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Abu Bakr ibn Umar

Type Figure Region Morocco Time c. 1010–1087 Also known as Abu Bakr ibn Umar

Almoravid co-founder of Lamtuna Berber origin; after 1071 he shared rule with Yusuf ibn Tashfin and died campaigning in West Africa in 1087.

Timeline

  1. c. 1010–1042Sahara (Lamtuna grazing lands) · SaharaBorn into the Lamtuna, a nomadic Saharan people, he inherited the lineage of Sanhaja Berber nobility and spent his early years in the nomadic life of the Sahara, acquiring military skills.
  2. c. 1042–1059Sanhaja lands · Western MaghrebTogether with the religious reformer Abdallah ibn Yasin he led the Almoravid jihad movement, uniting the Sanhaja Berber tribes and spreading Maliki law across the Sahara. After Ibn Yasin fell in battle, he alone held military and political leadership.
  3. 1059–1071Marrakesh · MoroccoNominally still the Almoravids' supreme chief, he gradually delegated the military and political affairs of northern Morocco to his nephew Yusuf ibn Tashfin. In 1071 the division was formalized: Yusuf took charge of the north while he led the main force south to conquer West Africa.
  4. 1071–1087vicinity of Koumbi Saleh (capital of the Ghana Empire) · SahelHe led his army deep into the West African Sahel, pressuring the capital of the Ghana Empire and repeatedly disrupting its trade-route network. He was killed on campaign in 1087; his southern legacy passed to tribal chieftains, while Yusuf ruled the north independently.

Sources