AIN ZARA. - A locality in Libya, about 13 km south of Tripoli, where a most notable Paleochristian necropolis has been discovered. The tombs are generally constructed above ground in the form of a chest, with inscriptions carved and then painted over the plaster. Many of these have been preserved. The language is Latin, with frequent use of symbols; the paleography is very poor, with many references to liturgical texts and no consular dates. These tombs date back to the first centuries of Arab domination and are an important document for the fate of Christianity in Libya during that obscure age. The nearby necropolis of En Ngila, situated about 12 km further west, has the same character and similar value.
BIBL.: An excellent edition is that of S. Aurigemma, L'area cemetery cristiana di Ain Zara presso Tripoli di Barberia, Rome 1932; for Ngila, V. R. Paribeni, in Africa Italiana, I (1927), pp. 76 ff.