The Minister of National Education of Morocco has just announced that the Berber language will be taught in primary schools in 12,000 establishments. Some four million Moroccan pupils are concerned.
Currently in Morocco, the Amazigh language, that is to say Berber, is taught to only 330,000 young school children. The decision that has just been taken by the Moroccan authorities will gradually generalize the teaching of Berber by 2030.
It is an old claim of the militants of the Amazigh cause. Berber was only recognized in 2011 as a national language alongside Arabic. Four years ago, its use was formalized in the Moroccan administration and public and private education. On public buildings, Berber writing and its alphabet, although it is above all a language of oral tradition, appear, in addition to Arabic and French.
Inalco, the National Institute of Oriental Languages โโand Civilizations, based in Paris, recalls that Berber can be considered the native language of North Africa. The overwhelming majority of Berbers live in Morocco. Berber speakers represent 40 to 45% of the population against 25 to 30% in Algeria. It is also found in Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso as far as Egypt. With this decision, the Berber language asserts itself and becomes more visible.
Towards the recognition of the Berber identity?
In Morocco, Berbers were present before Arabization and Islamization. Their demands go even further. They aim for a broader recognition of their identity and culture. At the beginning of the month, King Mohammed 6 made an additional gesture by decreeing that the Amazigh New Year would be a holiday on January 13 each year . Sufficient knowledge of the Berber language has also become a condition for obtaining Moroccan nationality. The Berber flag that Moroccans like to proudly wave in the rif, in northern Morocco, was taken out in the stadiums during the FIFA World Cup in Qatar at the end of 2022, when the Moroccan team qualified, a historic journey that led through to the semi-finals.
A sign that the cause is moving forward on this long road to recognition, a budget of 27 million euros is dedicated in 2023 to the officialization of the Berber language, which for the moment only has the status of a national language. The Berbers would like things to move even faster. They don’t want to just exist alongside the Arabic language. The progression of English also represents a danger. The Berbers hope that the promises of the Cherifian kingdom finally materialize.