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Concept
Moroccan Arabic
Summary
Moroccan Arabic (العربية المغربية الدارجة Moroccan vernacular Arabic), also known as Darija (الدارجة), is the dialectal, vernacular form or forms of Arabic spoken in Morocco. It is part of the Maghrebi Arabic dialect continuum and as such is mutually intelligible to some extent with Algerian Arabic and to a lesser extent with Tunisian Arabic. It is spoken by 90.9% of the population of Morocco. While Modern Standard Arabic is used to varying degrees in formal situations such as religious sermons, books, newspapers, government communications, news broadcasts and political talk shows, Moroccan Arabic is the predominant spoken language of the country and has a strong presence in Moroccan television entertainment, cinema and commercial advertising. Moroccan Arabic has many regional dialects and accents as well, with its mainstream dialect being the one used in Casablanca, Rabat, Tangier, Marrakesh and Fez, and therefore it dominates the media and eclipses most of the other regional accents.
SIL International classifies Moroccan Arabic, Hassaniya Arabic and Judeo-Moroccan Arabic as different varieties of Arabic.
Moroccan Arabic was formed of several dialects of Arabic belonging to two genetically different groups: pre-Hilalian and Hilalian dialects.
Pre-Hilalian dialects are a result of early Arabization phases of the Maghreb, from the 7th to the 12th centuries, concerning the main urban settlements, the harbors, the religious centres (zaouias) as well as the main trade routes. The dialects are generally classified in three types: (old) urban, "village" and "mountain" sedentary and Jewish dialects. In Morocco, several pre-Hilalian dialects are spoken:
Urban dialects: Old dialects of Fes, Rabat, Salé, Taza, Tétouan, Wezzan, Chefchaouen, Tangier, Asilah, Larache, Ksar el-Kebir, Meknes and Marrakesh.
Jebli dialects: Dialects of the southern and western Rif and the plains of northwestern Morocco, spoken by the Jebala, Masmuda, Ghomara, and Zenata.
Official source
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Rif
The Rif or Riff (ⴰⵔⵔⵉⴼ, ⴰⵔⵉⴼ, الريف), also called Rif Mountains, is a geographic region in northern Morocco. It is bordered on the north by the Mediterranean Sea and Spain and on the west by the Atlantic Ocean, and is the homeland to the indigenous people of the Rifians people. Historically, it belonged to the Rif Republic and its president, Abd el Krim, who led the Rif War from 1920 to 1927 and against a Spanish colonial empire, the Rif region was Historically a Spanish colony by the Spanish colonial empire in Africa.
Rifians
Riffians or Rifians (ⵉⵔⵉⴼⵉⵢⴻⵏ; singular: ⴰⵔⵉⴼⵉ, iɾifijən, æɾifi) are a Berber ethnic group originally from the Rif region of northeastern Morocco (includes the autonomous city of Spain, Melilla). Communities of Riffian immigrants are also found in southern Spain, Netherlands and Belgium as well as elsewhere in Western Europe. They are overwhelmingly Sunni Muslims, but retain their pre-Islamic traditions such as high status for Riffian women.
Culture of Morocco
The culture of Morocco is a blend of Arab, Amazighs, Andalusian cultures, with African, Hebraic and Mediterranean influences. It represents and is shaped by a convergence of influences throughout history. This sphere may include, among others, the fields of personal or collective behaviors, language, customs, knowledge, beliefs, arts, legislation, gastronomy, music, poetry, architecture, etc. While Morocco started to be stably predominantly Sunni Muslim starting from 9th–10th century AD, in the Almoravids empire period, a very significant Andalusian culture was imported and contributed to the shaping of Moroccan culture.