Afrym
Festivals & Celebrations

Yennayer: How North Africa's Amazigh People Celebrate the New Year

Every January, Amazigh communities from Morocco to Egypt's Siwa Oasis welcome a new year counted from 950 BCE. Here is the story, the food and the meaning of Yennayer.

By Amos Hope Jnr · · 3 min read

Illustration of an Amazigh family sharing a Yennayer feast of couscous, bread and olives in a mountain village at sunset

This month, while much of the world is already a couple of weeks into its new year, families across North Africa gather around large dishes of couscous to welcome a different one: the year 2975. This is Yennayer, the new year of the Amazigh people — and one of the oldest living traditions of the region.

Who are the Amazigh?

The Amazigh (plural Imazighen) are the Indigenous peoples of North Africa, living across Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, parts of Egypt, and the Sahel countries of Mali, Niger and beyond. In English they have often been called "Berbers," a name that came from outside; many prefer Amazigh, commonly translated as "free people."

Amazigh communities speak a family of related languages, often grouped as Tamazight, including Kabyle in Algeria, Tachelhit and Tarifit in Morocco, and Tamasheq among the Tuareg. Many are written in Tifinagh, an ancient script — one of Africa's own writing systems, like Ethiopia's Ge'ez — whose letter ⵣ (yaz) has become a symbol of Amazigh identity.

When is Yennayer?

Yennayer is the first day of an agricultural calendar that has long guided planting and harvests in North Africa. That calendar follows the old Julian system, so its new year falls about two weeks after 1 January — usually between 12 and 14 January, depending on the region.

The name Yennayer itself is linked to the Latin Ianuarius, January — a reminder of the many cultures that have passed through North Africa.

Why the year 2975?

The year count is a modern idea attached to an ancient festival. In the late 20th century, Amazigh cultural activists proposed starting the calendar in 950 BCE, the year often given for the rise of Shoshenq I, a pharaoh of Libyan ancestry who founded Egypt's 22nd Dynasty. Whatever the exact date, the choice was symbolic: it honoured the long presence of Amazigh peoples in the history of the region. Add 950 to the Gregorian year and you have the Amazigh year — so January 2025 opens the year 2975.

Official recognition

For decades, Yennayer was celebrated mostly at home and in villages. That has changed.

  • Algeria made Yennayer a national public holiday, first observed in January 2018.
  • Morocco announced in 2023 that Yennayer would become an official paid holiday, first observed on 14 January 2024.

In both countries, Tamazight is now recognised in the constitution as an official language alongside Arabic — the result of long campaigns by Amazigh communities.

Food at the heart of the feast

Like many new year celebrations, Yennayer is about abundance and good luck for the year ahead, and food is central. Traditions vary by region, but common dishes include:

  • Couscous — often with seven vegetables, or with chicken, served on a large shared platter.
  • Tagulla — in parts of Morocco, a thick porridge of barley or corn served with butter, argan oil or honey. A date pit may be hidden inside; whoever finds it is said to be lucky for the year.
  • Berkoukes — large hand-rolled pasta pearls cooked in a rich sauce, popular in Algeria.
  • Dried fruits and nuts — figs, dates, almonds and walnuts are shared to wish for a sweet, plentiful year.

In Kabylie in Algeria, some families mark the day with the sacrifice of a chicken, and households clean and refresh their homes. Children may receive sweets, and in some places they have their first haircut at Yennayer.

Music, dress and pride

Yennayer has become a day of Amazigh pride as well as a family feast. Towns hold concerts, parades and markets. People wear traditional clothing, silver jewellery and dresses embroidered with bright geometric patterns. The Amazigh flag — bands of blue, green and yellow with a red yaz in the centre — is widely displayed.

Why it matters today

Yennayer is a reminder that North Africa's story is not only Arab, Roman or Mediterranean, but also deeply Amazigh. For millions of people, the new year celebration is a way to keep a language, a calendar and an identity alive — and to share them with neighbours of every background. As the common greeting puts it: Assegas Ameggaz! — Happy New Year.

Further reading

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