In Figuig, we attended the semi-traditional 3-day Berber wedding of Nadia and Mustafa. (In older times the wedding was a full 7 days.)

According to Wedding Bells Magazine the average planned Canadian wedding has 170 guests. (Our personal wedding had had under 50). But when the immediate and extended families are large and the community tight as in Figuig, either number would be just too limiting. Probably 300 people were there early and at its peak, perhaps a 1000 in all.  It puts Canadian weddings to sedate shame by comparison for music-making, joymaking, sheer length, number of guests and elaborateness of lady guests' clothing. At the three party houses a throne is set up for the bridal couple with tapestry, pillows, balloons, party streamers, and flowers.

The first part of the wedding was held for lunch and during the afternoon by each family; a party for the groom's family and close friends at his family's place; a party for the bride's extended female family, close friends and a few representatives from the groom's family at her family's place where there is talking, eating dancing and singing. In each case the men and women are separate but children can drift between the two.

For the next day's breakfast there is a special bread prepared a day ahead.  It is only eaten on special occasions such as weddings, Eid Al-Adha, and before a group leaves on a pilgrimage to Mecca. Part of the process of making it is below:

Community ladies who were among the dozens who came to make the bread. Here they are shaping the dough	A group of ladies in the dough shaping/flattening group. The paper thin dough will be fried on a gas griddle seen in the middle.It is eaten with raisins and hard cooked egg.

For lunch there was an open-kitchen meal like the Sikhs hold where anyone who wishes to come eat, comes. In this case there is a house for the children, two stories of a house for the men and a house for the women to eat in separately. Guests or neighbors bring serving platters and tables to help accommodate everyone in this community celebration. Women had been cooking  for about 18 hours that day to prepare enough melon, cous cous and vegetable sauce to feed the crowd.

A meal of cous cous takes a long time to prepare by hand even when there are many hands and a lot of experience. Cous cous is a hand made pasta from durum wheat rolled into grains smaller than rice and boiled and steamed until fluffy. Above are the stages of the process, rolling, carrying and cooking. Communally the vegetable-lamb sauce is made by the women, sometimes heped by the children. Melon, plentiful in that season, is cut up for dessert. We had seen it growing along our route and being sold under tents in towns and vilages.
A meal of cous cous is served by anyone who elects to help out and is eaten communally with a pitcher of water among 5 or 6 people per plate.

After the men and ladies eat on their respective rooftops, the dishes are cleared away. Some people go home, some talk, some go to clean and others set up a circles to hand drum and dance to taped music that can be heard all over the city and into the next country (Algeria is only a few minutes away although the border is closed).

After a siesta, the parties resume and eventually a caravan of people is sent over to fetch the bride and the ceremonial items. (A tomato and two eggs for fertility, incense, two jars of sugar and a bowl of henna dye).

In this case about a dozen cars and a truckload of people go with their headlight flashing and horns beeping. Along with then is the car of the groom that has been washed and decorated to the hilt with streamers, flowers and tinsel.

	After photos at the home of the bride, a ceremonial sharing of milk and dates (same food as is used to break the Ramadan fast) between the bride and groom. They then leave to make an appearance at the other family's party, bringing with them, a lot of the bride's guests in a caravan than has doubled in size for the bringing back of the bride return trip.

After the drummed in entrance and the bride brings the henna to the groom and his family, the groom is marked with the henna and the bowl is thrown to break it. The others are then free to use the henna to decorate their hands or feet.

More dancing ensues for the male party and the female party for an hour or two and then an exchange of rings. The bride and groom leave together but the next day there is more celebration to come.  After a pause the couple goes away on a honeymoon.

May you have many years of fulfilled dreams and plans, happiness and peace Mustafa and Nadia.

2002, Pearl and Brian Pirie       | Trip Main Page |