Jebala people

A Jebala woman at a marketplace

The variety of Arabic spoken by the Jbala falls under the sub-dialect grouping of shamali Arabic. Together with shamali, the jebli dialect belongs to the so-called Pre-Hilali or Non-Hilali group of Maghrebi Arabic, sometimes also referred to as ‘mountaineer Arabic’. This term was introduced by Marçais[11] and Colin,[12] who argued that the first arabicization of Northern Africa took place long before the migration of the Bani Hilal tribe in the 12th-13th centuries. The pre-Hilali group consists of the Jebli dialect together with the dialects spoken in other North African cities. The Jbala, together with several groups of population inhabiting the Algerian and Tunisian part of the Tell Atlas, were the first Imazighen (Berbers) who arabicised their language,[13] probably due to their proximity to the old route that once connected Fes (as well as Tlemcen and Constantine) with Mediterranean ports, especially with those located in al-Andalus.[14] As the most archaic group of Arabic dialects in the region, the Pre-Hilali dialects are characterised by a strong influence from Berber on all levels—phonetic, morphological, and lexical.[15]

The traditional clothing for women includes shawls called "mendils" made from cotton or wool. These rectangular shawls are often woven in stripes of white and red in the region. They are wrapped around the waist to form skirts. They are also used as shawls and for holding babies or goods on the back or front of the body.[16]

The traditional man's outer garment is the djellaba, a one-piece cotton or woolen cloak with a pointed hood. In the Jebala region, the wool is usually undyed so dark brown and off-white colours are common. White djellabas are worn for religious festivals.[17]

The Jebala favour pointed-toed leather slippers. Natural light brown, yellow and white are the most common colours. Reed hats are another traditional feature of Jebala dress for both men and women. Women's hats are often adorned with woven woollen tassels and roping in black, white and red variations.[18]

Today, the oral poetic tradition of the Jbala is known among outsiders under the generic term ayta jabaliya. At the national level, it became famous across Morocco largely thanks to the efforts of a talented poet, musician and singer of Jebli origin (Bni Zerwal بني زروال), Mohamed Laroussi, (محمد  لعروسي) (1933-2014), who received from his countrywide audiences the honorary titles of the fannān Jbāla’ (فنان  جبالة), or ‘the artist of the Jbala’, or ‘maḥbūb Jbāla’ (محبوب جبالة), or ‘beloved by all Jbala people’. For decades his songs have been available for purchase not only in northern Morocco, where Laaroussi's name is widely known, but throughout the country, first on LPs, then tapes, and recently on CDs and in MP3 format. Laaroussi's concerts have been regularly shown on Moroccan television since the 1960s. Today both his audio and video records can be easily found on YouTube and other internet video hosting sites.

Although pretty much everything produced in the Jbala region is referred to as ayta jabaliya, there are in fact three different genres: ʿayta jebliya’ (عيطة جبلية), ʿayyuʿ (عيوع) and ughniya’ (اغنية). Interestingly, and despite their heterogeneity, the Jbala trace their ethnic and cultural origin to the times of Moorish Andalusian Spain (711-1492).[15] Any Jbala musician and singer, who is often also a ‘poet’ and even an ‘artist’ (because Jebli poetry does not exist without music and performance and a local poet almost always sings his own songs, accompanying himself with a musical instrument) will usually tell an outsider the legend of Tariq ibn Ziyad, the famous conqueror of Spain, his trip through the Straits of Gibraltar (Jabal Tariq, the Mountain of Tariq, hence "Gibraltar"), and the sad end of Islamic rule in Spain. The sense of cultural continuity between the Jbala region and Andalusia is very strong even today.[15]

The traditional Jebli poetry has the following general characteristics: it is practically always oral and almost always unauthored: in the traditional Jebli culture it is very unusual to hear that someone claims authorship of a particular song/poem. Poetry is often improvised but sometimes can also be memorised and then performed. Remarkably, Jebli poetry is always linked to music and performance and, perhaps because of this, is never referred to as ‘poetry’ or shi’r (شعر) or zajal (زجل). Instead, it is routinely called klam (كلام), which can be roughly compared to the meaning of English ‘lyrics’. At the same time, music or lhan (لحن), is highly valued and it is always music that identifies the genre.[19]

A traditional Jebli poet links his/her verses to a particular melody, from the set of possible melodies typical of this tradition. Once the melody is chosen, he/she then tries to organise his/her poetry into beyt-s (بيت), or quatrains. It is not clear how well the poet understands the concept of Arabic beyt and links to it concept of qafiya (قافية), or rhyme. It is very possible that local poets use this terminology in a rather superficial way: after all, their poems only exist during the moment when they are being performed. In other words, a Jebli poem is difficult to visualise on paper and can be compared to a rather distant tradition of Classical Arabic poetry that was once born n the Arabian Peninsula. However, a Jebli beyt does have particular characteristics that the poet has in mind and tries to conform with: beyt is typically but not necessarily made of four hemistichs, where each one is made of 6-8 syllables, and the second hemistich is rhymed with the fourth one. If the beyt becomes a part of ayta jebliya or ughniya, the poet will also produce a lazima (لازمة), or refrain, that will cement the text together. This poetry has recently been analyzed within the framework of cognitive poetics, showing how spontaneous oral performance is aided by recourse to cognitive frames, scripts and formulaic language.[20]

Music and dancing are also very important in Jbala culture. The Jebala play the "Ghayta" (a form of clarinet), and the tbul (drum), and dancing is generally performed by boys. The Rif musicians, who belong to a socially and occupational inferior class calling themselves "Imdhyazen", generally come from one tribe, the "Ait Touzin". They play the "Addjun" (tambourine) and the "zammar" (a kind of clarinet) with unmarried girls and old women dancing.[10]

The Rif is not just a mountainous area. Its proximity to the straits of Gibraltar gave this area an important role: the western part of the Rif is a transit route, leading to the Mediterranean world, in particular, to al-Andalus. This has had a certain impact on its inhabitants: early arabisation, a high density of literate people, the cultural and economic influence of neighbouring cities, etc.[14] In addition, these factors led to the emergence of technical innovations that are modest, yet surprising in the Maghreb context: sloping thatched-roofs (الدار د سقف), identical to those found in the south of Andalusia; the yoking of horned cattle, where the yoke is placed at the base of the skull, just behind the horns (برواسي) to which it is fixed, a system which is known only in some limited areas in Europe; the haystack (التمون) made without a cob bedding, instead held together by a set of cords fixed with stones; the granary raised on pillars (لهري), which exists in some other parts of the world, the closest place being in the Spanish Cantabrian Mountains; the hand flour mill with connecting rod-crank (رحي د ليد), where an alternating movement transforms into a rotary movement, according to the mechanical principle of the connecting rod-crank; the water mill with vertical shed  (رحي   د الما), the use of which is limited to a small area on the straits of Gibraltar, unlike the ramp mill which is in use in the rest of the country; the oil press with double lateral screws (معيصرة), mobile because of its small size; and the piston-type butter-churn (مخاط), with vertical movement instead of lateral.[21]

Where did this technical originality come from? Perhaps, this heritage has been in a suitable position to resist changes: this is a well preserved area located precisely at the heart of the Rif chain. Moreover, it is shielded by the sea and, at the same time, protected from southern influences by the barrier of the great ridge. This isolation had a double effect, added to four centuries of no contact between Morocco and the Iberian Peninsula. But perhaps we should consider this entire region of northwest Morocco to be a privileged area in terms of confluences, since it combines a great diversity of natural factors with its proximity to the sea and presence on terrestrial routes.

The Rif is one of the most populated mountain ranges in the Mediterranean basin. The western and central parts of this area are considered as a “hot spot” of Mediterranean biodiversity: we can speak of a true refuge of agrodiversity,[22] where rare crops of cereals and legumes that are considered at a national level to be minor or marginal have been preserved, such as rye, or chentil (آشنتيل), small spelt or einkorn, chqalia (شقالية), and sorghum, or dra (درة), is the main spring cereal instead of the usual corn. As well as the impressive diversity of fruit trees. There are over a hundred varieties of fig trees.[23] In addition, vine production has long been known in this region, evidence of which has been documented by many travellers.[24] Today, grape syrup, known as samit (صامت), is still produced locally; often it is lightly fermented and then contains alcohol, which causes controversy about the legitimacy of its use (in the context of Islamic beliefs). The olive tree is essential and occupies 77% of the land used for tree planting. This area is also known for production of original honeys, particularly the carob and arbutus types. Wild plants are widely utilised because of their nutritional value. On the other hand, the flax and mulberry trees have disappeared and, with them, have disappeared a significant number of local crafts.

At the level of agronomic practices, the local population has been successfully bringing innovation into local products. These products are of special value, given the current interest and strong demand for organic produce, as well as produce with important dietary properties, based on ancient traditions and local varieties. However, the transmission of this know-how to the new generation is proving difficult.[25]