Berbers and their traditions endure in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains

Amazigh villages among the foothills of the High Atlas mountains, near Ouarzazate, central Morocco. Deep in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains, the ancient Berbers live on, defying a harsh environment and remiaing loyal to their traditions and way of life in some of the most hard-to-reach parts of the African continent.

Fatima, 36, prepares a traditional Amazigh meal of couscous on February 5, 2016, at her home in a town near Tounfit in the Middle Atlas, central Morocco.

Amazigh boys watch a football game on February 3, 2016, photo, from a hill in a locally organised tournament between tribes in Kelaat M’Gouna town, southern Morocco.

A shepherd watches over his cattle on February 3, 2016, in the desert of the High Atlas mountains, next to Ouarzazate, central Morocco. The Amazigh — which is believed to mean “free people” or “noble men” — trace their origins as an indigenous people in western North Africa to at least 10,000 B.C.

An Amazigh boy pauses to look at the camera on February 3, 2016, during a locally-organised football tournament between different tribes, in Kelaat M’Gouna town, southern Morocco.

Amazigh villagers shop for fruits and vegetables on February 3, 2016, at a weekly local market in Kalaat M’Gouna, in Ouarzazate, Morocco.

Amazigh villagers rest as the sun sets on February 4, 2016, in a village near Midelt, a town in central Morocco, between the Middle and High Atlas mountains.

Amazigh houses nestled in the foothills of cedar tree forests in Azrou, a town south of Fez, Morocco.

Aesha, 45, and her family live in this cave in the desert of the Anti-Atlas mountains, east of Ourazazate, Morocco.

Hajj Saeed, 56, pours tea for guests on February 5, 2016, at his home in the Middle Atlas town of Tounfit, near the province of Midelt, central Morocco.

Amazigh villagers dig a canal on February 2, 2016, in search of underground water to irrigate their crops, in the village of Douar Timneit, next to Ouarzazate, central Morocco.

Mohammed Tamejout, 26, works among the almond trees on February 2, 2016, at his farm in the town of Kasbah Ellouze, near Kalaat M’Gouna, Morocco.

Villager Mohammed Tamejout, 26, works on his farm in the town of Kasbah Ellouze, near Ouarzazate, Morocco, on February 2, 2016.

A tourist shop in Kalaat M’Gouna, in Ouarzazate, Morocco, displays scarves with the Amazigh symbol.

Amazigh girls play outside their homes on February 4, 2016, in a village near Midelt, a town in central Morocco between the Middle and High Atlas mountains.

Amazigh women wash laundry by the Oum Rabia water springs in Khénifra, Morocco, on February 6, 2016.

IMILCHIL, MOROCCO // Deep in Morocco’s Atlas Mountains, the ancient Berbers live on, defying a harsh environment, and remaining loyal to their traditions and way of life in some of the most hard-to-reach parts of the African continent.

Indomitable and proud, they call themselves the Amazigh, which is believed to mean “free people” or “noble men,” and trace their origins as an indigenous people in western North Africa to at least 10,000BC

They dislike the term Berbers, which stems from Latin and which they find insulting. They are among the many peoples the Romans called Barbarians, but they became the stuff of legend, giving the world famous names such as the medieval explorer Ibn Battuta, who travelled further in distance than Marco Polo.

Their home is the majestic Atlas, the largest mountain range in Africa. Amazigh villages are scattered across arid desert landscapes with burnt-orange rock, occasionally dotted with lush green slopes and surrounded by snow-capped peaks.

Across North Africa, the Berbers number about 50 million. At least 15 million Moroccans are Amazigh, divided into different groups according to their dialects. While they speak the native Amazigh language of Tamazight, which has a numerous dialects and recently gained recognition as an official language in Morocco, many have adopted Arabic as part of a long process of Arabisation and Islamisation.

Today, they rely on cattle and agriculture as their main sources of income, and maintain a nomadic lifestyle closely resembling their ancestors. Some live in clay houses with no electricity or running water, while a few still dwell with their sheep and goats in remote mountain caves. Others live closer to the towns at the Atlas foothills, benefiting from modern amenities.

For much of the year, they face extreme weather conditions. The mountains are covered in snow in winter. In summer, the sun scorches what little crops they grow. When the streams empty during the dry season, the community bands together to dig underground water wells for irrigation.

Many Amazigh own mountain donkeys, often the only mode of transport across the rocky, unpaved roads that connect Berber villages.

That isolation has dashed 26-year-old Mohammed Tamejout’s hopes of finding a job away from home. He studied geography at the university in the Atlas city of Ouarzazate, expecting the degree would lead to a job. But three years after graduating, he remains unemployed and works on his family’s farm in Imilchil, surrounded by almond trees.

When the trees bloom, the farm becomes a sea of cotton-white almond blossoms amid green pastures. Mohammed says the idyllic scene doesn’t touch him.

“There’s no future for me here. If I don’t move to the city, I’ll remain a farmer for the rest of my life,” he said.

Follow Mosa’ab Elshamy at @mosaaberizing