WHO ARE THE BERBERS?
Since time immemorial, North Africa has been inhabited by the indigenous people known as Imazighen*. These Berber populations, across northern Africa, have known a series of invasions and occupations that date back thousands of years, including those of the Phoenicians, the Romans, the Vandals, the Byzantines, the Arabs, the Spanish, the Turks and the French. Despite ceaseless efforts by each colonizer to erase and eradicate this indigenous culture, the latter not only survived but also constitutes the foundation onto which the other cultural layers were added. In addition, North Africa has also benefited from centuries-long contact with the Andalusian culture in the north and the sub-Saharan civilizations in the south. The Berber culture stretches from Egypt’s Siwa oasis in the east to the Canary Islands in the West, and from the Mediterranean shores in the north to the desert plains of the Sahara. The Berbers, whose total population is estimated at 25 million, are principally concent
