MOROCCO

Basic Facts

Population: 30,704,000
Capital: Rabat; 1,759,000
Largest Cites: Casablanca, Fez, Marrakech
Area: 710,850 km2
Language: Arabic, Berber dialects, French
Religion: Islam (Muslims)
Currency: Moroccan Dirham
Life Expectancy: 70
GDP per Capita: U.S. $3,900

BIRT
H
RATE

18.47
births/1,000
population
(2014)

DEAT
H
RATE

4.79
deaths/1,000
population
(2014)

Median
Age:
total:28.1
years
male:27.5
years
female:28.7
years (2014)

Diseases
Tuberculosis
Leprosy
Malaria
Meningitis
Tetanus

Borders

Climate
VERY DIVERSE
Varies with season & region
Tropical in general
Temperatures as high as 35C
(95F) and as low as 5C
(41F) in the Sahara Desert

 Coast & South:

Hot and dry

Cooler in the mountains

Rain from November to March

Average temperature of 21C during the winter.

MIGRATION
About 4.5 million
Mainly Europe (before 20th century)
Largest concentration in France (1.9 million)
3rd largest non-western group in Netherlands
Largest non-western group in Belgium
About 770,000 in Spain
North & Latin America

Politics
Ruler:King
Mohammed VI (1999)

Prime Minister:
Abdelilah Benkirn
Government: Parliamentary Constitutional Monarchy

Culture
VERY religious and conservative
Extremely hospitable and tolerant when
treated with respect
Things like: wearing skimpy clothes,
kissing and cuddling in public, or eating/
smoking in the streetare considered
OFFENSIVE.

 Clothesare extremely
important.
Most Moroccans follow the
Muslim idea of modest
dress (what would be
acceptable in the mosque).
It requires women to be
covered from wrist to ankle,
and men from over the
shoulder to below the knee.

 Offended by clothes that DO NOT fully

cover parts of the body considered
private, including legs & shoulders,
especially for women.
Moroccan women who wear shortsleeved tops and knee-length skirts
suffer harassment as a result.

Even ordinary T-shirts

may be regarded as
underwear in some
parts of Morocco.

 Wheninvited to a home, guest would normally have

to take shoes off before entering the reception rooms.
Must follow your hosts lead.
Not allowed to visit bedroom & CANNOT see women
without mens permission.

Guest would usually take a gift:

tea and sugar
sweet pastries
even meat or live chicken

Women in Morocco
Before Islam:
The Period of Ignorance (Aljahilia)
o Womens roles were to act on men's desires
and as slaves.
After Islam:
3 basic rights
o Right to live
o Right to be honored and to
be respected as a mother
o Right to own business
and be able to work

 Moroccan women live in family

units that are "enclosed
households called harem
(part of house reserved for
women).
Extended families live as one
unit together.
Women require permission
from the men before leaving a
household that is protected by
a gate keeper.

The Hijab:
Girls are required to start
wearing it when they reach
PUBERTY.

All Muslim women

are required to
wear it unless
they are with their
husband at home.

Other facts about

Women
Able to go to school

Expected to marry
virgin
Husband
demonstrate
love by
giving gold
(jewelry)

Holidays
RAMADAN:
9th monthof theIslamic calendar
Commemorate the first revelation
of the Quran to Muhammad
according to Islamic belief
Lasts from 29 30 days based on
the moon
FASTING

THRONE DAY: July 30th

Also known as Feast of the Throne
Commemorates the moment when
the kingdom took the throne since
1999.

Eid al-Adha:

(Festival of Sacrifice)
It honors the willingness ofAbraham to
sacrifice his son, as an act of submission
toGod's command
Animal Sacrificed meat divided into 3
parts (family, relatives, friends &
neighbors)

Visual Cues

Places

MEDINA

Sahara
Desert
(Merzouga
)

Trading
Trading partners: European Union, France, US,
China

Basic manufactured goods, such as textiles

Fuel

Tourism

Food

Couscous
with
vegetable
s

Kefta:
beef or
lamb
with
onions &
raisins

Iced Mint
Tea
Mixed
olives with
preserved
lemons