Amazigh women and the art of weaving

Amazigh carpets are unique works with a fascinating history. They are considered one of the most famous styles of art carpets.  Berber carpets have been made continuously for more than two millennia. As explained in previous articles, the making of Moroccan carpets was the responsibility of women in all aspects of creation, weaving and artistic representation. In this article, we will present in detail the deep relationship between Amazigh women and the art of Amazigh Berber weaving.

Amazigh women and the art of weaving

Women have another responsibility concerning the conservation and transmission of the knowledge of the manufacture of Amazigh carpets. It is also the transmission of the secrets of family patterns, looping techniques and also the colors to be used. 

According to, Myriem N. NajiThe Amazigh women weavers consider weaving as a form of identity and a sense of belonging to the group:

"The happiest and most competent weavers are those who enjoy what they do. This pleasure is a mixture of social and bodily emotions: the feeling of belonging. The sensual pleasure of physical exercise, the feeling of distinction and recognition, the notions of virtue and the daily satisfaction of small achievements. It is a peculiarity of the process of incorporation that the dispositions and skills, emotions and desires that emerge from practice appear to be inseparable from subjectivity." 

The art of weaving and transmission 

In the Amazigh and Berber tribes, carpet making is a social gathering of women in which Berber women sing about times of prosperity and romance, stories of superstition and magic. All stages of weaving (production of the thread, washing, spinning and dyeing) are the women who perform them.

All this knowledge of Amazigh carpet weaving was inherited in a matrilineal way. That is why each generation of women must transmit this knowledge to the next. 

Women are solely responsible for weaving carpets with the help of their daughters learning the trade as they grow up.

For Amazigh women, weaving is an age-old tradition that is passed down through generations. Young Amazigh girls learn the art of weaving in a traditional way from their mothers and grandmothers. It is a skill with great respect and prestige. 

From a young age, the girls observe their mothers setting up the material and assembling the weaving tools, but also and above all singing verses and songs during the whole activity. They begin to imitate them and to help them as much as possible.

The transmission of this know-how is done progressively from the girl and by a training which is essentially based on the observation, the imitation and especially the listening. It is also necessary to deploy the visual field as well as the sensory field in order to acquire the know-how in its entirety, while making sure not to forget the songs and proverbs that deal with this art and which are abundant. These forms of transmission of knowledge and practices endure and seem to be immortal.

The rituals of weaving for Berber women

The weaving used to create the carpets is an ultimate symbol of magical protection among the Amazighs by considering them as a living being and treating them as such. 

The Amazigh women strongly believe that the loom has the baraka (blessing). It is the attachment of divine goodness to a thing.

During the production of the yarn, the Amazigh woman weaver is constantly aware of the spiritual world. The wool is considered to be a good luck charm, but they must always be careful not to let evil get in between the threads during the weaving process. The handles of the women's dies and comb hammers are engraved with designs to ward off evil. The symbols of these tools are also woven into many Moroccan tribal rugs.

Before starting to knit, the women quickly prayed: Bismillah! Assuring themselves of good luck (in the name of Allah) and presumably protecting the progress of the rug while it is still in its fragile developmental period. If the woman takes every precaution to remember the number and combination of threads to produce the design, the finished textile will not only be aesthetically pleasing, but will also contain strength or baraka. 

The mat woven by these women acts as a "power shield" against the evil eye and jin (evil spirit). The overall design of these textiles can be seen as a woven "net" that resists the forces of evil (the silk thread of the great evil master, the chamharouch). Amazigh women believe that the weaving they do evokes a power that protects not only her and her family, but the textile itself and the entire Amazigh tribe and people.

The role of women in the preservation of the art of Amazigh weaving:

These women kneel or sit while working on the looms, which are larger than themselves and look like bunk bed frames. They knit by hand and work in cooperatives of 15 to 40 people, sometimes one picks up where the other leaves. It usually takes weeks to make a rug, but for the most intricate rugs, it can take months.

Although the majority of rural women in Morocco are illiterate (or illiterate), weaving has gone through generations without a craft school or vocational school. The older weavers who train single girls have always taught the craft orally. This transfer of knowledge, enabling young apprentices to acquire skills and master the reins, is essential to the strength and survival of weaving as a cultural heritage of Morocco's Amazigh past and present.

Today, these women are fighting to preserve this age-old tradition. Solana Pyne, journalist of VOA confirme que les femmes berbères essaient, à tout prix, le maintien de la fabrication de tapis vivante et rentable (Berber Women Try to Keep Rug Making Alive, Profitable) mais, malheureusement, l’art du tissage berbère a commencé de perdre  ces traditions dans les prochaines générations :

"With the little money that reaches the weavers, young women choose not to learn the trade. "I have five daughters. There is only one who knows how to weave," said Ms. Lchguer. "Our daughters say we have ruined our health by making carpets, and we don't get anything out of it. They want to learn new crafts," said Hassi, "They don't want to learn this one anymore. And with every child who refuses to learn an art that has been endured here for centuries, it is inches away from extinction."

The progress of the weaving work of the Amazigh women 

Amazigh art is considered an expression of life. It can be seen in pottery, lamps, tapestries and clothing. It is necessary to know and master several techniques in order to start the activity. 

It should be mentioned that the preparation of wool and weaving are considered as the primary activities of the Amazigh woman, meeting several needs while showing her creativity and know-how. 

In this case, the role of the woman is to transmit cultural, ethical and religious values and to produce beautiful works. 

By analyzing the course of the weaving activity you can easily detect the part of freedom and creativity in the works produced. 

Before starting this highly honored work, the women clean the place where they decide to carry out the assembly of the loom and spread barley and henna (symbol of purification and abundance). 

Weaving in the Amazighs is a work of detail. Each element is taken into consideration, purifying the body before starting the knitting, the posture of the body in relation to the loom. Every element entering a system of signs governed by rules, namely: the body, the words, the weaving tools and even the place.

The housewife often looks for several women who know the work. They begin to comb the wool that they wash in the river and dye it. Indeed, among the Amazigh tribes, wool is a sacred and blessed material, using it as an indispensable material in every use, in blankets, clothes, tents, ropes, and even wheat bags.... Berber women compare the sacredness of bread to that of wool. They also say in this sense :

"You must never trample on a strand of wool or a crumb of bread".

Weaving requires a number of instruments such as, wooden posts, warp beams, reed and pegs. 

This work of art presents several principles which govern it, namely: patience, concentration, rigor and the aspiration to perfection. Hence the atmosphere established, that of respect for the act and the word.

So, in this article we have tried to clarify and explain the role and the deep and currently complex relationship between Amazigh women and the art of weaving.

For more information about Moroccan interior design, please visit our blog .