Moroccan Dictionary

Berber

Original inhabitants of Maghreb. Never quite conquered by the Romans, and neither by Arabs or Islam. Most Moroccans are Berber by birth, many of the festivals and more colourful aspects of Morocco are Berber in origin, and Berber clothing (much less restrictive for woman than orthodox Muslim), dialects, holy men (remnants of pre-Islamic cults), shrines, rugs and jewellry are common throughout the country. Individual Berber tribes have their own distinct identity, language and designs. Other References
soc.culture.berber

Camion

French for lorry. Provide the main, albeit erratic, transport infrastructure for the Atlas villages.
Couscous Pre-cooked cracked grain and staple food. Frequently accompanied in an invitation to lunch by gratuitous quacking motion of the hand. Other References
Images of Couscous

Djellaba

Traditional North African robe.

Erg

Sandy desert in general, and a dune in particular.

Gnaoua

Traditional and ritual music, accompanied by ecstatic dance, one of the traditional music brotherhoods.

Hammada

Stony desert. Most of the Moroccan Sahara is composed of such.
Hammam Public steam baths

Jajouka

A village in the Jibala hills near Tangiers, site of an annual moussem believed by some to be a continuation of the ancient Roman fertility rites of Lupercalia, and location of the musical Ecstatic Brotherhood.

Other References

Music Review

Jilala
Religious music, with Sufi origins, played on ceremonial and ritual occasions. Dancers, entering a trance, are able to slash themselves with daggers or touch glowing coals without pain or injury.

Kif
Cannabis, grown in the Rif mountains, to the east of Tangier.
Maghreb Literally, the west. The Arab term for the north-west African states, the furthest western edge of the Arab world.

Medina
The old non-European part of a city. Equivalent to a 'cantonment' in an English colonial city.
Medersa Old student buildings associated with large mosques. Usually built in the old Roman style around a pool-filled atrium with elaborately carved wood.

Moussem
Berber festival, typically in honour of a local holy man (although it's believed that one of the "local" holy men is the Jewish John the Baptist). Stamp of hooves, crack of rifles, auto-winds of a thousand cameras...

Souk
Market for specific produce in the medina. Other References
maghreb.net

Tajine
Dome shaped terracotta cooking pot which lends its name to the classic North African dish. The ubquity of tajine cookery is responsible for the local song and traveller's saying 'tajine, tajine, tajine, tajine, tajine'

Ville Nouvelle
The separate French or Spanish town built near or adjacent to the medina.