Ghomaras

غمارة ⵉⵖⵎⴰⵔⵏ
Location map of the Ghomara tribes[1]
Total population
12,000[citation needed]
Regions with significant populations
Western Rif, Morocco
Languages
Ghomara Berber, Arabic
Religion
Sunni Islam
Related ethnic groups
other Berbers

The Ghomara (Arabic: غمارة, Berber languages: ⵉⵖⵎⴰⵔⵏ Ighmarn) are a group of tribes in northern Morocco of about 12,000 people^{[dubious – discuss]},^{[citation needed]} living between the rivers Oued Laou and Ouringa, east of Chefchaouen and south of Tetouan, in the Western Rif. The river Tiguisas runs through their territory.^[2]

Originally, Ghomaras were a Berber tribal group belonging to the Masmuda confederacy. While most have shifted to speaking Arabic, a minority continue to speak the Berber Ghomara language.^[2]

Tribes[edit]

The Ghomaras are traditionally divided into nine tribes:^[2]

• Ait Bouzra, partially Berber speaking tribe
• Ait Grir
• Ait Khaled
• Ait Mansour, partially Berber speaking tribe
• Ait Rezin
• Ait Selman
• Ait Smih
• Ait Zejel
• Ait Ziat

Bibliography[edit]

• G. Camps & J. Vignet-Zunz, "Ghomâra", Encyclopédie berbère, vol.20, 1998, pp. 3110–3119
• Jamal el Hannouche, "Arabic influence in Ghomara Berber", Leiden University, 2010.
• Jamal el Hannouche, "Ghomara Berber, a brief grammatical survey", Leiden University, 2008.
• Peter Behnstedt,"La frontera entre el bereber y el árabe en el Rif", Estudios de dialectología norteafricana y andalusí vol. 6, 2002.
• Georges Séraphin Colin, "Le parler berbère des Ghomara", Hesperis 9, 1929, pp. 43–58.

References[edit]