Ghomara Arabic and Berber
From a linguistic viewpoint Ghomara is highly interesting for various reasons. The numerous villages of the Beni Bouzra and Beni Mensour tribes—in the latter, only the faction of the Beni ʕṛuṣ—maintain a Berber variety of great interest to the study of linguistic contact and the convergence between Berber and local Moroccan varieties. This variety is known as ššǝlḥa amongst its almost 10,000 speakers (El Hannouche 2010: 25).
Nevertheless, the rest of Ghomara is Arabic-speaking. The relative isolation of the region, as well as the contact with Berber, are resulting in greater preservation of its most distinctive features. However, this situation is changing at an accelerated rate due to a linguistic change in progress taking place mainly through a levelling process.
The Arabic spoken in Ghomara is part of non-Hilali dialects, in particular, of the Jebli-type (rural group). The first data analysed so far shows that Ghomara could represent a frontier between the northern Jebli dialects (Ghomara most western varieties) and southern dialects (eastern and interior varieties of Ghomara, also closer to Ghomara Berber on the one side and to Ketama Berber on the other).
As for Ghomara Berber, it would compose, along with Senhaja Berber, an independent group from that constituted by the varieties of Tarifit, which belong to the zenata group, unlike the others (Kossmann 2016). Ghomara Berber is a unique example due to the great mutual influence between Arabic and Berber resulting in an almost identical phonological system where it is difficult to pinpoint what influenced what; parallel systems in terms of morphology; an equally similar syntax and a strong influence of Arabic terms on the lexicon.
Ghomara Arabic: The hedgehog and the jackal
Árabe de Ghomara: El erizo y el chacal.
(1) qŭnna[1] ǝš-šǝnkūf kānu mǝtʕāšrīn hŭwwa w-ǝd-dīḇ[2], (2) dāru ǝz-zḇīr mʕa băʕṭīţǝm[3], (3) dāru ǝl-ġĭṛṣa na-nqūlu[4] ḥnāya[5]. (4) ǝwa w-ġǝṛṣu fīha, qŭnna ġǝṛṣu fīha. (5) f-ǝl-ʔawwǝl, ġǝṛṣu fīha t-ţăwm. (6) ǝwa šţāwăṛ ǝš-šǝnkūf mʕa d-dīḇ, qāl lu: (7) “šǝnni ġāḏi[6] ddi? (8) wāš ġāḏi ddi ǝl-qāʕ, ǝl-qāʕ; wǝlla ġāḏi ddi ǝṛ-ṛāṣ, ṛ-ṛāṣ?” (9) ǝd-dīḇ čāf l-ūṛāq u-xūḍăṛ u-hāyda wǝ-ḵḇīrīn w-ḏīk ǝš-ši, (10) ma ʕārǝf-ši šǝnni ka-yǝqqi. (11) qāl: “āna ġādi nǝddi ǝṛ-ṛās, ṛ-ṛāṣ”. (12) qāl lu: “ṣāfi”. (13) qāl lu: “w-āna nǝddi l-qāʕ, l-qāʕ”. (14) ǝwa ḥǝṣḏ̣u, ḥǝṣḏ̣u ḏīḵ ǝt-ţăwm, ḥǝṣḏ̣u ḏīḵ ǝt-ţăwm. (15) ǝd-dīḇ ǝdda l-ūṛāq, xāwi; w-ǝš-šǝnkūf dda ǝt-ţăwm. (16) wāxxa, dūwzu hāḏīḵ, dūwzu hāḏīḵ. (17) l-ʕām lli ḍāṛ qāl lu: (18) “ʕāwǝd āṛa nʕāwdu hād ǝz-zḇīr”. qāl lu: “wāxxa”. (19) ʕāw[7] ǝš dāru fīh? qŭnna dāru fīh dīḵ ǝl-fūl. (20) ǝwa ʕāw kǝḇru w-dīḵ ǝš-ši, ʕāw šţāwăṛ mʕăh, qāl lu: (21) “āži[8]! šǝnni ġa [9] ddi nţa[10]? (22) wāš ġa ddi ṛ-ṛāṣ, ṛ-ṛāṣ, wǝlla ġa ddi l-qāʕ, l-qāʕ?” (23) qāl lu: “măṛṛa xṛa šmǝtţīni, dāḇa hād ǝl-măṛṛa hādi ġa nǝddi l-qāʕ, l-qāʕ, (24) ma ġa nǝddi-ši ṛ-ṛāṣ, ṛ-ṛāṣ, ṛ-ṛāṣ ntīna[11] ddīh”. (25) qāl lu: “wāxxa”. (26) zḍăq[12] ǝš-šǝnkūf dda ǝl-fūl w-ǝd-dīḇ dda ġīṛ lǝ-ʕrūq, (27) ka-ytsǝmma ma kāyǝn wālu. ēwa::: (28) hāḏa hŭwwa, l-qĭṣṣa ḏ băyn d-dīḇ w-ǝš-šǝnkūf.[1] < /qŭlna/. [2] Se ha marcado la fricatización a pesar de su inestabilidad ([ḇ], [ḏ], [ḏ̣] et [ḵ]), también la africación de la dental sorda aunque en el caso de este informante es débil. [3] /ḍ/>/ṭ/. [4] Uso del preverbio variable la- en primera persona con la asimilación a la desinencia de primera persona n-: na-. [5] Pronombre personal distintivo de los dialectos septentrionales de Jbala. [6] Esta partícula de futuro no es la más utilizada en Qāʕ Asrās, hay un uso extendido de māši. [7] Forma abreviada del adverbio ʕāwǝd. [8] No se percibe la africación de la chicheante siendo un rasgo común en Qāʕ Asrās. [9] Forma abreviada de la partícula de futuro ġādi (v. nota 6). [10] Distinción de género en la segunda persona singular propia de otros dialectos marroquíes. [11] Pronombre de segunda persona singular invariable en género, propio de algunas variedades rurales y urbanas del norte de Marruecos. [12] <{ṣdq}
(1) Contábamos que el erizo y el chacal se frecuentaban, (2) plantaron un huerto entre ellos, (3) plantaron una huerta decimos nosotros[1] . (4) Entonces plantaron en ella, contábamos que plantaron en ella. (5) La primera vez plantaron ajo. (6) Entonces el erizo consultó al chacal diciendo: (7) “¿Qué te vas a llevar? (8) ¿Te vas a llevar el fondo, fondo, o te vas a llevar la cima, cima?”[2] (9) El chacal vio las hojas, dio vueltas y así, [las hojas] grandes y esas cosas, (10) no supo qué hacer. (11) Entonces contestó: “Yo me voy a llevar la cima, cima”. (12) “De acuerdo” asintió el chacal, luego [siguió] diciendo (13) “y yo me quedo el fondo, fondo”. (14) Así recolectaron ese ajo, recolectaron ese ajo. (15) El chacal se llevó las hojas, [se fue con las manos] vacías, y el erizo se llevó el ajo. (16) De acuerdo, pasó eso, pasó eso. (17) Al año siguiente [el erizo] dijo otra vez [al chacal]: (18) “Venga, vamos a repetir ese huerto”. “De acuerdo” contestó [el chacal]. (19) ¿Y qué volvieron a plantar? Volvieron a plantar esas habas. (20) Entonces crecieron y esas cosas, otra vez [el erizo] preguntó al chacal: (21) “Oye, ¿qué te vas a llevar? (22) ¿Te vas a llevar el fondo, fondo; o te vas a llevar la cima, cima?” (23) Le contestó [el chacal]: “La otra vez me engañaste. Ahora, esta vez me voy a llevar el fondo, fondo; (24) no me voy a llevar la cima, cima: la cima llévatela tú”. (25) “De acuerdo” contestó el erizo. (26) Resultó que el erizo se llevó las habas y el chacal sólo se llevó las raíces, (27) es como si no hubiese nada. (28) Así es, la historia entre el chacal y el erizo.[1] El informante primero utiliza zbīr para inmediatamente aclararnos que es ġĭrṣa, la palabra más conocida en el norte para la huerta. [2] El informante utiliza una metáfora: ‘el fondo’ para lo que hay debajo de la tierra, es decir, el ajo; y ‘cabeza’, también con reduplicación, que además en marroquí puede significar cabeza o superficie, en este caso hace referencia a las hojas.
Ghomara Arabic: Our little wedding
Árabe de Ghomara. Nuestra pequeña boda.
- F[āṭma]:(4) tţa[6] ka-ydxǝl ʕlīha ʕād ka-yʕǝṛfa, ma ka-yʕǝṛfa-ši
- Ḥ:(5) māyn yḏxǝl[7] ǝl-ʕṛūṣ yṣīḇ ǝl-mṛa f-ǝḍ-ḍāṛ, (6) hĭyya ma ḏʕǝrfu, hŭwwa ma-yʕǝrfe[8]. (7) dāḇa la, dāḇa ta qa-ytrǝḇṭu mʕa băʕṭǝm[9], w-yʕǝbbu băʕṭǝm w-yʕāynu băʕṭǝm, ʕād qa-yʕǝbbu băʕṭǝm. (8) īwa w-ṣāfi, w-yʕǝbbu băʕṭǝm w-ymšu fḥālǝm. (9) zǝḏqǝṯ lu mǝzyān, ma zǝḏqǝṯ[10] lu, băynu mʕāha(10) kŭnna qa-nṭăyyḇu iḇāwǝn w-ǝl-krīša ʕlīhǝm mǝh fūq, w-ǝl-ḥlāyǝl[11], ǝl-xŭḇz. (11) ǝl-ḥlāyǝl muy-ši ǝl-xŭḇze.
- P[regunta]: ¿Y qué son?
- Ḥ: (12) ǝl-ḥlāyǝl, mqăṛṛṣīn
- F: (13) ǝl-xbīza stītwa, ǝl-xbīza ṣġīwṛa
- Ḥ: (14) ǝl-xbīza stītwa, stītwa. (15) wǝ-nǧǝmʕu băʕṭīṯna w-nǝḥmwīwāh[12]. (16) w-nǝqquw hāḏīḵ ḏyānne[13], ǝl-ḥnāni ḏyānne, w-ǝl-ʕrīsa ḏyānne. (17) wa ḏāba la, dāba xǝṣṣǝk ǝl-băqrāṯ, ǝl-fḥūle
- F: (18) xǝṣṣǝk žūž d-ǝl-fḥūla dāba
- Ḥ: (19) u-xŭṣṣǝḵ[14] ǝl-xŭḇz, š-škāyǝr d-ǝl-xŭḇz, xǝṣṣǝḵ ǝl-kāwkāw, xǝṣṣǝḵ kīkēs, xǝṣṣǝḵ ǝl-čūklāṭ, xǝṣṣǝḵ ǝš qa-yqūlu lu, (20) xǝṣṣǝḵ ǝl-wăʕd kāmǝl[1] Uso del preverbio de imperfectivo qa-.[2] /ḥǝtta/ > /ta/. [3] /nžību/ > [nǧību]. [4] < esp. ‘chata’ pero con cambio semántico: ‘fea’. [5] Rasgo presente en algunos dialectos de Jbala: fricatización de la dental sorda y sonora en posición intervocálica o final: /t/>[ṯ] y /d/>[ḏ]. [6] Variación: la joven africa la dental sorda mientras que la mujer mayor no. [7] [ma:yn iðxǝl]. V. nota 5. [8] Palatización en primer grado: /a/>/e/. [9] Ensordecimiento del fonema /ḍ/>/ṭ/. [10] La fricatización de la dental es tal que apenas se percibe al haber un cambio en el punto de articulación. [11] Tortas finas y redondas. [12] Una leve labialización de /m/. [13] /dyālna/>[ḏyānne]. [14] Una vocal /u/ por labialización: xwṣṣǝḵ.
Ghomara Arabic: A bride form another time
Árabe de Ghomara. Una novia de antes.
[1] Se marcará la fricatización de las oclusivas a pesar de su inestabilidad: [ḇ], [ṯ] y [ḏ]. [2] < /wǝdnǝk/. [3] Una doble. [4] < /hāw/. [5] < /dyālna/. [6] Probablemente por sonorización de /ḥ/ < /šḥāylu/. [7] < part. act. /māšya/, con asimilación /šy/ > [šš]. [8] < /ḥǝtta/. [9] < /ṣlāt/. [10] < /ʕibāḏ/. [11] V. nota 7. En este caso, hay una realización [ă]. [12] < /ḏwǝrri/. [13] < /mǝn mūṛāha/. [14] V. nota 7. [15] < /gālsa/. [16] < /kānǝṯ/. [17] < /gālsa/. [18] Fricatización fuerte hasta k > ḵ > ∅. [19] < /ngwǝlsu/ por labiovelarización.
- ʕ[gūz]: (1) ǝl-xǝṛṣa wāxxa ma ḏǝqqīha-ši[1] f-wǝnnǝḵ[2], (2) dǝlli ma la-dxǝllu-ši f-wǝnnu, ʕa la-ynǝzzlūha hāyda.
- X[ădīža]: (3) fḥāl n-nfāţǝl.
- ʕ: (4) fḥa n-nfāţǝl u-hĭyya ʕǝnda l-ʕǝṣṣāḇa ha fāyǝn la-ḏǝntămm b-ǝl-xăyṭ, (5) kīf la-yqquw n-dīḵ n-nīqām w-ḏīḵ ǝš-ši, fḥa n-nīqāf, hāyḏaḵ mnǝzzla. (6) ʕǝnda l-xăyṭ mǝṛḇūṭ fīhǝm u-hĭyya mnǝzzla ha fāyǝn ʕla s-sǝḇniyya ḏǝ-swīsa[3], wa-sǝḇniyya ḏǝ-swīsa. (7) w-ǝl-ḥǝrrāz qǝddāš ǝnnu f-ṛāṣǝḵ wāqǝf, āna āw[4] bāqi li.
- X: (8) ǝl-ḥǝrrāz ḏ-yǝmma, ḷḷāh yṛǝḥma, na-nǝʕqal ka ʕǝnda ka-ḏqūl ʕǝnda ǝl-ḥǝrrāz.
- P[regunta]: ¿Cómo es el ḥǝrrāz?
- Z[ŭhṛa]: (9) ḏīḵ ǝṇ-ṇhāṛ čuft la ǝl-ḥǝrrāz, ḏīḵ ǝṇ-ṇhāṛ čŭftu lǝḵ f-ǝl-ḥĭnna ḏyānna[5].
- X: (10) ǝl-ḥǝrrāz mǝṭṛūz b-ǝl-fāsi, b-ǝl-fāsi, (11) u-la-ḏṛǝḇṭu mǝ-hna u-la-yḇqa lu l-qnĭǧʕa hāyḏa u-hĭyya la-ǧi hāyḏa.
- ʕ: (12) wa ḏǝ ktǝḇ li ya... ḏǝ-swīsa la-čŭdd ḏīḵ s-sǝḇnĭyya mǝhna ḏǝ-swīsa f-ṛāṣǝḵ.
- Z: (13) n-nās ḏǝ šʕāylu[6] ka-yqqīwāh, l-ḥǝrrāz la-yqūlu lu.
- ʕ: (14) wa-l-ḥḇīḇa dyālu, š-mǝšša[7] ḏṛa, ḷḷāhum, ţa[8] yqūlu ṣḷāh[9], māy ḏqūl lǝm wa-ṣǝllīw ʕla nḇi ya ʕibā[10] ḷḷāh, ṣǝḷḷīw ʕla nḇi ba dṛāw l-ʕṛūṣa, ṣǝḷḷīw ʕla nḇi. (15) u-la-yqqu la l-mǝndil ḥmăṛ hāyḏa la-ywǝlwǝl ʕla ḥŭžra gālsa mṛǝbbʕa.
- P: ¿Rojo o a rayas el mandil?
- ʕ: (16) w-ǝl-mṛa hāyḏa wāqfa măšša[11] ḇīha, fūq ṛāṣa.
- Z: (17) šṛūṭ u-ḥmăṛ
- X: (18) ḥmǝr u-byǝṭ. šǝnnu fūq ṛāṣa?
- ʕ: (19) ǝl-mṛa măšša wǝrrīha[12] s-sǝḇnĭyya ʕla wǝǧha.
- X: (20) w-ǝl-mṛa mūṛāha.
- ʕ: (21) īwa ǝl-mṛa m-mūṛāha[13], bāš mǝšša[14] ḏwǝrri lǝm hāyḏa, ḏqūl lǝm wa ṣallīw ʕla nḇi
- Z: (22) w-hĭyya gāsa[15] ʕla š-šŭlya
- X: (23) fāy ka[16] š-šǝlya, nqūl lǝḵ mṛǝbbʕa gāsa[17]
- ʕ: (24) gālsa hĭyya mṛǝbbya, mṛǝbbʕa f-ǝl-aṛḍ.
- X: (25) fāyni š-šŭlya!
- ʕ: (26) ǝš-šŭlya fāy kānǝṯ ḏīḵ s-sāʕa. (27) hŭwwa ṭ-ṭyāfǝṛ bašǝnnŭm stītwa, stītwīn, ḵtăr[18] mǝ-tlālǝs w-ǝl-mḷāṭi ngŭlsu[19] ʕlīhǝm
- X: (28) hŭwwa ṭ-ṭăyfūṛ u-ma kān-ši.
- ʕ: (29) la, kān.
- X: (30) ka-ynǝzzlu ʕa f-ǝṭ-ṭbūqa, ʕawǝḏ.
- ʕ: (31) wǝ-qḇǝl kān ʕăndǝm ma ka yqūlu lu ǝṭ-ṭbăq kǝnna nġǝrḇlu f-hāḏaḵ ka yqūlu lu ṭ-ṭayfūṛ, fḥa ṭ-ṭayfūṛ.
- X: (32) īwa hŭwwa hāḏāḵ ǝṭ-ṭbăq
- ʕ: (33) fīhǝn mǝn kŭll xīr, mǝn kŭll.
[1] Un pañuelo llamado del Sūs, generalmente de color rojo y verde. [2] Una cinta de tela blanca rígida, en ocasiones bordada, que se ciñe a la frente sobresaliendo de la cabeza. [3] Aquí hace referencia al día en que se le pone la alheña a la novia en los festejos nupciales. [4] Un tipo de bordado, dícese de Fez, sobre tela blanca.
- ʕ[gūz]:(1) No importaba si no te ponías el arete en la oreja, (2) a quien no le entraba en [el orificio del lóbulo de] la oreja, sólo se lo ponían así.
- X[ădīža]:(3) Como unos aretes.
- ʕ: (4) Como unos aretes pero tiene una tira de tela [ʕaṣṣāba] aquí que termina en hilo, (5) como le hacen a ese niqab y esas cosas, como un niqab, pero así puesta. (6) Tiene un hilo atado y así puesta allí sobre un pañuelo de swīsa[1]. (7) Y el ǝl-ḥǝrrāz f-wǝnnǝḵ[2] enorme, de pie sobre tu cabeza, yo todavía lo tengo.
- X: (8) ǝl-ḥǝrrāz de mi madre, Dios la tenga en su gloria, me acuerdo que tenía, decía que tenía ǝl-ḥǝrrāz
- Z[ŭhṛa]: (9) El otro día le vi ǝl-ḥǝrrāz, el otro día te lo vi en nuestro día de la alheña[3].
- P[regunta]: ¿Cómo es el ḥǝrrāz?
- X: (10) El ḥǝrrāz está bordado en fāsi[4]. (11) Lo atas de aquí y se le queda una cresta así y queda así.
- ʕ: (12) Lo que me ha sido designado oh... [un pañuelo]de swīsa ata ese pañuelo de aquí, [un pañuelo] de swīsa en tu cabeza.
- Z: (13) La gente de antes se lo ponía, el ḥǝrrāz lo llaman.
- ʕ:(14) ¡Querida, qué vas a ver! Dios mío, hasta que hacen la invocación al Profeta, cuando les dice invocad al Profeta oh siervos de Dios, invocad al Profeta para que veáis a la novia, invocad al Profeta. (15) Y le ponían un mandil rojo así centelleando sobre su regazo, sentada a la turca [con las piernas cruzadas].
- P: ¿Rojo o a rayas el mandil?
- ʕ: (16) Y la señora de pie por detrás [lit. por encima de su cabeza],
- Z:(17) A rayas y rojo.
- X: (18) Rojo y blanco. ¿Qué tenía encima de su cabeza?
- ʕ: (19) La mujer iba mostrándola y el pañuelo sobre su cara.
- X: (20) Y la mujer detrás de ella.
- ʕ: (21) Pues la mujer detrás de ella, para que vaya mostrándosela así, les decía invocad al Profeta.
- Z: (22) Mientras ella sentada sobre la silla.
- X: (23) ¡Dónde estaba la silla! Te digo a la turca sentada.
- ʕ: (24) Sentada a la turca, a la turca en el suelo.
- X: (25) ¡Dónde [estaba] la silla!
- ʕ: (26) ¡Dónde estaba la silla por entonces! (27) Si los ataifores eran tan bajitos [lit. pequeños], bajitos, más que los tlālǝs [tipo de manta gruesa y de lana] y mantas [donde] nos sentábamos.
- X: (28) Si no había ni ataifor.
- ʕ: (29) No, [sí que] había.
- X: (30) Entonces sólo servían en los tḇūqa [cuencos].
- ʕ: (31) Antes tenían lo que llamaban ṭbaq [cuenco], tamizábamos en ese que le llamaban ataifor, como el ataifor.
- X: (32) Pues ese es el ṭbaq [cuenco]
- ʕ: (33) Tenían de todo, de todo.
Ghomara Berber: The lion and the river
Berbère de Ghomara. Le lion et le fleuve.
Phonology and Phonetics*
Phonologically, Ghomara Arabic is generally similar to the other Jebli dialects, in particular to Chaouen dialect and to Ghomara Berber as well[1].
One of the most salient features of Ghomara Arabic is the spirantization of stops, also existing in other non-Hilali rural Arabic varieties and in Berber varieties as well, for instance:
/t/ > [ṯ] lǝxṯăn ‘the wife’s family to the husband’, ḥărṯ ‘cultivation’
/d/ > [ḏ] ḏāba ‘now’, ǝl-ḥḏīḏ ‘metal, motor vehicles’
/ḍ/ > [ḏ̣], nḏ̣ăr ‘look!’,
/b/ > [ḇ] ḥḇīḇa ‘dear’,
/k/ > [ḵ] wǝnnǝḵ ‘your ear’.
The affrication of /š/ > [č] and /ž/ > [ǧ] is another trait of Ghomara Arabic:
čŭfti ‘you saw’, āǧi ‘come here!’.
Finally, the devoicing of dental consonants exists in some Ghomara varieties though quite inconsistently.
ḍ/ ~ /d/ > [ṭ] ǝl-ḥfīṭ ‘grandson’, ṭḥǝk ‘to laugh’
/d/ > [t] ~ [ṯ] wāḥĭt ‘one’, hāyṯăḵ ‘like this’, tīḵ ‘that, those’.
In some cases, instead of the devoicing a spirantized pharyngealized dental occurs (even in initial positions), the same phenomenon has been observed in Ghomara Berber (cf. Mourigh 2015: 21): ḏ̣hǝṛ ‘back’, ṛḏ̣āʕa ‘breastfeeding’.
Verb Morphology
As in other northern varieties, there is no gender distinction in the second person singular of the perfective, imperfective and imperative.
In the perfective, the 2 singular perfective suffix is -t(i):
ṣīḇti ʕăndi l-lḇǝn ‘you found that I had buttermilk’.
In the imperfective, the voicing of the affix t- > d ~ ḏ is widespread:
ḏǝʕrǝf ‘you understand’, dǝqqi ‘you do’.
In the imperative, the feminine and masculine forms are the same:
ǧība āwla nǝzzla li tǝmma ‘bring it to me or leave it for me there’.
Depending on the variety, different preverbs exist in Ghomara: la (na and da), qa, ka and a:
na-nqūl lǝm ‘I tell them’
ma qa-nʕǝrfǝm-ši ‘I don’t know them’
ḥna ka-nhǝḏru ʕla ġmāra ‘we are talking about Ghomara’
a-yǧīw ṛbāʕ kāmǝl ‘the entire faction comes’.
Noun Morphology
As for nominal morphology, numerous nouns maintain Berber gender affixes unlike other Jebli varieties where they have gradually disappeared:
ta-xṛăf ‘a tale’, a-ḥayyǝḵ ‘a haik’, a-lūs ‘the husband’s brother to the wife’, a-sǝdmăr ~ a-zǝṯmĭr ‘knot’ (to tie an animal’s leg to the ground)
Lexicon
An important Berber influence can be noted in Ghomara Arabic lexicon as well as the presence of archaic terms, both with a clear tendency to fall into disuse:
a-ḇǝddīḵ pl. a-bdādĭḵ ‘rooster’, ǝġ-ġăṣ ~ a-ḏġăṣ ‘colostrum’, ntāž ‘new born of a cow or a goat’.
*Data used for this brief summary were compiled from: Naciri-Azzouz, Amina 2016. “Les variétés arabes de Ghomara ? s-sāħǝl vs. ǧ-ǧbǝl (la côte vs. la montagne)”. The Arabic Varieties: Far and Wide, G. Grigore & G. Bițună, (eds.). Bucharest, Editura Universității din București, 405-412.
[1] Both in the texts and the summary of Ghomara Arabic, short vowels have been noted following CORVAM’s transcription system in the absence of a comprehensive study of vowels so far.
Author: Amina Naciri-Azzouz
Phonology and Phonetics*
The consonant system in Ghomara Berber, as in other Berber languages, applies distinctions based on voicing, pharyngealization, and length.
The spirantization of stops is one of Ghomara Berber most remarkable features: ḇ, ṯ, ḏ, ḏ̣, ḵ, ḵw, ḡ, ḡw. There is a higher presence of stop phonemes in the initial position (i.e. tammart ‘beard’, das ‘there’); whereas in the middle and intervocalic position there is a higher presence of spirantized phonemes which have an added phonemic value [1] (p. ej. ayeṯma ‘brothers’, aḡḏi ‘jackal’) and finally, in the final position the spirantized realizations usually occur in a postvocalic position (i.e. tameṭṭuṯ ‘women’, afuḏ ‘knee’).
As regards the vowel system, Ghomara Berber has three full vowels a, i, u, as well as e which has a special status due to its predictability: i.e. it never appears in an open syllable or in a final position.
Some examples of minimum pairs:
tasaft ‘chestnut tree’/ tasift ‘brook’
afettiḥ ‘hole’ / affuttiḥ ‘buttocks’.
Verb Morphology
As regards the verb system, Ghomara Berber has three different aspects: aorist, perfective and imperfective.
It also has two systems: verbs with verb morphology with a Berber inflection (i.e. nṭeḡ ‘to fly’), and these also include Arabic loans incorporating a Berber inflection (i. e. fṛeq ‘to separate’), as well as verbs with Arabic morphology which maintain the Arabic inflection (i. e. fhem ‘to understand’).
Furthermore, Ghomara Berber uses different preverbs to indicate the mode or the aspect, thus for the aorist of preverbs such as a, š, maš, ar, ad they may indicate future, possibility, probability or wish; and for verbs with Arabic inflection the preverb ka (equivalent to the Berber imperfective) and particles ɣa, maši, š with imperfective to mark the future.
Noun Morphology
In terms of noun morphology Ghomara Berber features parallel and merged systems which combine and integrate aspects of Berber and Arabic morphology. Thus, numerous Arabic nouns maintain an Arabic inflection: sing. d-dexxan / pl. d-dxaxen ‘smoke’; other nouns alternate both systems, for instance a Berber singular and an Arabic plural: sing. a-beɛbuš fem. / ta-beɛbuš-t / pl. le-bɛabeš ‘beetle’; or else diminutives with an Arabic inflection and a Berber etymology: a-fus dim. / a-fweyyes ‘hand’; amongst other forms.
On the other hand, pronouns in Ghomara Berber have mostly a Berber form: nihma ‘they’; netta ‘he’; ḵma nn-ax ‘our brother’. However, there are cases where Arabic pronouns are transferred along with a verb, preposition, particle or other loans: i.e. ɛṭeq-ni ‘save me’ o i-qqel fḥalu lit. ‘he left on his own’.
Lexicon
Finally, the Ghomara Berber lexicon has been greatly influenced by Arabic, in the list of Swadesh of 100 words, 34% are of Arabic origin. There are two types of loans in Ghomara Berber: integrated loans (with a Berber morphology) and non-integrated loans (with an Arabic morphology).
*Data used for this brief summary were compiled from: Khalid Mourigh, 2015. A Grammar of Ghomara Berber. Leiden, Universiteit Leiden (unpublished PhD Thesis). The author’s transcription is preserved.
Author: Amina Naciri-Azzouz
[1] The same phenomenon occurs in local Arabic varieties where no phonemic value is attached in any of its positions.
Ghomara (غمارة in Arabic [ġmāra], also known in Spanish as Gomara) is nowadays an ethnonym which applies to the inhabitants of the nine tribes situated between the rivers Laou and Ouringa: Bni Ǧǝl (< Bni Zǝǧǝl), Bni Zyāt, Bni Buzra, Bni Sǝlmān, Bni Mǝnṣūr, Bni Grīr, Bni Smīḥ, Bni Rzīn and Bni Xālǝd. The territory extends from the Mediterranean coast to the Rif Mountains, to the northeast of the city of Chaouen. The boundaries of this ethnonym, however, are not clearly defined as some of the bordering tribes are also identified as ġmāris: this is the case, for instance, in the north of Mtīwa. All the different rural communes in Ghomara, which do not necessarily correspond to the borders of the tribes, are part of the province of Chaouen, in the region of Tangiers-Tetouan-Al Hoceima.
Modern Ghomara nowadays is limited to the region of this name though it once comprised almost the entire northwest of Morocco: it took five days to cover its vast territory travelling from the land of the Ġassāsa to Tangiers, plus five more days to travel from the Mediterranean coast bordering El-Kasr El-Kbir to reach the river Ouargha (Ibn Xaldūn 2000: 281).
As for the etymology of Ġumāra —this transcription will be used to refer to the historic confederation— different theories point to a possible Berber origin: Mezzine highlights a metathesis in the Berber term amghar ‘chief or leader’ which could have resulted in ġmāra; and Ferhat points to a plural adjective linked to their way of life, that is, hunters and woodcutters (Vignez-Zunz 1995; Camps and Vignez-Zunz 1998). Besides, Ibn Xaldūn considers the eponym Gumar b. Masmud, reporting a popular belief of an Arabic origin (Ibn Xaldūn 2000: 281):
“ويقول بعض العامّة أنهم عرب غمروا في تلك الجبال نسمّوا غمارة، وهو مذهب عامي”
This popular belief was also analysed by Colin (1929: 50) who considered a possible origin in the Arabic root {ġmr} ‘to plunge’.
Ġumāra was part of the Masmuda Berber tribes. It is reported that their land was populated by people coming from the south, known as ahl as-Sūs. The history of Ġumāra is tightly linked to the various population movements which have shaped the history of the Maghreb. Yet, it is hard to identify the route followed by these migrations given the lack of sources and even more so within the modern territory of Ghomara.
Nonetheless, given the relevance of this confederation in the Middle Ages, numerous reports mention it though underlining that this was a much broader territory also comprising major urban centres at the time.
After the advent of Islam in the seventh century, the Ġumāra were known for supposedly performing heretical practices. One of the most renowned historical figures in the medieval period was Hamim (fourth – tenth century), who may have proclaimed himself a prophet and have written a Koran in “his own” language, probably Berber, a fact reported by sources which would confirm Berber presence in the zone.
Up until the tenth century, the eastern tribes of Ġumāra belonged to the Nakur Kingdom. Upon the division of the territory of the Idrisids, the oriental tribes remained under the rule of Umar b. Idris, amongst them, the cities of Targha and Tiguisis, on modern ghomara coast (Ibn Xaldun 2000: VI/289). After the fall of the Idrisids in the ninth century this territory remained under the Umayyads and later under the Hammadis up until the Almoravid invasion. With the arrival of the Almohades they quickly adopted Almohad doctrine and helped Abd al-Mumin take Ceuta in the twelfth century. This period witnessed continuous revolts of the Ġumāra tribes which had to be suppressed by the Almohades and later on by the Marinids.
In the Modern Era, the first testimony to the ethnonym Ġumāra is found in Leo Africanus. It must also be pointed out that the coast of Ġumāra did also suffer Portuguese and Spanish incursions.
In addition, probably due to the reorganization of the territory, most of the north-western zone became known as Jbala, which may have played a part in the loss of this name amongst some tribes.
Already in the colonial period, under the Spanish Protectorate (1912-1956), the current territory of Ghomara was part of the region of the same name whose capital was Chaouen. After the independence of Morocco, Ghomara was divided into different rural communes and became part of the province of Chaouen.
In the last decade, improved communications and services in the area allow for greater mobility of the population formerly isolated for centuries due to poor road links. Ghomara is a rural region whose main activities consist of fishing, farming and agriculture.
Bibliography
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Author: Amina Naciri-Azzouz
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