Berber queen of the Almoravid dynasty, Zaynab Nefzaouia (1039 – 1117) is a valuable advisor to her husband who owes her his victories. It is for her that the city of Marrakech was founded, and it is she who draws the plans.
Intelligent and witty
Daughter of Ibrahim Nefzaouia, Zaynab Nefzaouia was born in 1039 in the small village of Aghmat, at the foot of the Atlas in what is now Morocco. Her father, a wealthy merchant, offered his daughter a quality education, rare for young girls of the time. Very early on, Zaynab showed great intelligence and quick-wittedness. The Kitab al-Istibsar describes her in these terms:"in those days, there was none more beautiful, more intelligent or more spiritual" .
These qualities, no doubt, make her a highly sought-after match and Zaynab is said to have rebuffed many offers of marriage, saying she doesn't want someone who doesn't have ambitions to become the ruler of the entire country. She was first the concubine of Youssef ibn Ali, chief of Berber tribes close to Aghmat, but the strong character of the young woman displeased him and the union did not last. Zaynab then married Emir Luqūt al-Maghrāwi, who died in battle against the Almoravids and whose fortune she inherited.
Four unions
In 1068, Zaynab Nefzaouia married Abu Bakr Ibn Omar, king and founder of the Almoravid movement. Like the previous ones, this union does not last. Abu Bakr is called in to subdue a revolt in the Sahara Desert. Considering that his wife cannot follow her, he leaves her and advises her to marry his cousin Youssef ben Tachfine as-Sanhaji, to whom he leaves the command in his absence. In 1071, after the legal period of separation from her former husband of three months, Zaynab took her advice. She and her husband have a 27-year age difference, but the union seems to have been happy. They will have at least two children:Ali Ben Youssef and Tamima Ben Youssef ibn Tachfine.
In 1072, Abu Bakr announced his intention to return from the Sahara and resume his position, but Youssef was no longer determined to return to him. He does not know how to oppose it without declaring an internal war on his cousin and it is Zaynab who advises him. Knowing that her ex-husband appreciates life in the desert and that both of them do not want to see unnecessary bloodshed, she guides Youssef on how to conduct the interview and advises him to coax his interlocutor with luxurious presents. The meeting between the two men takes place without incident, and Abu Bakr returns to the Sahara.
Malika
Zaynab Nefzaouia is given the title of malika (queen), which is not automatically given to the king's wives. This title, and the sources that mention her, show that she shares the power of her husband and governs with him. When Youssef dreams of extending the borders of his empire, Zaynab advises him and assists him in his conquests as in the creation of the Almoravid dynasty. Youssef conquers in particular lands in Morocco, Algeria, Spain; he seizes Granada, Seville, and Valencia. Sources say he owes these conquests to the wise advice of his wife, and that she is so adept at negotiations that she is nicknamed “the magician”. Her husband founded the city of Marrakech, and Zaynab drew the plans.
Zaynab Nefzaouia probably died around 1117, eleven years after her husband.