Day 3 of 30 Days of Travel: Berber in the blue city. Chefchaouen. Morocco.
Berber letters on tiles along on the streets of Chefchaouen, Morocco.
The Berber languages are a family of similar languages and dialects spoken by the Berbers indigenous to North Africa. It is a branch of the Afroasiatic family. Berber is commonly spoken in Morocco, Algeria and Libya, and in some parts of Tunisia, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and in the Siwa Oasis of Egypt.
The Berber languages are over 2,500 years old with the oldest dated written form from the 3rd century BC. In 2001, Berber was named the constitutional national language of Algeria. And in 2011 it became the constitutionally official language of Morocco.
When traveling in North Africa keep your eyes open for this interesting and unique language. Across Morocco, as you meet locals many will proudly state they are Berber and share their families history as a member of this unique cultural group.
[Throughout the month of January we will be sharing 30 Days of Travel on our blog, Facebook page, Twitter page, and Instagram. Join us there and let’s inspire each other to fill 2018 with travel plans, inspiration, dreams, visiting travel wish list destinations, and exploring this big, beautiful planet we all share. For 30 days of January (plus one bonus day) we will be sharing an inspiring travel nuggets every day – his may be a photo, video, article, or travel tip. Join us every day here in January for a new inspiring travel nugget and share with us what inspires your travel for 2018.]
Photo: Genevieve Hathaway Productions
