Ouardia Bouchemlal (أوارديا بوشملال), known professionally as Chérifa, was an Algerian musician, singer-songwriter, and performer of Kabyle music. She began performing traditional Kabyle songs as a teenager and made her radio debut on Radio Kabyle in 1942, becoming one of the early female pioneers of broadcast Kabyle music. Over a career spanning more than four decades, she composed hundreds of songs, including well-known pieces such as “Abka Wala Khir” and “Aya Zerzour.” After a long period of reduced visibility, she made a partial return to performing in the 1990s, including appearances in France and a 2001 tour in the United States. In 2008, she returned to her hometown after decades away, and she died on March 13, 2014, at the age of 88.
