Flyssa

These weapons have blades of various sizes from , and can be classed as varying between long knives and full-sized swords. Whatever their size, flyssas are characterized by narrow, straight-backed, single-edged blades, which come to an acute point. The blades of sword-sized flyssas often widen gradually around the center of percussion, which enhances their cutting ability. The blades are often decorated with chiselled patterns, which are sometimes inlaid. == Name ==

The blade's name (Flyssa) was given by the French who derived it from the name of the tribe that it originated from (Iflissen). In pre-colonial times, the sword was called Ajenouii which means “knife” in the Berber Kabyle dialect, also a word derived from the name of the city of Genoa. The term is also used and is said to be derived from the Turkish "yatagan". == References ==