Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Berber
For at least 5000 years, Morocco has been inhabited by a people with Saharan, Mediter-
ranean and Sub-Saharan African roots collectively known as the Amazigh, or 'free people'.
True to their name, they successfully ousted the many armies who swaggered into Amazigh
territory with a mind to claiming it for themselves. The Romans certainly tried - for 250
years - and when they couldn't defeat their foes they badmouthed them, calling them 'Ber-
bers', or Barbarians.
More than 60% of Moroccans now call themselves Amazigh or Berber, and Berber lan-
guages are currently spoken by upwards of 12 to 15 million Moroccans. Tashelhit is the
most common Berber language, and is widely spoken in central Morocco. You'll also hear
Tarifit along the Rif and Tamazight in the Middle Atlas.
With the backing of King Mohammed VI - who is part Berber himself - the ancient
written Tifinagh alphabet has been recently revived as a national language, and is now be-
ing taught in some schools. Within the next decade, Berber will be taught in public schools
across Morocco, along with the new lingua franca of trade and tourism: English.
The form of a butterfly is used in Bobo masks because butterflies appear in great swarms immediately
after the first rains and are thus associated with the planting season.
