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Babar Babar ( ur, ), also variously spelled as Baber, Babur, and Babor is a male given name of Pashto, and Persian language, Persian origin, and a popular male given name in Pakistan. It is generally taken in reference to the Persian language, Persian ...

and Babra for namesakes'' Babar is a municipality in Khenchela Province, northeastern Algeria. As Ancient Babra, a former bishopric, it remains a Latin Catholic titular see.

Name

Babar (

) is Amazigh (the Hamitic language of the

Berbers , image = File:Berber_flag.svg , caption = The Berber ethnic flag , population = 36 million , region1 = Morocco , pop1 = 14 million to 18 million , region2 = Algeria , pop2 ...

), meaning ''the Lion's Gate'', from ''Bab'' 'Gate' (=Arabic) and ''Ar'' 'Lion'. It is the opening to the Berberian lion's Atlas range territory, to ''Sheshar'' (Chechar) and ''Seiar'' (Seïar).

Modern Babar

The municipality is coextensive with Babar district and has a population of 28,182, which gives it 11 seats in the PMA. Its postal code is 40340 and its municipal code is 4013.

History

Babra was among the many town important enough in the Roman province of

Numidia Numidia ( Berber: ''Inumiden''; 202–40 BC) was the ancient kingdom of the Numidians located in northwest Africa, initially comprising the territory that now makes up modern-day Algeria, but later expanding across what is today known as Tunis ...

to become a

suffragan diocese A suffragan diocese is one of the dioceses other than the metropolitan archdiocese that constitute an ecclesiastical province. It exists in some Christian denominations, in particular the Catholic Church, the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria ...

in the papal sway. Its only historically certain incumbent was Victorinus Babrensis, on the list of Catholic bishops attending the Council called at Carthage in 484 by king Huneric of the Vandal Kingdom, annotated in Latin "prbt" (''peribat''), indicating he died shortly afterwards, perhaps in (or before he could be sent in) exile, as most opponents of the heresy Donatism were. Morcelli also counts as incumbent of Babra Petrus (AD 592), which other authors hold to have been bishop of Barica, another Numidian see.

Titular see

The diocese was nominally restored in 1933 as Latin Titular bishopric of Babra (Latin = Curiate Italian) / Babren(sis) (Latin adjective). It has had the following incumbents, so far of the fitting Episcopal (lowest) rank : * Giustino Giulio Pastorino, Friars Minor (O.F.M.) (Italian) (1965.01.11 – death 2005.04.26) as Apostolic Vicar of

Benghazi Benghazi () , ; it, Bengasi; tr, Bingazi; ber, Bernîk, script=Latn; also: ''Bengasi'', ''Benghasi'', ''Banghāzī'', ''Binghāzī'', ''Bengazi''; grc, Βερενίκη (''Berenice'') and ''Hesperides''., group=note (''lit. Son of he Ghazi ...

( Libya) (1965.01.11 – retired 1997.03.10) and Apostolic Administrator of

Apostolic Vicariate of Derna The Apostolic Vicariate of Derna ( la, Vicariatus Apostolicus Dernensis) is a Latin Church missionary territory or apostolic vicariate of the Catholic Church in Derna, Libya. It has an episcopal see, but no cathedral. The apostolic vicariate is ...

(Libya) (1966 – 1978) * Barry Alexander Anthony Wood, Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate (O.M.I.) (2005.10.10 – ...), Auxiliary Bishop of

Archdiocese of Durban The Archdiocese of Durban evolved from the Vicariate Apostolic of Natal which was erected on 15 November 1850 and elevated to an archdiocese with the title Archdiocese of Durban on 11 January 1951. As of 2002, the Church census shows that there w ...

( South Africa) (2005.10.10 – ...).

Sources and external links

GCatholic - (former &) titular bishopric
; Bibliography - ecclesiastical history * Pius Bonifacius Gams, ''Series episcoporum Ecclesiae Catholicae'', Leipzig 1931, p. 464 * Stefano Antonio Morcelli, ''Africa christiana'', Volume I, Brescia 1816, p. 90 * Auguste Audollent, v. 'Babrensis' in ''Dictionnaire d'Histoire et de Géographie ecclésiastiques'', vol. VI, 1932, coll. 1042-1043 * Patrologia Latina, Vol. LVIII, coll. 271 & 307 {{Khenchela Province Populated places in Khenchela Province

Name

Modern Babar

History

Titular see

See also

Sources and external links