Berber people
"Berbers" or "Imazighen" are the
original inhabitants of North and Northwest Africa. Actually, the term
"Berber" refers more to the language spoken in the area than to the ethnic groups. "Imazighen" is
the plural of "Amazigh", a word which means "a free man". The Berber
people are a mixture of different ethnic groups and no one really knows
where they came from. Genetic evidence seems to indicate that their
ancestors came from East Africa and/or the Middle East. The
arabization of the Berbers which began with the Islamic conquest in
the 7th century AD, led to the predominance of the Arabic language in
North Africa. Nowadays, about 40 % of the Moroccans and 25 % of
the Algerians still speak Berber.
The history of the Berber people
is as old as that of the ancient Egyptians, who has mentioned them in
their writings during the Predynastic Period and during the New
kingdom. References to them also occur in Greek and Roman sources. Over
time, Berber people were invaded successively by Phoenicians, Greeks,
Romans, Vandals and Alans, Byzantines, Arabs, Ottomans and the French
and Spanish.
The language
Berber or Amazigh languages belong to the Afroasiatic family (see among others Greenberg, J. H. (1966), The languages of Africa; Cohen, M. et al. (1988), Les langues du Monde
). They are spoken in North and Northwest Africa by more than
22 million people; especially in Morocco (12 million), Algeria (more
than 7 million),
Niger, Mali, Tunisia, Lybia, Egypt, Chad and the Canary Islands. The main
Berber varieties are Tashlhiyt, Tamazight and Tarifit which are spoken
in the south, middle and north of Morocco, respectively. Taqbaylit is spoken in Algeria. Tuareg is spoken in Mali and
Niger..etc. In the last decade, Morocco and Algeria have adopted the Tifinagh
alphabet as the official writing system for the language. Tuareg people in Niger and
Mali used to write their language in this alphabet a long time ago.
http://www.mondeberbere.com/
http://www.ircam.ma/
http://www.asays.com/
http://www.tamaynutfrance.org/
http://www.tamaynut.org/
Agadir is one of the main Berber
cities in Morocco with more than 350000 inhabitants (the city and the
surrounding area). The city is located in South Morocco, 250 km
south
Marrakesh. Its name means "a fortress" or " fortified granary" in Berber.
Formerly, it was a fishing village. Under the influence of the
Portuguese, Saadians, Alaouites, Germans and French, among others, the
village was transformed into a prosperous port.On 29 February 1960, at
exactly 23:47 p.m, a devastating earthquake rocked the city. Currently,
it is one
of the main tourist destinations in Morocco. The Berber variety
spoken
in the area is called Tashlhiyt.
Afroasiatic languages
© 2006, Mohamed Lahrouchi
