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Thursday, October 5, 2017

The Algerian Iliad by Cheikh Zakaria (1908-1977)

The Algerian Iliad by Cheikh Zakaria (1908-1977)


The Algerian Iliad is an epic poem of 1001 verse lines composed by Cheikh Zakaria (1908-1977), the poet of the Algerian revolution, to celebrate the long history of the Algerian people's resistance against foreign occupations from "the most ancient times to the present day", as  Mouloud Kacem (1927-1992), the famous  Algerian politician, philosopher, historian, and writer, stated in the preface of the printed poem. Mouloud Kacem was the one who commissioned Cheikh Zakaria to compose this poem. With its 1001 verse lines, it is not only an Iliad, but a clear parody to One Thousand and One Nights of the famous folk tales know as Arabian Nights.


A first short version of this poem of only 610 verse lines was recited by Cheikh Zakaria himself in the inauguration of the sixth conference of the Islamic thought on July 24, 1972 in Club of Pines in Algeria where Houari Boumédiène (1932-1978), Chairman of the Revolutionary Council, was one of the participants. There is a recording on You Tube where one can listen to the very sensational recitation by the author himself. Here it is: