The majority of Algerians are Arabic-speakers of Arab or mixed Arab/Berber origin. Ethnic
Berbers (who were the earliest known inhabitants of North Africa) form a minority of
around 17 per cent. In parts of Algeria, Berbers maintain a strongly
separate identity, speaking their own languages rather than Arabic. The Berber language of
northern Algeria is called Tamazight or Amazigh. Many Saharan Berbers speak
a related language called Zenete. There are two main Berber groups: the Kabylie Berbers from the Kabylie
Mountains, and the Chaouia Berbers from the Aures Mountains – both in northern
Algeria. Berbers refer to themselves as Amazigh (meaning the people and culture as
a whole) and Imazighen (the plural name). This translates roughly as
‘free’ or ‘pure’.
Many rural Berbers live by cultivating
crops and raising livestock, while others have a nomadic or semi-nomadic life as
travelling herders and traders.
Tuaregs, another Berber sub-group, are
traditionally more nomadic. They mainly come from the Ahaggar (or Hoggar) highlands in
south-eastern Algeria. Tuaregs are also known as ‘blue men’, after the
deep-indigo coloured tagelmoust (a face-covering head-dress) which is often worn by
the men. Tuareg women have a great deal of influence over matters of marriage, finance,
and social affairs and it is women rather than men who inherit from parents and families.
Tuareg women are also famous for their poetry. The Tuaregs speak a Berber language called Tamachaq.
Desert Berbers and Arabs usually have a
rigid caste, or class, system, with social ranks ranging from nobles down to an underclass
of menial workers (mostly ethnic Africans).
Recurrent drought and the erosion of
traditions have led large numbers of nomads to abandon their traditional lifestyle and
head for the cities, where many of them live in run-down settlements called bidonvilles.
But thousands still live in the Sahara, navigating its wastes from oasis to oasis and town
to town using ancient knowledge passed down through the generations. Smuggling imported
cigarettes and trading in all-terrain vehicles are two ways in which some desert nomads
supplement their income.
Traditional Berber jewellery and swords
are made from silver, copper, glass, agate, and reclaimed metals. Among the Tuaregs there
is a special caste of blacksmiths and craftsmen called belas who work in all these
materials – but never gold, as the Tuaregs consider it unlucky.
A smaller Berber minority, the Mozabites,
live mainly in five towns centred on Ghardaia in the northern Sahara. Mozabites, who
number about 100,000, follow their own strict Islamic code called Ibadi. Women wear
a head-to-foot robe which leaves only one eye exposed, and inhabitants of the Mozabite
town of Beni Isguen may only marry fellow townspeople.
Read a
Kabylie Berber folktale
The
Saharawi people
Printable
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