Rifians

Rifians
Irifiyen
Irifiyen
Total population
Around 1.5 million
(4% of Moroccan population; 2014)
Languages
Tarifit, Moroccan Arabic
Religion
Sunni Islam
Rifian speaking regions of Morocco (yellow).

Rifians, or Riffians, (Tarifit: Irifiyen; singular: Arifi, pronounced [iɾifijən, æɾifi]; Arabic: الروافة، الريافة, ar-riyafa, ar-rwafa}) are a Berber ethnic group originally from the Rif region of northeastern Morocco, who derive their name from the Rif region, an Arabic term meaning "edge of cultivated area". Communities of Riffian immigrants are also found in southern Spain, Netherlands and Belgium as well as elsewhere in Western Europe. They are overwhelmingly Sunni Muslims, but retain their pre-Islamic traditions such as high status for Rifian women.

According to Irina Casado i Aijon, Rifians have traditionally organized themselves under "patrilineality and patrilocality principles". The oldest man in the household commands authority and responsibility for decisions, while women jointly care for the young and sick without any discrimination. Like other Berbers, temporary migration is an accepted tradition. The Rifians have been a significant source of Moroccan emigrants into some European countries such as the Netherlands.

Rifians speak the Tamazight group of Berber languages, specifically Tarifit. The languages spoken depend on the region, with many Rifians who speak a Berber language also speaking Arabic or Spanish. Nineteen groups or social units of Rifians are known: 5 in the west along the Mediterranean coast which speak Arabic, 7 in the centre of which one speaks mainly Arabic and rest Riff language, 5 in the east and 2 in the southeastern desert area also speak the Riff-Berber language.

They have inhabited an impoverished and an eroded, deforested, poorly irrigated region. Poverty rate and infant mortality rates among Rifians has been high, according to a study published in 1980 by Terri Joseph. The Rifians have lived a largely settled, agricultural lifestyle, using hand tools, oxen and cattle to plow the steeply terraced land in their valleys. Horticultural produce along with sheep and goat meat, cheese, and milk provide the traditional sustenance. Some practice sardine-seining along the Mediterranean coast.

Rifians have experienced numerous wars over their history. Some of their cultural traditions reflects and remembers this history, such as the singing and dancing of Ayara Liyara, Ayara Labuya, which literally means "Oh Lady oh Lady, oh Lady Buya" and is accompanied by izran (couplets) and addjun (tambourine tapping). This tradition, states Hsain Ilahiane, is linked to the 11th-century destruction and deaths of the Rifian fathers during the raid by the Almoravid leader Yusuf ibn Tashfin. In more modern times, the Rif War caused numerous deaths of Rifian people and of Spanish as well as French soldiers. The Rif War witnessed the use of chemical weapons in the 1920s by the Spanish army.

In 1958, some Rifians revolted against the government. In the decades that followed, the Rif region has witnessed popular demonstrations and demands for better education, healthcare and job opportunities. A resurgent Rifian popular movement in 2010, their protests in 2013 and protests in 2017 for hogra – a humiliating treatment by an abusive state, has drawn public attention, as well as claims of brutal suppression by Moroccan authorities.

Tribes and tribal groups

The Rifians are divided into these tribes and tribal groups:

  • Ait Touzine, a tribal group
  • Ayt Uryaɣel, a tribal group
  • Ayt Bu Frah, mostly Arabic-speaking
  • Mestassa, a tribe
  • Mtiwa, a tribe
  • Targuist, a tribe
  • Oulad Stout, Arabic speaking
  • Ayt Bu Yihyi (or Bni Bu Yihyi)
  • Ayt 'Ammart, a tribal group
  • Ayt Said, a tribe
  • Ayt Tourich, a tribal group
  • Ayt Yittuft, mostly Arabic-speaking
  • Igzinnayen, a tribal group
  • Ibdarsen (or Mtalsa), a tribe
  • Ibuqquyen, a tribal group
  • Ikebdanen (or Kebdana)
  • Iqar'ayen (or Qal'aya), five tribal confederacies
  • Thafarsith (or Tafarsit), a tribe
  • Timsaman, a tribal group

People of Rifian descent

See also


This page was last updated at 2022-09-02 23:06 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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