Her name is sometimes spelt either Daya, Dahlia or "al-Kahina" which mean, "sorceress". This name was given to her by Muslim invaders because her military feats were so effective, they could only have been achieved with magic. Dihya was a Berber queen, who lived around the 7th century, in Algeria. She was also a military & religious leader, who lead the fight against Islamic incursions in the area.
She was raised in the Aures mountains, in what is modern Algeria. She was a daughter of the chieftain of the Jewish-Berber tribe called, the Amazigh. However some say she also had Greek heritage. Very little has been recorded about her childhood or private life, except for some that said she had a fascination with desert birds. Her studies lead to early progress in North African biological science.
In the early 7th century, the Berbers of Northwestern Africa were under the control of the, Exarchate of Carthage, which was a division of the Byzantine Empire. However when Egypt fell to Islamic Caliphates, the Exarchate found itself vulnerable to the invaders. The Byzantine capital of Carthage, eventually fell to the Umayyad General, Hasan ibn-il Nu'man, which put an end to Byzantine rule in the area. However with former rulers stripped of power, Dihya was able to rally the Berber tribes under her leadership, from then on she became known as "Queen of the Berbers". She mounted a rebellion against the Umayyad invaders, at first using guerilla warfare, which quickly escalated into an all-out war. Under her guidance, the jumbled group of Berber tribes, into a well-disciplined army.
General Hasan, who saw her as the most powerful opponent in the area, went south to engage her army. Their forces met near, Meskiana, where Dihya's forces totally annihilated Hasan's, forcing him to flee the region & seek refuge in Libya, where he stayed for the next few years. During this period, Dihya came close to establishing an independent city-state, setting up a new administrative network, to support her army. However, in the end the Berbers became the only opposition to Islamic rule in Africa & the caliphates devoted enormous amounts of resources to their defeat. After some years had passed, Hasan returned with a new army, this time backed by one of Dihya's sons who had defected. Dihya's forces were soundly defeated & Dihya herself was killed in the subsequent battle. Some accounts say she poisoned herself when defeat became undeniable, while others say she died in combat with a sword in her hand. As she was the leader of the last rebellion against Islamic rule in the region, her death marked an end of an era in North Africa.
Side notes:
Berber- also known as Amazigh's, the Berber are an ethnic group native to Northern Africa, primarily inhabiting Algeria, northern Mauritania, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Tunisia, Libya & part of western Egypt.
Byzantine Empire (286 AD- May 1453)- was an extension of the Roman Empire, it's capital was Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey). It survived the fall of the western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD, it lasted for nearly another 1200 years.
Islamic Caliphates- Islamic states, under the leadership of a caliph; men who were considered successors of the prophet, Mohammed. They evolved into diverse ethnic & continental empires.
Meskiana- a town in Algeria.
Umayyad- one of the four major caliphates established after Mohammed's death. They were ruled by the Umayyad dynasty, which came from Mecca.
guerilla warfare- a non-typical form of warfare where smaller groups of fighters, use tactic like, sabotages ambushes, raids & hit & run to defeat a larger military.
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