The Oulad Bou Sbaa (var. Oulad Bou Sbaâ, Oulad Bousbae, from ''awlād abū sib'a'', children of Abu Sib'a, the "Father of the Lions") is a Chorfa/

Zaouia A ''zawiya'' or ''zaouia'' ( ar, زاوية, lit=corner, translit=zāwiyah; ; also spelled ''zawiyah'' or ''zawiyya'') is a building and institution associated with Sufis in the Islamic world. It can serve a variety of functions such a place of ...

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to confli ...

, who claim descent from Abu Sib'a, the

Idrissid The Idrisid dynasty or Idrisids ( ar, الأدارسة ') were an Arab Muslim dynasty from 788 to 974, ruling most of present-day Morocco and parts of present-day western Algeria. Named after the founder, Idris I, the Idrisids were an Alid a ...

16th century tribal chief. They live in

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

Western Sahara Western Sahara ( '; ; ) is a disputed territory on the northwest coast and in the Maghreb region of North and West Africa. About 20% of the territory is controlled by the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), while the ...

and Mauritania, with members of the tribe holding different nationalities depending on their residence and upbringing. In the 19th and 20th century, the tribe's influence in its core areas of southern

Spanish Sahara Spanish Sahara ( es, Sahara Español; ar, الصحراء الإسبانية, As-Sahrā'a Al-Isbānīyah), officially the Spanish Possessions in the Sahara from 1884 to 1958 then Province of the Sahara between 1958 and 1976, was the name used f ...

was diminished and permanently weakened following defeat in bloody battles against the

Reguibat The Reguibat ( ar, الرقيبات; variously transliterated ''Reguibate'', ''Rguibat'', ''R'gaybat'', ''R'gibat'', ''Erguibat'', ''Ergaybat'') is a Sahrawi tribe of Sanhaja-Berber origins. The Reguibat speak Hassaniya Arabic, and are Arabized ...

tribal confederations, which were then rapidly asserting their influence over these areas. Speakers of Hassaniya

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

, they were

nomad A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the po ...

ic ( Bedouin), and herded camels in today's

and Mauritania. The Oulad Bou Sbaa is reputed to have been the first tribe to have brought

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and north ...

to the region and the green ''Sahrawi'' tea is now part of the national heritage. Several Oulad Bou Sbaa members played a prominent role in the military and security establishment of Mauritanian President

Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya ( ar, معاوية ولد سيد أحمد الطايع, Ma‘āwiyah wuld Sīdi Aḥmad aṭ-Ṭāya‘ / Mu'awiya walad Sayyidi Ahmad Taya; born 28 November 1941) is a Mauritanian military officer who served as the ...

(1984–2005) in Mauritania, and have remained influential after his downfall: e.g. the coup-leaders of 2005 and 2008, Gen.

Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz ( ar, محمد ولد عبد العزيز ''Muḥammad Wald 'Abd al-'Azīz''; born 20 December 1956) is a former Mauritanian politician who was the 8th President of Mauritania, in office from 2009 to 2019. A career sold ...

, and Col.

Ely Ould Mohamed Vall Colonel Ely Ould Mohamed Vall ( ar, إعلي ولد محمد فال ''I‘lī Wald Muḥammad Fāl''; 1953 – 5 May 2017) was a Mauritanian political and military figure. Following a coup d'état in August 2005, he served as the transitional ...

. Family tree : Oulad âmer ben abu sbâa: Oulâd El-Ghazi : Oulad abd el-moula. Oulad Chennan. Oulad Djemmouna. El-Ababsa. El-Helalat. El-Gouaîat. Oulad El-Haj : Oulad Beg-gar. Oulad bou anga. Oulad Aïssa. Oulad zaouia. Lkhlalta. Oulad brahim : Abidat. Dmissat. Oulad Moumen. Oulad Sghiri. Mdadha. Mzazka. Oulad Azouz. Nebobat. Oulad Akrim. Ahel Taleb boubker. Oulad El-Haj. Oulad Ahmeda. El-metlota. Lmâachat. Oulad amer : << Touijrat >>. Anfliss. Oulad sidi abd-ellah. Oulad sidi abd-el Malek. Oulad sidi Mbaerk ben Mellok. Oula Amran ben abu sbâa : Bouhssin : Oulad Sidi abd-el ouhab. Oulad abd-ellah ben mbarek. Ahel Tmaloult. Bharir. Makhlouf : oulad sôula. Rehahla. Lhmaïdat Said : Sâidat. El ouâmer. Oulad el-Zir Idriss : Oulad Sidi boûtlili. El-Asasla. El-Drabka. Ahl- boudrbila. Oulad Idriss.

References

*Mohamad Z. Yakan. Almanac of African peoples & nations (p. 610) *Anthony G. Pazzanita. Historical Dictionary of Western Sahara (Third Edition) Historical Dictionaries of Africa, No. 96 The Scarecrow Press, (2006)
Virtual Museum of Canada: Oulad Bou Sbaâ carpets
Bedouin groups History of Mauritania Sahrawi tribes {{Africa-ethno-group-stub

See also

References