Tag Archives: amazigh language

In ancient Amazigh culture, tattoos are one of the many ways people celebrate their rich North African tribal history. When crossing traditionally Amazigh areas in North Africa, you may encounter road signs written in the Amazigh language. Amazigh symbols are easily identifiable, however, to the untrained eye they may just …

Morocco believes that restoring relations with Spain needs a lot of clarity, government spokesman Mustapha Baitas said in remarks to the media after a cabinet meeting on Thursday. “With regard to Spain… King Mohammed VI underlined, last August, the importance of strategic relations between Rabat and Madrid… two years ago, …

For decades, Morocco’s Amazigh community has advocated for official recognition of the new year as an official paid holiday, a symbolic recognition of the indigenous identity they hope to gain under the leadership of Amazigh Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch. Every year, Morocco’s Amazigh community is on hot coals ahead of …

23 November 2021 Lebanese singer Myriam Fares is about to release a new song that uses the Berber language to sing. The Lebanese singer revealed, during her intervention in a television program, that she was about to release a new song whose lyrics are in the Amazigh language. Eleven years …

On November 24, 2021, Global Voices, through its Rising Voices initiative, will host an online conversation at this year’s Bread & Net non-conference, featuring digital activists from the MENA region who strive to maintain their mother tongue alive in a challenging digital landscape. The panel “Exploring the Intersection of Digital …

“them to play with the fate of Libya”. Dbeibah said Libyans are aware of the woes of the dictatorship and that the electoral law controversy adds to the suffering of the people and serves the agenda of local and foreign parties, adding that Libyan justice will not allow the adoption …

The new head of government Aziz Akhannouch began his mission by chairing the first ministerial council followed by a presentation of a government program to parliamentarians strongly committed to the social and economic plan. Akhannouch was appointed head of government after his party won the September 8 elections. He built …

The Islamist Party for Justice and Development, in government since 2011, only won a tenth of the 125 deputies it had in the House of Representatives in the elections held in Morocco last September. With only 13 places, the former main political party will now take a back seat in …

Lounes Matoub was born on January 24, 1956 in the village of Taourirt Moussa in Kabylia, is a musician, singer-songwriter and Kabyle poet. Militant of the Amazigh identity cause, he made his contribution to the claim and popularization of Amazigh culture and to the struggle for democracy and secularism in …

This newcomer formed an alliance at the end of 2020 with two political parties that are members of the government majority, the National Rally of Independents (RNI) and the Popular Movement (deputy). Under the leadership of these two political groups, activists of the Amazigh movement are preparing to participate in …

ALGIERS – Algerian writer Mohamed Salah Ounissi has announced the publication of a new trilingual Amazigh / Arabic / French dictionary aimed at preserving the Amazigh language and shedding light on the country’s linguistic diversity. “The dictionary has an Amazigh title, ‘Amawal Amkrad’, which means trilingual dictionary,” Algerian news agency …

People walk past campaign billboards ahead of the upcoming constitutional referendum on a street in Algiers, Algeria, October 22, 2020. (RYAD KRAMDI / AFP via Getty Images) The small revisions proposed in Algeria’s November 1 constitutional referendum are unlikely to motivate enough Algerians to vote against the changes. But while …

Algerian women dressed in bright Berber clothes screaming, singing and drumming at a soccer tournament last week were pushing their fight for gender equality – a cause that has come under closer scrutiny in Algeria after a brutal attack this month. The peaceful cobbled village of Sahel hosted the third …

ORAN, Algeria – The High Commission for Tamazight (HCA) in Algeria has launched the President’s Prize for Amazigh Literature and Language, with the aim of supporting Amazigh culture after years of marginalization. The secretary general of the HCA, El Hachemi Assad, announced on Saturday in Oran that the competition would …

In Temezret, a village in the arid land of south-eastern Tunisia sprawling over rolling hills, locals passing each other in the khaki stone alleys greet each other without shaking hands. In a cafe at the top of the mountain on which the village is built, the villagers sit at a …

An Italian member of the European Parliament (MEP) accused the Algerian government of “suppressing” the indigenous Amazigh community from the Kabylia region following the adoption of two laws which endanger their freedoms, revealed Minority Rights Groups International . Massimiliano Salini presented to the European Parliament on Monday a letter addressed …

Near the village of Taoujout, a dirt road climbs a steep hill towards the establishment of stone houses perched at the top. In the low places below the road, palm trees grow among the green gardens. While only 10 kilometers from the regional administrative center and tourist sites, Taoujout appears …

For the Spring 2017 season, TheFashionSpot reviewed 299 catwalks and 8,832 model appearances on the New York, London, Paris and Milan catwalks. They found that 74.6 percent of die-cast models were white and an incredibly low 0.40 percent of all die-cast models were of Middle Eastern origin. As the entire …

CASABLANCA – The question of teaching scientific subjects in foreign languages ​​is dividing politicians and intellectuals in Morocco where the public education sector is in crisis despite the reforms. A bill which would regulate the education sector and which was adopted by the Council of Ministers in mid-2018 was blocked …

Originally from North Africa, the Amazigh people, sometimes known as Berbers, have spent decades fighting for cultural recognition in the predominantly Arab region. For years, Amazigh activists have engaged in a battle against oppressive policies while trying to promote measures that would help preserve Amazigh identity. Despite recent successes, however, …

The photo shows the ancient Berber village of Chenini in the Tataouine region of southern Tunisia on December 23, 2018 (Photo Xinhua) TUNIS, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) – A Berber man with a donkey walked along the rocky path leading to the ksours, known as “desert castles” on top of a …

Living in the inhospitable area crisscrossed by the borders of Libya, Chad, Niger and Sudan, the Tébou – a non-Arab indigenous peoples – experience an unprecedented cultural awakening, thanks to their very first alphabet and to a cultural center. “It is something that does not compare to anything else,” said …

SEATTLE – From 2001 to 2014, Morocco’s per capita consumption increased to 3.3%, leading to a decline in monetary poverty and vulnerability to 4.8 and 12.5%. Despite these improvements, rural areas in Morocco still experience a higher level of subjective poverty. In 2014, the rural poverty rate in Morocco increased …

ALGERIA Algeria approved a bill paving the way for the creation of an Amazigh language academy dedicated to teaching and promoting research on Tamazight, as well as its standardization. “This is a historic decision and a breakthrough which completes the process of rehabilitation of Tamazight, opening up considerable prospects for …

ZUWARA, Libya – In the middle of a roundabout in central Zuwara, the last town in western Libya before the Tunisian border, stands a monument to those who died in the 2011 revolution. There is one verse from the Quran in Arabic but the rest is unintelligible to most Libyans …

TUNIS – Tunisian Berbers welcomed Yennayer, the Amazigh New Year, with celebrations of their cultural heritage, which is deeply rooted in the country. From the caves of Matmata to the delicious couscous to the colorful rugs found in southern Tunisia, the Amazigh culture has made a significant contribution to the …

At first glance, nothing in the 25-year-old Tunisian musician Abdelhak Mahrouk distinguishes him. He has a serious but unkempt demeanor, eyes splayed and downcast, and a messy mop of black hair that reaches the top of a slightly twisted widow. His wispy goatee makes him look young for his age. …

CAIRO – Visitors to the Siwa oasis quickly notice the friendliness of the people who welcome them. With warm smiles, the residents of the oasis take pride in showing visitors their cultural heritage and traditions. Unlike many other parts of Egypt, the Siwa Oasis, located 50 kilometers (31 miles) east …

Ten years after Tamazight – the language of the Amazigh, the country’s Berber population – began to be taught in schools here, and four years after it was constitutionally recognized as an official language, it is still unclear how it will be integrated into education. The recognition of Tamazight has …

On January 12, a group of cars and vans filled with rowdy, flag-waving Amazigh activists left Algiers and began a three-day tour of seven Algerian provinces, under the slogan of “Yennayer, feast of national solidarity”. Before departure, the “Yennayer caravan” received an Algerian flag and best wishes from Mounia Meslem, …

Jadu, Libya – Almost all Libyans know Shokri Agmar. In 2011, they saw him daily on television, in a program broadcast from Qatar. The 33-year-old lawyer is the host of Libya’s very first Amazigh-language program. “I had mixed feelings,” Agmar told Al Jazeera from a cafe in downtown Tripoli. “On …

Monday marks the first day of the year 2964 for the pre-Arab inhabitants of North Africa. The Berbers of North Africa are celebrating their New Year, with festivities planned in several cities, including the Moroccan capital of Rabat. Monday marked the first day of the year 2964 for the indigenous …

Jadu, Libya – In the rocky and mountainous region of western Libya, the Amazigh people – a large and substantial minority – organize demonstrations for autonomy. Their calls for autonomy follow the declaration of autonomy made by the ethnic groups in eastern Libya. The symbolic gesture is likely to anger …

The original inhabitants of North Africa, the Amazighs (also known as Berbers) may have finally won the freedom to observe their culture – if they can convince the Arab majority to follow them. Graffiti reading “Freedom fighters from Dahra district in Tripoli”, on the right, and a Berber logo on …