A language with several dialects spoken by the Tuareg of northern Africa. See also Tifinagh.

A hybrid being, upright, figurative, usually composed of human and animal attributes. Usually a human figure with an animal's head.

An ancient Berber script used by modern Tuareg. It has twenty five consonants and the vowel 'a', and can be read from left to right, right to left, and upward or downward.

An archaeological site led by Albert Goodyear in South Carolina, United States. Noted as the location of controversial artifacts believed by some archaeologists to indicate human habitation of the New World as far back as 50,000 BP. Still controversial.

Object, animal, plant, or supernatural personage serving families or clans of certain traditional societies as an emblem of their mythical ancestry.

Classification indicating long-term continuity in motifs, techniques, expressions, and styles. Traditions can have an extended duration and involve large geographic areas.

Altered state of consciousness achieved through the psychedelic and narcotic properties of certain plants, and through nonchemical means such as sensory deprivation, hyperventilation, and prolonged dancing, drumming and singing.

A member of three closely related groups of pastoral peoples who inhabit the more fertile areas of the Sahara stretching from southwestern Libya through southern Algeria and northern Niger and Mali to the mountains of Morocco. Tuareg is a derogatory Arabic name referring to people who have either abandoned, or are lax in, religious habits. Tuaregs have no collective name for themselves, but often use the general term 'nomads' or 'Blue People'.