An ethnic mosaic
Their ethnic origin is uncertain, but it is believed that the Berbers came from Egypt. A nomadic people, they later dispersed to North Africa, leaving cave paintings in their wake. The term Berber is derived from the Greek bárbaros, which refers to people whose language is not understood. When the Romans invaded Morocco, they used the derived word barbarus to name the natives they encountered during their conquest. This term was then used by the Arabs and then by the French under the name Berber during the protectorate, in order to give it a less pejorative connotation. But this thousand-year-old people have always called themselves Amazighs, "free and noble men" among themselves. Although subjected to a succession of invasions and foreign dominations, some of them took refuge in the mountains or in remote areas of Morocco, adopting a very particular lifestyle and thus preserving their thousand-year-old traditions. Today, they claim their tribality, and no longer hesitate to hoist their flags to defend their rights during demonstrations.
The Amazigh language, a mark of identity
Today, the main criterion for identifying this fragmented people is the Berber language, commonly known as Tamazight. This language comprises some forty dialects spoken in Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria and Mauritania, all based on the Tifinagh alphabet. Made up of 33 figurative characters, this writing system dates back to the 6th century BC and is one of the oldest in the world. The other ethnic groups have transcribed the Berber language using the Latin or Arabic alphabet. After decades of struggle by Berber activists, the Amazigh language, which comes in three main dialects in Morocco, was officially recognized in 2011 as the kingdom's second language, and is now enshrined in the new Constitution. Alongside French and Arabic, the Tifinagh alphabet has since found its place on administrative buildings, but it wasn't until June 2019 that members of parliament unanimously voted for its official use in administrations and schools. A victory for this ethnic group, which can now obtain driving licenses, marriage certificates, identity cards and passports in Tamazight. Berber has also made its entry into the judicial sphere, where it can be used in investigative procedures and pleadings.
The flag, the other emblem of the Berbers
From political rallies to football matches, the Amazigh flag has been proudly hoisted in recent years throughout the Maghreb by Berber activists who claim their identity, long forgotten to the detriment of Arab culture. Designed by the Berber activist Youcef Medkour, the emblem came into being on 12 January 1970 on the occasion of Yennayer, the Berber New Year. It was not until 1998, however, that the flag was made official at the Amazigh World Congress held in the Canary Islands. It displays the three pan-Berber colours, blue for the sea, green for the mountains and yellow for the Sahara desert, divided into equal stripes. These shades, which are found in Berber jewellery, symbolically represent the territory of Tamazgha, the historical regions of the Berber people. The whole is crossed out in its centre by the letter Z in red tifinagh, which symbolizes the common blood of the Amazighs. Although it is freely deployed in Morocco, this is no longer the case in Algeria since June 2019 where it is now forbidden to brandish it during demonstrations. However, as a symbol of a culture, language and identity, it has been recognised in the Algerian Constitution since 2002, but it would seem, according to the former Algerian Chief of Staff, Ahmed Gaïd Salah, that it is a threat to the country's unity. A matter that Moroccan Berbers will follow closely, because it is also their identity through this emblem that is threatened.
The Amazigh New Year, recently celebrated in Morocco
Just as important as Aïd el-Kebir or the end of Ramadan, Yennayer is a popular ancestral festival that marks the Berber New Year every January 14 on the Gregorian calendar. Used since ancient times by the ethnic groups of North Africa, this agrarian calendar is based on the seasons and the position of the stars, and began with the arrival in power in Egypt of the Berber ChechanqI, who became pharaoh on the death of his father-in-law. The year 2024 corresponds to 2974 for Berber peoples. Traditionally, this festival is celebrated over several days in a convivial atmosphere, with hearty local dishes that vary from region to region. In Morocco, it's customary to enjoy cherchem, a dish made from wheat, chickpeas and broad beans, or the famous couscous. During these celebrations, women dress in their traditional garb and adorn themselves with their finest jewelry, while children wear animal masks, symbolizing the return of invisible beings to Earth, and go from house to house asking for sweets. Beliefs and superstitions are also very much in evidence, in order to avoid the evil eye and hope for a more prosperous year than the previous one. Thus, in the early hours of Yennayer morning, women clean their houses to chase away the evil spirits and misery of the past year. At the start of the new year, family events such as the first haircut for young boys, weddings and agricultural initiation rites are also associated with Yennayer. Since 2015, this age-old festival, one of the oldest in the world, has been recognized as UNESCO Intangible Heritage, along with tifinagh, the Berber alphabet and couscous. Three years later, Algeria took another step forward by declaring Yennayer a day off with pay. Since then, Berber activists in Morocco have called for the day to be made a public holiday, in the same way as Algeria and Libya, which King Mohammed VI granted them in May 2023. January 14, 2024 was Morocco's first paid holiday of the Amazigh New Year.
Tattoos, the transmission of a culture
Berber women have always had decorative designs on their bodies, whether for aesthetic purposes to seduce, mystical to protect themselves from the evil eye, or therapeutic to protect themselves from disease. There are a multitude of tattoos in the Amazigh culture, most of which represent geometric forms with complex patterns, each of which has its own symbolism. For example, a woman with a beard tattooed from the chin to each ear means that she is a widow. By wearing it on themselves, women attract all these meanings and also transmit their cultural identity. At the time, any opportunity to get a tattoo was valid, so much so that a woman was despised by her community if she did not have symbolic designs on her face, hands or back. It was used to get married, to cleanse the soul of sins, to ward off misery and evil spirits, among other functions.
By perpetuating this tradition, women today are the guardians of one of the oldest Berber rites, which is opposed to present-day Islam, forbidding this practice. Having become ornamental above all, the Berber tattoo has adapted itself to religion, never representing the image of man, and being carried out with kohl or henna, to guard against mutilation. It is mostly practiced in rural areas where women have kept the mystical dimension of these drawings, especially to protect their newborn babies from bad luck, by tattooing them on the forehead with smoke black. Although this custom is tending to disappear, some Berber grandmothers still manage to determine the region of origin of certain tribes, thanks to the number of lines on their tattoo. In the same way, more and more young Berbers are braving religion to get tattoos of their ancestors' symbols and to perpetuate the tradition.Berber crafts, the heritage of women
Like tattoos, Amazigh women passionately perpetuate a unique craftmanship that is sadly in decline. Using local materials, for generations they have been making utilitarian objects such as embroidered tablecloths or terracotta dishes, sold more and more as decorative items to tourists. The most remarkable craftsmanship? Undoubtedly the carpets of the Atlas Mountains, reputed to be the most beautiful in the world. Following a tradition that dates back more than 1,000 years, the women still hand knot the wool sheared directly from the sheep or goats on the farms, and sometimes dye it with vegetable colours. As they work, they incorporate allegorical forms imagined at the time and which most of the time evoke life experiences. With these symbols, they transmit their cultural heritage throughout the world. Although the silver jewellery is made by Berber men, it is nevertheless the women who make the jewellery and wear its symbolism. Thus, in rites of passage, such as that of the status of the bride-to-be, jewellery ornaments, such as embroidered veils, play a major role. Offered over the years by her mother, they constitute the dowry of the young girl who displays her complete finery on her wedding day. Embellished with stones and silver, they too contain strong symbols, explaining the tradition of the ancestors.
The collective granaries, a symbol of solidarity organization
Traditional constructions of the Moroccan South, the collective granaries are today the witnesses of a tribal organization in solidarity in the face of the dangers represented by the invasions of the enemies. In these fortresses embedded in the mountains, the Berbers kept their valuables there, stored their wheat, barley and saffron crops in the cooler or took shelter from enemy attacks. Each family had a vault inside the rock, which they accessed through a tiny wooden door to retrieve their precious belongings. The whole thing was guarded by a guardian, who was paid according to the harvest. Today, this thousand-year-old heritage is largely abandoned. But, like that of Imchguiguilne, about twenty granaries in the Souss-Massa region, dating from pre-colonial times, have been restored as part of a programme to save the region's heritage, initiated in the 2000s. Many others remain to be restored to bring this architectural heritage out of oblivion.
