Birth Rituals In The Amazigh Culture And Socio-Economic Development: The Case of Ayt Merghad

During the last decades, Morocco has embarked on a process of modernization and development. However, the policy makers have disregarded the inherently close links that exist between culture and development. Adopting models of development that ignore and marginalize the multi-cultural aspect of the nation has led to the gradual loss of the country’s cultural heritage. The current state of the Amazigh culture provides compelling evidence in that respect. The book, therefore, seeks to provide an ethnographic overview of the impact of socio-economic development on the Amazigh cultural heritage among Ayt Merghad. More specifically, the study is concerned with the investigation of the gradual loss of the Amazigh culture in the target community, with a special focus on the birth rituals. Thematically, the book will hopefully contribute to a better understanding of the Amazigh culture and enrich the on-going debates about the impact of socio-economic development on birth rituals among Ayt Merghad.

Fatima Gaddar is a Ph.D. candidate at Mohammed V University in Rabat. She is an MA holder in Applied Linguistics from the Faculty of Education in Rabat. Her research interests include applied linguistics, ethnography, the Amazigh culture and culture loss.