Morocco refuses Berber names

The Moroccan Government is coming under heavy criticism by human rights organizations for refusing to issue birth certificates with Berber names for its citizens. The civil registry recently rejected 13 Berber names because they were considered in violation of law 99-37 which determines names fit for males and females.

"The names on the list contradict the Moroccan identity and it opens the door for the random spread of meaningless names," Idris Bajdi, the administrative authority officer told AlArabiya.net. Law 99-37 also rejects names made up of more than two parts, or those named after a city, village, tribe, or having an indecent meaning.

Moroccan human rights activists are calling this ban a disgrace for their country and labeling it as an extension to the exclusion policy practiced against the mother culture of Morocco. It is estimated that 23 million people in Morocco speak one of three Berber (Amazigh) dialects, and 80% of the population come from Berber ethnicity. The question “What exactly is Moroccan identity?” has come up again, along with claims that the Berbers are actually the true Moroccan natives.

“Language has always been an extremely sensitive issue in Morocco,” Arab Vision’s international director said in response to this latest development. “We want to reach people in their own mother tongue, the language of their heart; but we realize that has political and religious implications. Although most of the Berbers are Muslims, the fact that they have not adopted the Arabic language or culture is seen as a blemish and failure of the Islamization of the region.” he added. Arab Vision produces Christian television programs in both Moroccan Arabic and in the Berber languages of Morocco.

Human rights activists are also highlighting the inconsistencies of this law and its implementation.  For example, new trendy names from the Levant and Iran, and even Mexican and Turkish names from popular soap operas, are being allowed on birth certificates. Also, some names are banned in one region, yet allowed in another one. Berber activist Ali Khadawi believes that this name ban is basically derived from political and ideological motives and is a violation of basic human rights, like the parents' right to choose their child's name.

January 25, 2009