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Who were the "Moors"? In medieval Europe, the word Moor became a common term to refer to the Muslims of Islamic Iberia and North Africa, who were of Arab or Berber descent. The origin of the word is not clear. It could stem from the Greec Maurisi or the Roman Mauri, or the word Mauros, meaning 'dark'. Alternatively, it could be derived from the small Numidian Kingdom of Maure of the third century BC in what is now Morocco. Despite being archaic and inaccurate, 'Moro' is still used in Spain to describe anyone from nothern African descent - lumping together Muslims and non-Muslims, Arabs and Berbers. The word also lingers on in the names of countries as Mo-rocco and Mau-ritania. While magnificent remains of Moorish rule, such as the Alhambra in Granada or the Mezquita in Cordoba are often thought 'Arabic', it is estimated that only 10% of the Moors were of Arab descent... 90% were Berbers. Amazigh Culture Especially over the past 10 years Amazigh culture is rapidly disappearing. At one side the politics of Arabisation, and the other the existence of Satellite TV, bringing the messages and rules from Imans of Saudi Arabia and Egypt into the homes of even the most remote Amazigh town, practises such as the typical hand painting get a negative connotation. Sites providing insight and information on Amazigh culture are: www.agraw.com www.berberes.com The most important TV sites are: |
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The Maghreb, also rendered Maghrib, means Place of Sunset. The word is generally applied to the north west of Africa, or the western part of the Arab world : Morocco, Algeria and Tunesia. Partially isolated from the rest of the continent by the Atlas mounains and the Sahara, the Maghreb has long been closely tied in terms of climate, landforms, population, economy and history to the Mediterranean basin. The region was briefly united as a single political entity during the first years of Arab rule in the early 8th century, and again under the Almohads in the 12th century. About Islam Islam means: "To surrender". And the surrendering is to Allah, or The God. It is to His will that a muslim hands over his or her life. The islamic world, or "Dar Islam", which means "the house of Islam" is growing rapidly. 2007 was the first year in which the number of muslims world wide surpassed the number of Christians. Being such a large and known religion it is surprising that many people do not know that Islam simply builds further on the foundations of Judaism and Christianity... Islam is the third religion based on the same book. But whereas judaism is based on the Old Testament, Christianity on Old Testament and New Testament, Islam is based on both, with the addition of the Koran. Muslims share the same prophets, from Moses to Jesus. |
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