Berber languages

Afro-Asiatic - Berber

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The Berber languages are mainly spoken in Morocco and Algeria. A very sparse population extends into the whole Sahara and the northern part of the Sahel. They belong to Afro-Asiatic languages phylum.

Among the Berber languages are Rif-Berber[?] or Riffi (Northern Morocco), Kabyl[?] (Algeria) and Tamazight[?], spoken by the Imazighen[?] (lit. 'noblemen') from Algeria and Tunisia. Tamazight was an oral language only, until the end of the 20th century, when a written alphabet was construed.

The Berber languages in the Maghreb[?] have officially been subjected to Arab, as part of government policy and was mainly spoken at home and in villages. However, with a growing tribe-awareness and desire for (at least cultural) independence (especially among the Kabyl people), the mother tongue[?] has become more important and efforts are made to make for instance formal education bi-lingual. In this sense, Berber languages have become political tools to support the struggle for (more) independence.

The Berber languages are subdivided in

• Eastern Berber languages
• Guanche
• Northern Berber languages[?]
• Tamasheq languages
• Zenaga

See also: Berber