view of the state of things in this country, and is well known to all the enlightened natives. The vulgar account of the origin of the Kél-owí from the female slave of a Tinýlkum who came to Asben, where she gave birth to a boy who was the progenitor of the Kél-owí, is obviously nothing but a popular tale, indicating, at the utmost, only some slight connection of this tribe with the Tinýlkum.

Having thus preliminarily discussed the name of the tribe and the way in which it settled in the country, I now proceed to give a list, as complete as possible, of all the divisions or tiúsi (sing. tausit) which compose the great community of the Kél-owí.

The most noble (that is to say, the most elevated, not by purity of blood, but by authority and rank) of the subdivisions of this tribe at the present time are the Irólangh, the Amanókalen or Sultan family, to which belongs Ánnur, with no other title than that of Sheikh or Elder (the original meaning of the word)—“sófo” in Háusa, “ámaghár” or “ámghár” in Temáshight. The superiority of this section seems to date only from the time of the present chief’s predecessor, the Kél-ferwán appearing to have had the ascendency in earlier times. Though the head of this family has no title but that of Sheikh, he has nevertheless far greater power than the amanókal or titular Sultan of the Kél-owí, who resides in Ásodi, and who is at present really nothing more than a prince in name. The next in authority to Ánnur is Háj ʿAbdúwa, the son of Ánnur’s eldest sister, and who resides in Táfidet.

The family or clan of the Irólangh, which, in the stricter sense of the word, is called Kél-owí, is settled in ten or more villages lying to the east and the south-east of Tin-téllust, the residence of Ánnur, and has formed an alliance with two other influential and powerful families, viz. the Kél-azanéres, or people of Azanéres, a village, as I shall have occasion to explain further on, of great importance, on account of its situation in connection with the salt lakes near Bilma, which constitute the wealth and the vital principle of this community. On account of this alliance, the section of the Kél-azanéres affected by it is called Irólangh wuén Kél-azanéres; and to this section belongs the powerful chief Lúsu, or, properly, el Úsu, who is in reality the second man in the country on the score of influence.

On the other side, the Irólangh have formed alliance and relationship with the powerful and numerous tribe of the Ikázkezan, or Ikéshkeshen, who seem likewise to have sprung from the Aurághen; and on this account the greater, or at least the more influential, part of the tribe, including the powerful chief Mghás, is sometimes called Irólangh wuén Ikázkezan, while, with regard to their dwelling-place, Támar, they bear the name Kél-támar. But this is only one portion of the Ikázkezan. Another very numerous section of them is partly scattered about Damerghú, partly settled in a place called Elákwas (or, as it is generally pronounced, Alákkos), a place between Damerghú and Múnio, together with a mixed race called Kél-elákwas. The Ikázkezan of this latter section bear, in their beautiful manly figure and fine complexion, much more evident traces of the pure Berber blood than the Irólangh; but they lead a very lawless life, and harass the districts on the borders of Háusa and Bórnu with predatory incursions, especially those settled in Elákwas.

There are three tribes whose political relations give them greater importance, namely, the Kél-táfidet, the Kél-n-Néggaru, and the Kél-fares. The first of these three, to whom belongs the above-mentioned Háj ʿAbdúwa, live in Táfidet, a group of three villages lying at the foot of a considerable mountain chain thirty miles to the south-east of Tin-téllust, and at the distance of only five good days’ march from Bilma. The Kél-n-Néggaru form an important family originally settled in Néggaru, a district to the north of Selúfiet; but at present they live in Ásodi and in the village Eghellál, and some of them lead a nomadic life in the valleys of Tin-téggana and Ásada. On account of the present Sultan (who belongs to them) being called Astáfidet, they are now also named Aushi-n-Astáfidet (the tribe of Astáfidet). The Kél-fares, to whom belongs the great, mʿallem Azóri, who, on account of his learning, is respected as a prince in the whole country, live in Tin-téyyat, a village about thirty-five miles east-north-east from Tin-téllust.

The nominal chief of the Kél-owí is the amanókal residing in Asodi; but there is now another greater association or confederation, formed by the Kél-owí, the Kél-gerés, and the Itísan, and some other smaller tribes combined together; and the head of this confederation is the great amanókal residing in Ágades. This league, which at present hardly subsists (the Kél-gerés and Itísan having been driven by the Kél-owí from their original settlements, and being opposed to them almost constantly in open hostility), was evidently in former times very strong and close.

But before speaking of the Kél-gerés and their intimate friends the Itísan, I shall mention those small tribes which, though not regarded as belonging to the body of the Kél-owí and placed under the special and direct supremacy or government of the Sultan of Ágades, are nevertheless more intimately related to them than to the other great tribes. These are, besides the Ém-egédesen, or the inhabitants of Ágades or Agadez, of whom I shall speak in the account of my journey to that interesting place, the three tribes of the Kél-fadaye, the Kél-ferwán and the Izeráren.

As for the Kél-fadaye they are the original and real inhabitants of the district Fáde-ang, which lies round Tághajít; while the Éfadaye, who have been called after the same district, are rather a mixture of vagabonds flocking here from different quarters, and principally from that of the Azkár. But the Kél-fadaye, who, as well as their neighbours the Éfadaye, took part in the ghazzia against the expedition on the frontiers of Aïr, are a very turbulent set of people, being regarded in this light by the natives themselves, as appears from the letter of the Sultan of Ágades to the chiefs Ánnur and Lúsu, of which I brought back a copy, wherein they are called Mehárebín, or freebooters. Nevertheless they are of pure and noble Berber blood, and renowned for their valour; and I was greatly astonished to learn afterwards from my noble and intimate friend and protector the sheikh Sídi Ahmed el Bakáy, that he had married one of their daughters, and, had long resided amongst them. Even from the letter of the Sultan of Ágades it appears that they have some relations with the Awelímmiden. The name of their chief is Shúrwa.

The Kél-ferwán, though they are called after the fine and fertile place Iferwán, in one of the valleys to the east of Tintágh-odé, where a good deal of millet is sown, and where there are plenty of date-trees, do not all reside there at present, a numerous portion of them having settled in the neighbourhood of Ágades, whence they make continual marauding expeditions, or “égehen,” upon the Timbúktu road, and against the Awelímmiden. Nevertheless the Kél-ferwán, as the kinsmen of the Aurághen, and the Amanókalen (that is to say the clan to which, before the different tribes came to the decision of fetching their Sultan from Sókoto, the family of the Sultan belonged) are of nobler and purer blood than any of the rest. As an evidence of their former nobility, the custom still remains that when the Sultan of Ágades leaves the town for any length of time his deputy or lieutenant in the place is the chief of the Kél-ferwán.

The third tribe of those who are under the direct authority of the Sultan of Ágades, viz. the Izeráren, live between Ágades and Damerghú. But I did not come into contact with them.

The Kél-gerés and Itísan seem to have been originally situated in the fertile and partially beautiful districts round the Bághzen, or (as these southern tribes pronounce the name in their dialect) Mághzem, where, on our journey towards Damerghú, we found the well-built stone houses in which they had formerly dwelt.

On being driven out of their original seats by the Kél-owí, about twenty-five or thirty years ago, they settled towards the west and south-west of Ágades, in a territory which was probably given them by the Awelímmiden, with an intention hostile to the Kél-owí. From that time they have been alternately in bloody feud or on amicable terms with the Kél-owí; but a sanguinary war has recently (in 1854) broken out again between these tribes, which seems to have consumed the very sources of their strength, and cost the lives of many of my friends, and among them that of Hámma, the son-in-law of Ánnur. The principal dwelling-place of the Kél-gerés is Arar, while their chief market-place is said to be Jóbeli, on the road from Ágades to Sókoto.

The Kél-gerés and the Itísan together are equal in effective strength to the Kél-owí, though they are not so numerous, the latter being certainly able to collect a force of at least ten thousand armed men, all mounted, besides their slaves, while the former are scarcely able to furnish half as many. But the Kél-gerés and Itísan have the advantage of greater unity, while the interests of the various tribes of the Kél-owí are continually clashing, and very rarely allow the whole body to collect together, though exceptions occur, as in the expedition against the Welád Slimán, when they drove away all the camels (according to report, not less than fifty thousand), and took possession of the salt lakes near Bilma.

Moreover, the Kél-gerés and Itísan, having preserved their Berber character in a purer state, are much more warlike. Their force consists for the greater part of well-mounted cavalry, while the Kél-owí, with the exception of the Ikázkezan, can muster but few horses; and of course the advantage of the horseman over the camel-driver is very great either in open or close fight. The Kél-gerés have repeatedly fought with success even against the Awelímmiden, by whom they are called Aráuwen. They have even killed their last famous chief, Eʾ Nábegha. The Kél-gerés came under the notice of Clapperton, on account of the unfortunate expedition which they undertook against the territories of the Fulbe in the year 1823, though it seems that the expedition consisted chiefly of Tagáma, and that they were the principal sufferers in that wholesale destruction by Sultan Bello.

Their arms in general are the same as those of the Kél-owí, even the men on horseback bearing (besides the spear, the sword, and the dagger) the immense shield of antelope-hide with which they very expertly protect themselves and their horses; but some of them use bows and arrows even on horseback, like many of the Fulbe, in the same way as the ancient Assyrians. A few only have muskets, and those few keep them rather for show than for actual use.

The Itísan (who seem to be the nobler tribe of the two, and, as far as I was able to judge, are a very fine race of men, with expressive, sharply cut features, and a very light complexion) have a chief or amanókal of their own, whose position seems to resemble closely that of the Sultan of the Kél-owí, while the real influence and authority rests with the war-chiefs, támbelis, or támberis, the most powerful among whom were, in 1853, Wanagóda, who resides in Tswáji, near Góber, on the side of the Kél-gerés, and Maiwa, or Mʿoáwíya, in Gulluntsúna, on the side of the Itísan. The name of the present amanókal is Ghámbelu.

I must here state that, in political respects, another tribe at present is closely related with the Kél-gerés, viz. that section of the Awelímmiden (the “Surka” of Mungo Park) which is called Awelímmiden wuén Bodhál; but as these belong rather to the Tuarek or Imóshagh of the west, I shall treat of them in the narrative of my journey to Timbúktu. Other tribes settled near Ágades, and more particularly the very remarkable tribe of the Íghdalén, will, in consequence of the influence exerted on them by the Sónghay race, be spoken of in my account of that place.

Many valleys of Aír or Asben might produce much more than they do at present; but as almost the whole supply of provision is imported, as well as all the clothing material, it is evident that the population could not be so numerous as it is were it not sustained by the salt trade of Bilma, which furnishes the people with the means of bartering advantageously with Háusa. As far as I was able to learn from personal information, it would seem that this trade did not take the road by way of Ásben till about a century ago, consequently not before the country was occupied by the Kél-owí. It is natural to suppose that so long as the Tébu, or rather Tedá, retained political strength, they would not allow strangers to reap the whole advantage of such natural wealth. At present the whole authority of Ánnur as well as Lúsu seems to be based upon this trade, of which they are the steady protectors, while many of their nation deem this trade rather a degrading occupation, and incline much more to a roving life. I now return to our encampment near Tin-téllust, reserving a brief account of the general features of the country till the moment when we are about to leave it.