Language Policy During Both Colonial and Post-colonial Eras in Morocco: Aspects of a Double Marginalization of Imazighen

This chapter is concerned with the colonial ideologies and the state of the reforms in Morocco during the colonial era which include the language policy, education, and the use of Amazigh culture for ideological purposes. The introduction of European organizational concepts included in the Treaty of Fez of March 30, 1912, inaugurated the French domination of Morocco, which put the country in a new direction. Also, some of the ideological orientations and strategies used by the French have had a lasting impact on Amazigh language and culture. The 2011 recognition of Tamazight as one of the official languages of Morocco is a far cry from the time when the Dahir Berbère of 1930 (or The Berber Decree of 1930) was promulgated and used by the nationalists as a token to fight the French protectorate.