Maghrebis

Name

Maghrebis were known in ancient and medieval times as the Roman Africans or Moors. The word Moor is of Phoenician origin. The etymology of the word can be traced back to the Phoenician term phn, meaning "Westerners", from which the ancient Greeks derive grc, and from which Latin derives Mauri.

The Arabic term maghrib () was given by the first Muslim Arab settlers to the recently conquered region located west of the Umayyad capital of Damascus in the 7th century AD. It initially referred to the area extending from Alexandria in the east to the Atlantic Ocean in the west.

Religion

Historic records of religion in the Maghreb region show its gradual inclusion in the Classical World, with coastal colonies established first by Phoenicians, Greeks, and later extensive conquest and rule by the Romans. By the 2nd century common era, the area had become a center of Latin-speaking Christianity. Both Roman settlers and Romanized Berbers converted to Christianity. The region produced figures such as Christian Church writer Tertullian ( 155 – 202); and Christian Church martyrs or leading figures such as St Cyprian of Carthage ( 210 – 258); Saint Monica; her son the philosopher Augustine of Hippo (354 – 430); and Julia of Corsica (5th century). The region was a birthplace of many Christians movements such as Arianism and Donatism, which have since been abandoned.

The domination of Christianity ended when Arab invasions brought Islam in 647. Carthage fell in 698 and the remainder of the region followed in subsequent decades. Gradual Islamization proceeded, although surviving letters showed correspondence from regional Christians to Rome up until the 9th century. Christianity was still a living faith. Christian bishoprics and dioceses continued to be active, with relations continuing with Rome. As late as Pope Benedict VII (974-983) reign, a new Archbishop of Carthage was consecrated. Evidence of Christianity in the region faded through the 10th century.

During the seventh century, the region's peoples began their nearly total conversion to Islam. There was a small but thriving Local Jewish community, as well as a small Local Christian community. Most Muslims follow the Maliki school of Sunni Islam. Small Ibadi communities remain in some areas. A strong tradition of venerating marabouts and saints' tombs is found throughout regions inhabited by Berbers. Any map of the region demonstrates the tradition: the proliferation of "sidi"s show places named after the marabouts. Like some other religious traditions, this has substantially decreased over the 20th century. A network of zawiyas traditionally helped perpetuate basic literacy in Arabic and knowledge of Islam in rural regions.

Recently, the Christian community of Berber or Arab descent has allegedly grown significantly. Conversions to Christianity, especially to Evangelicalism, is common in Algeria, especially in the Kabylie, Morocco, and Tunisia. A 2015 study estimates 380,000 Muslims converted to Christianity in Algeria.

Culture

Main article: Music of the Maghreb, Berber music, Maghreb cuisine, Berber cuisine

Diaspora

France

Maghrebis have settled mainly in the industrial regions in France, especially in the Île-de-France and Mediterranean regions. Many famous French people like Édith Piaf, Isabelle Adjani, Arnaud Montebourg, Alain Bashung, Dany Boon, Gérald Darmanin and many others have Maghrebi ancestry.

According to Michel Tribalat, a researcher at INED, there were more than 4.6 million people of Maghrebi origin (with at least one Maghrebi grandparent from Algeria, Morocco or Tunisia) living in France in 2011 (3 million in 1999). Below is a table of population of Maghrebi origin in France in 2011, numbers are in thousands:

Note: for second generation born in France only individuals under 60 are taken into account.

According to Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques (the French National Institute for Statistics and Economic Studies), 16% of newborns in France between 2006 and 2008 have at least one Maghrebi grandparent born in the Greater Maghreb.

In 2005, the percentage of young people under 18 of Maghrebi origin (at least one immigrant parent) were about 7% in Metropolitan France, 12% in Île-de-France, 13% in Lyon, 21% in Perpignan, 22% in the department of Seine-Saint-Denis, 37% in 18th arrondissement of Paris and 40% in several arrondissements of Marseille.

According to other sources between 5 and 8 million people of Maghrebin origin live in France, and between 150,000 and 300,000 people of Maghrebin origin live in Canada.

References and notes

References

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5. Maghreb people represent 45% of people born in Arab countries who emigrated to Europe and N.America, they are 41% of the all Immigrants in Europe
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