Riffians

Riffians or Rifians (, singular: ; ) are a Berber ethnic group originally from the Rif region of northeastern Morocco (includes the autonomous city of Spain, Melilla). 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.

According to Irina Casado i Aijon, Riffians 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 Riffians have been a significant source of Moroccan emigrants into some European countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.

Riffians speak Tarifit, which belongs to the Zenati group of Berber languages. The languages spoken depend on the region, with many Riffians who speak a Berber language also speaking Moroccan Arabic or Spanish. Nineteen groups or social units of Riffians are known: five in the west along the Mediterranean coast which speak Riffian and Moroccan Arabic, seven in the centre of which one speaks mainly Moroccan Arabic and rest Riffian, five in the east and two in the southeastern desert area also speak the Riffian language.The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica
Rif people
Encyclopaedia Britannica

They have inhabited an impoverished and an eroded, deforested, poorly irrigated region. Poverty rates and infant mortality rates among Riffians have been high, according to a study published in 1980 by Terri Joseph. The Riffians 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.

Riffians 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 Riffian fathers during the raid by the Almoravid leader Yusuf ibn Tashfin. In more modern times, the Rif War caused numerous deaths of Riffian 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 Riffians 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 Riffian 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 Riffians are divided into these tribes and tribal groups:

* Ait Ammart
* Ait Boufrah
* Ait Bouyahyi
* Ait Itteft
* Ait Ourich
* Ait Said
* Ait Tafersit
* Ait Temsamane
* Ait Touzine
* Ait Waryaghar
* Ibaqouyen
* Ibdarsen
* Igzenayen
* Ikebdanen
* Iqer'iyen

See also

* Ghomara language
* Senhaja de Srair language
* Senhaja de Srair in the Central Rif
* Ghomara in the Western Rif
* Jbala in the Western Rif
* Beni Iznasen in the Eastern Rif
* Beni Snous Tlemcen, Western Algeria

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Rifian People
Berber peoples and tribes
Berbers in Morocco
Indigenous peoples of North Africa
Ethnic groups in Morocco
Muslim communities in Africa