''Académie Berbère d'Échange et de Recherches Culturels'', usually shortened to ''Académie Berbère'' or the Berber Academy was a Paris-based
Kabyle cultural association formed in 1966 and officially authorized in March 1967 with the objective of raising
Berber consciousness.
The association was renamed Agraw Imazighen (English: Assembly of the
Imazighen
, image = File:Berber_flag.svg
, caption = The Berber flag, Berber ethnic flag
, population = 36 million
, region1 = Morocco
, pop1 = 14 million to 18 million
, region2 = Algeria
, p ...
) in
Tamazight
The Berber languages, also known as the Amazigh languages or Tamazight,, ber, label=Tuareg Tifinagh, ⵜⵎⵣⵗⵜ, ) are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They comprise a group of closely related languages spoken by Berber communi ...
in 1969.
History
Berber Academy is primarily associated with
Algerian activist
Mohand Arav Bessaoud, who formed the group with a small group of "Kabyle luminaries from the worlds of scholarships, arts, and politics," including
Ramdane Haifi,
Mouloud Mammeri
Mouloud Mammeri () was an Algerian writer, anthropologist and linguist.
Biography
He was born on December 28, 1917, in Ait Yenni, in Tizi Ouzou Province, French Algeria. He attended a primary school in his native village, then emigrated t ...
, Mohand Saïd Hanouz, and singer
Taos Amrouche, who hosted their first meeting in her home in Paris.
The association faced internal disagreement as to whether to have an intellectual or grassroots activist focus.
The association relaunched in 1969 as Agraw Imazighen with the first Berber concert.
The relaunch and Tamazight-language name change "marked a shift toward a more particularist, Berber-centered agenda" primarily concerned with making "the general public aware of the history and civilization of the Berbers and to promote their language and culture."
This served as a turning point for Berber diaspora culture in France, as well as for the Berberist movement outside of it.
The association published an influential monthly bulletin, ''Imazighen'' (French: ''Imazighéne''), in both French and
Kabylian, the latter using Neo-Tifinagh.
''Imazighen'' and other publications were distributed by the association to thousands of Kabylian coffeehouses throughout Paris, and they were further circulated by readers in Algeria and
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...
.
Though ''Imazighen'' was viewed by many as overly radical, it was generally very positively received by Berber communities, with thousands of letters of support being sent from Algeria and Morocco.
''Imazighen'' ran for thirty issues.
Berber Academy was dissolved in 1976, largely due to lack of finances.
Neo-Tifinagh
Berber Academy created a derivation of the
Tuareg
The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym: ''Imuhaɣ/Imušaɣ/Imašeɣăn/Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group that principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern Alg ...
Tifinagh
Tifinagh ( Tuareg Berber language: or , ) is a script used to write the Berber languages. Tifinagh is descended from the ancient Libyco-Berber alphabet. The traditional Tifinagh, sometimes called Tuareg Tifinagh, is still favored by the Tuar ...
orthography, now known as Neo-Tifinagh, to accommodate
Kabyle phonetics.
They taught local members of the Kabyle diaspora community Neo-Tifinagh, and used it in their widely read bulletin, ''Imazighen''.
Neo-Tifinagh has since undergone further reform and is used in various contexts throughout North Africa.
See also
*
Berber flag
The Berber flag (Berber language: Akenyal Amaziɣ, ⴰⴾⴻⵏⵢⴰⵍ ⴰⵎⴰⵣⵉⵗ) or Amazigh flag is a flag that has been adopted by many Berber populations including protestors, cultural and political activists.
The flag was inaugur ...
*
Royal Institute of the Amazigh Culture
The Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture (french: Institut royal de la culture amazighe (IRCAM); zgh, ⴰⵙⵉⵏⴰⴳ ⴰⴳⵍⴷⴰⵏ ⵏ ⵜⵓⵙⵙⵏⴰ ⵜⴰⵎⴰⵣⵉⵖⵜ, Asinag Ageldan n Tussna Tamazight (SGSM); ar, المعه ...
*
Berber language
The Berber languages, also known as the Amazigh languages or Tamazight,, ber, label=Tuareg Tifinagh, ⵜⵎⵣⵗⵜ, ) are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They comprise a group of closely related languages spoken by Berber commun ...
*
Libyco-Berber alphabet
The Libyco-Berber alphabet or the Libyc alphabet (modern Berber name: ''Agemmay Alibu-Maziɣ'') is an abjad writing system that was used during the first millennium BC by various Berber peoples of North Africa and the Canary Islands, to write anci ...
*
Tifinagh
Tifinagh ( Tuareg Berber language: or , ) is a script used to write the Berber languages. Tifinagh is descended from the ancient Libyco-Berber alphabet. The traditional Tifinagh, sometimes called Tuareg Tifinagh, is still favored by the Tuar ...
References
Cultural organizations based in France
Kabyle diaspora
Berber culture
Berberism
Berbers in France
Diaspora organizations in France
{{berber-stub