Ancient Competencies

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Colonial period

BEN BADIS Abdelhamid

Theologian, Reformer and Nationalist Leader

Association of Algerian Muslim Ulama, Algeria

Origins & Education

Abdelhamid Ben Badis was born on December 4, 1889, in Constantine, into an aristocratic family deeply rooted in the city's history. The Ben Badis family was an old Constantinian lineage with several centuries of continuous presence in the city and active participation in public life. His father, Mohamed Mustapha (1868-1951), was a significant landowner and one of the most influential notables in the Constantine region.

From an early age, Ben Badis grew up in a pious and traditionalist environment. He memorized the Quran at the age of thirteen and was placed under the tutorship of Hamdân Benlounissi, a close disciple of the scholar Abdelkader El Medjaoui (1848-1914), who instilled in him the foundations of Islamic religious sciences.

His quest for knowledge led him, in 1908, to undertake his first study journey to the prestigious Zitouna Mosque in Tunis, then considered one of the great intellectual centers of the Muslim world. During this formative stay, he met eminent scholars who considerably influenced his thinking, notably Mohamed Al Nakhli, who introduced him to Islamic reform (islah) and a modern method of interpreting the Quran, as well as Mohamed Al Taher Ben Achour, who developed in him a deep love for the Arabic language and its literature.

Scientific Career

Upon returning to Algeria, Ben Badis began teaching at the Great Mosque of Constantine. However, faced with the hostility encountered by the Muslim reformist movement, he decided to leave again, this time for the Middle East, to deepen his knowledge and consolidate his reformist vision.

After performing the pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina, he stayed three months in the latter city where he gave lectures at the Prophet's Mosque, thus confirming his stature as a scholar. It was during this stay that he met Mohamed Bachir El Ibrahimi, with whom he formed a deep friendship and who became one of his most faithful companions in the reformist movement.

In 1913, Abdelhamid Ben Badis returned definitively to Algeria and settled in Constantine where he truly began his work of teaching and reform. He started by giving courses at the Sidi Lakhdar Mosque, first to children and then to adults, thus democratizing access to religious knowledge and Arab-Muslim culture.

His intellectual contribution was also marked by his journalistic activity, with the publication in 1925 of the critical newspaper al-Mountaqid (The Critic). Following its ban by the colonial authorities, he successively founded the periodicals Ach-Chihab (The Meteor) and then al-Bassaïr (The Clairvoyances), which became essential platforms for the dissemination of his reformist ideas and for awakening Algerian national consciousness.

Distinctions & Recognition

Ben Badis's most important work was undoubtedly the founding, in 1931, of the Association of Algerian Muslim Ulama, an organization that played a crucial role in preserving Algerian identity in the face of colonial assimilation policies. Through this institution, he significantly contributed to the cultural renaissance and political awakening of 20th century Algeria.

In 1936, Ben Badis also participated in the founding of the Algerian Muslim Congress (CMA), an attempt to unify the different tendencies of the Algerian national movement. The same year, he resumed leadership of the Association of Algerian Muslim Ulama, consolidating his status as an intellectual and spiritual leader.

Although he died before Algeria's independence, his contribution to the national cause has been unanimously recognized by the independent Algerian state. The date of his death, April 16, has been consecrated as a national holiday entitled "Youm el 'Ilm" (Day of Knowledge), celebrated each year as a tribute to his commitment to education and the intellectual emancipation of the Algerian people.

Many places and institutions across Algeria today bear his name, including communes in the wilayas of Constantine and Sidi Bel Abbes, as well as schools, universities, and cultural centers, testifying to the immense respect the Algerian nation holds for him.

Impact & Influence

Ben Badis's influence on modern Algeria is considerable and multidimensional. As a religious reformer, he worked for an enlightened understanding of Islam, compatible with modernity while remaining faithful to the foundations of faith. His famous motto "Islam is my religion, Arabic is my language, Algeria is my homeland" perfectly summarizes his vision that combined religious identity, cultural heritage, and national belonging.

On the educational front, he established a vast network of free schools where teaching was conducted in Arabic, thus counteracting the Frenchification policy imposed by the colonial system. These institutions, known as "madaris hurra" (free schools), trained thousands of young Algerians in the values of their cultural heritage and a progressive vision of their society.

Politically, although never advocating armed struggle, Ben Badis decisively contributed to the emergence of a distinct Algerian national consciousness. His categorical refutation of the colonial thesis that Algeria was a mere extension of France, summarized in his famous statement: "This Algerian nation is not France, cannot be France, and does not want to be France," constitutes one of the ideological foundations of Algerian nationalism.

In the last years of his life, Ben Badis also distinguished himself by his opposition to fascist and anti-Semitic ideologies that were then spreading in Europe and in certain colonial circles, thus reaffirming his attachment to the humanist values of Islam.