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Chapters: Berber People. Source: Wikipedia. Pages: 51. Not illustrated. Free updates online. Purchase includes a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Excerpt: Berber languages, Arabic, French, Spanish (in Morocco and Spain) Imazighen flag, the symbol of all the Berber peoples. Zinedine Zidane, a football star of Algerian Berber ancestry. A young Berber in typical clothes photographed near Zagora, Morocco A Moroccan Berber in in the valley of the Draa river wearing turbanBerbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are discontinuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke various Berber languages, which together form a branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family. Today many of them speak Arabic and also French in the Maghreb, due to the French colonization of the Maghreb, and especially Spanish in Morocco. Today most Berber-speaking people live in Morocco, Algeria, Libya and Tunisia. Many Berbers call themselves some variant of the word Imazighen (singular: Amazigh), possibly meaning "free people" or "free and noble men"(the word has probably an ancient parallel in the Roman name for some of the Berbers, "Mazices"). The best known of the ancient Berbers were the Roman author Apuleius, Saint Augustine of Hippo, and the Roman general Lusius Quietus, who was instrumental in defeating the major Jewish revolt of 115117. Famous Berbers of the Middle Ages included Tariq ibn Ziyad, a general who conquered Hispania; Abbas Ibn Firnas, a prolific inventor and early pioneer in aviation; Ibn Battuta, a medieval explorer who traveled the longest known distances in pre-modern times; and Estevanico, an early explorer of the Americas. Well-known modern Berbers include Zinedine Zidane, a French-born international football star. Because "Be...More: http://booksllc.net/?id=48132 ... Read more

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Berbers and Others offers fresh perspectives on new forms of social and political activism in today's Maghrib. In recent years, the Amazigh (Berber) movement has become a focus of widespread political, social, and cultural attention in North Africa, Europe, and the United States. Berber groups have peacefully yet persistently laid claim to ownership over broad areas of creativity in the arts, politics, literature, education, and national memory. The contributors to this volume present some of the best new thinking in the emerging field of Berber studies, offering insight into historical antecedents, language usage, land rights, household economies, artistic production, and human rights. The scope, depth, and multidisciplinary approach will engage specialists on the Maghrib as well as students of ethnicity, social and political change, and cultural innovation.

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This is a record of the Berber women whose way of life is being eroded as modern times and warfare encroaches. The Berber people can be found around the Atlas Mountains area of North Africa. This book documents their difficult lives - from long mule journeys to sell their handmade clay pots in crowded souks, to stoically carrying water and firewood across miles of rocky terrain - and records the beauty they create through their spinning, weaving and carefully coiled pottery. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Imazighen:Vanishing Traditions of Berber Women
This book presents an excellent survey of Berber crafts.That all of the drafts represented are done by women, is of special interest.The photos are beautiful, both of the women, and of their crafts.The text provides great insight into the history and meaning of the designs used.This book is a must for anyone interested in tribal arts and crafts. ... Read more