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In Pictures: Imilchil marriage festival

Despite its name, the traditional Amazigh gathering in Morocco is not designed for wedding ceremonies.

Two men walk across one of the fertile valleys that characterises an otherwise dry mountainous landscape near the festival grounds.
By Nadir Bouhmouch and Aziza Zriouel
Published On 31 Oct 2014

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Imilchil, Morocco – In the eastern High Atlas mountains of Morocco, the Moussem (or festival) of Sidi Hmad Mghani marks the end of the harvest ahead of the freezing winter. Held at the intersection of several major nomadic roads, the festival has been a gathering of several Amazigh tribes for approximately four centuries.

According to Imilchil historian Bassou Oujabbor, the Moussem is primarily a religious event celebrating Sidi Hmad Mghani. A local holy man, Mghani is believed to bring blessings to political agreements between tribes and the business transactions made in the large market set up for the occasion.

Besides its religious aspect, the market is the main feature of the event. It is primarily an opportunity for shepherds to sell their cattle, but also for now-settled nomadic groups to sell textiles and artisanal and agricultural goods.

More recently, the gathering has begun to attract the Amazigh intelligentsia from major Moroccan cities, who come to celebrate Amazigh culture.

However, what the Moussem is most known for, outside of Imilchil, are the marriages that supposedly take place during the event. Oujabbor explains that this is a misconception: “There are no wedding ceremonies during the event; it is simply an opportunity for already-married couples in this geographically isolated region to obtain marriage certificates from the state.”

Imilchil resident Fadma Bassou explains that the tribes in the region reject the title of “Festival of Marriage”, which was created by the state in the early 1960s to stimulate tourism in Midelt province. After the construction of paved roads, couples began to travel to obtain their marriage certificates in towns such as Er-Rich or Midelt.

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It was then that the governor of Errachidia began to offer a cash prize of 700 dirhams ($80) for couples who marry at the Moussem. Couples have also reported being refused marriage certificates and being told to obtain them at the festival during the two-month period preceding the event.

Tifinagh script is spray-painted over signs indicating directions in Arabic. As the first generation of Amazigh university graduates from this region return from major cities, they bring with them ideas on Amazigh language rights.
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Youth cycle back to Bouzmou, a small village near the festival grounds. 
An Ahidous group walks to the stage. Ahidous is an Amazigh musical and dance performance that involves men and women standing in a line, chanting and beating on a bendir drum.
Three women walk through the market. Their white capes lined in intricate patterns, represent female fertility and are a symbol of their status as single women.
Fadma, from the Ait Hdidou tribe, is displeased with the way the Moussem is perceived by outsiders as a (***)festival of marriage(***).
Differentiating themselves from the women wearing white capes, these women make their status as married women clear with black capes. The woman on the right is wearing a traditional one, while the one on the left dons an imported cloth from the Saharan region to the south.
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Two shepherds have set aside some of their goats to provide market-goers with grilled meat and tea.
Declining to give his name, this farmer, like most of elders in Imilchil, can only speak Tamazight.
A crowd of locals and tourists gather in front of this building, recently constructed by the state to receive couples. A gendarme opens the door and calls out the names of the next couple to come in.
A crowd looks on as Ahidous dancers prepare to begin their performance.
For centuries, the festival has been an opportunity for otherwise distant clans to discuss various issues, from politics to the latest season’s harvest.
A girl takes shelter from the rain under a tent belonging to a carpet merchant.
Tourists stand in a line normally reserved for brides. Imilchil has seen an influx of tourists ever since the state initiative to stimulate tourism through the festival.
During an Ahidous show, women perform the (***)dance of two wives(***), simulating an argument between wives in a polygamous marriage.