New Berber year: reclaiming the native cultures of North Africa

For centuries the Berber culture of North Africa was discriminated against and left aside.

the successive political, economic, cultural and religious imperialisms.

First it was the Phoenicians, then the Romans, then the Arabs, who imposed their language and religion, then the Ottomans and more recently the European colonial powers.

Now the Berber world continues to be colonized by the Arab-speaking majority, but gradually it is recovering the initiative and enthusiastically celebrating its traditional millenary celebrations.

Berbers in North Africa announce the Amazigh New Year, with festivities showcasing traditional food, music and dance planned throughout the region.

Friday marks the first day of the year 2968 for the indigenous inhabitants of North Africa, who are also known as Amazigh.

The Amazigh New Year, or Yennayer, as it is called locally, is the first day of the agricultural calendar used by the Berbers for millennia.

Ahmed Assid, an Amazigh activist, told Al Jazeera that the event has an "important historical connotation" for the Berbers: "It goes back to antiquity when the Amazigh king Shoshenq I was enthroned in Egypt, after defeating Ramses III." .

In Morocco, where Yennayer is celebrated by the Arab and Berber communities, some Arabs refer to the event as "Aam Alfilahi" or "Haguza", which means the "agrarian year".

The Berbers, on the other hand, refer to the event as "Id Suggas", which means "night of the year".

North Africans celebrate the occasion with activities such as Amazigh dance shows called "Ahwach" and "Ahidous".

The celebrations also feature performances by Berber artists, along with educational activities.

To commemorate the occasion, the Berbers prepare traditional dishes, such as the tagola, a meal composed of corn grains mixed with lard, accompanied by ghee and with the seed of a date hidden inside.

"It is believed that the person who finds the seed of the date inside the plate of the tagola is blessed throughout the year," said Hafida Id Abbou, a Moroccan Amazigh who celebrates every year.

Another dish, known as orkimen, is made with wheat and dried beans. It is served as a soup.

As with most meals in North Africa, couscous is also served.

Many Moroccans believe that, given the country's deep Berber roots, Yennayer should be a national holiday.

Neighboring Algeria, which also has a large Berber population, already declared January 12 as a national holiday, and Amazigh activists in Morocco want their government to do the same.

At the end of December, several Amazigh groups signed a memorandum addressed to the Moroccan Prime Minister, Saad Eddine el-Othmani, urging him to declare the national holiday in Morocco.