Imilchil or Imilshil ( , ar, إملشيل) is a small town in

Midelt Province Midelt is a province in the Morocco, Moroccan economic region of Drâa-Tafilalet. It was created in 2009 from parts of the provinces of Khénifra Province, Khénifra and Errachidia Province, Errachidia. Its centre of administration is the town Mid ...

of central

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 to ...

, in the Atlas Mountains with a population of about 1,858. It is located at an elevation of 2119 m in the valley of Asif Mellulen ("white river"). The area of Imilchil is home to the Ayt Hdiddu tribe, belonging to the

Ait Yafelman The Ait Yafelman ( Berber: Ayt Yafelman) are a large Berber tribal confederation of the eastern High Atlas of Morocco, with their capital at Imilchil. They consist of four tribes: Ayt Morghad, Ayt Haddidou, Ayt Izdeg and Ayt Yehia. These tribes cr ...

confederation, and the inhabitants speak

Central Atlas Tamazight Central Atlas Tamazight or Atlasic (also known as Central Morocco Tamazight, variant of tashelhit, Middle Atlas Tamazight, Tamazight, Central Shilha and, rarely, Beraber or Braber; native name: ⵜⴰⵎⴰⵣⵉⵖⵜ ''Tamazight'' , ) is a Be ...

. Tourist attractions in the area include the caves of Axyam (Akhyam), the Aguni waterfalls, the

Ziz Gorges The Ziz Gorges are a series of gorges in Morocco on the upper course of the Ziz River. They are defined by two gates at the southern and northern ends. At the southern end is the Hassan Addakil dam and lake. Nearby is the Tunnel de Légionnaire bu ...

and Valley and the ''igherman'' castles (

ksar Ksar or qsar (Maghrebi Arabic: wiktionary:قصر, قصر ''qṣer'' or ڭصر ''gser'', plural ''qṣur''; Berber language, Berber: ⵉⴴⵔⵎ ''aghrem'' or ''ighrem'', plural: ''igherman''), plural ksars, qsars, ksour or qsour, is the Nor ...

s) of the area.

Climate

Due to its altitude, Imilchil has a severe warm-summer continental mediterranean climate (''Dsb''), according to the Köppen system due to its below-freezing average temperature for the coldest month. Summers are hot and quite dry, with warm days and cool nights while winters are cold and snowy with below-freezing conditions, especially at night.

Marriage Festival

The town of Imilchil represents a symbol of Berber culture, known for its festival, officially known as ''Betrothal Festival'' - the ''Souk Aam'' or ''Agdoud N'Oulmghenni''. The legend goes that two young people from different tribes fell in love, but were forbidden to see each other by their families. The grief led them to cry themselves to death, creating the neighbouring lakes of Isli (his) and Tislit (hers) near Imilchil. The families decided to establish a day on the anniversary of the lovers' death - when members of local tribes could marry each other. Thus the Imilchil Marriage Festival was born. In reality, the region is a large scattering of tiny villages, and when young person needs to find a partner, they can't simply go and look for one, due to the conservative social norms. Thus, the festival allows for fathers to show their daughters and find husbands for them. When a woman accepts a man's proposal to marry, she says "You have captured my liver" (Tq massa n uchemt). Up to 40 couples take their vows on the same day. The festival is rich with music, dancing, feasts, and colorful clothing. The celebrations attracts many tourists to the area, and though contributing to local economy, there are fears that the rituals can be affected by the foreigners.

References

External links

A video of the "Festival de musique des cimes".

{{Midelt Province Berber populated places Berber words and phrases Populated places in Midelt Province Mountain villages in Morocco