Ahidous

What it is

Ahidous is the communal dance of the Amazigh villages, above all those of the Middle Atlas, a mixed dance that combines poetry, song and dance¹. The Encyclopédie berbère calls it the basic dance of the now settled former nomadic herders of the Middle Atlas and the eastern High Atlas, such as the Ayt Hadiddou and the Ayt Merghad; men and women dance together, in a line or in a circle². The cultural administration counts it among the fundamental elements of Morocco’s intangible musical heritage and among the most important communal dances of Amazigh society³.

The dancers form a circle or a line, shoulder to shoulder, and move like a single body⁴. People say they “play” Ahidous, because dance, drum and song belong together⁵.

Where it comes from

Ahidous is at home in the mountain regions of the Middle Atlas⁶ and among the tribes of the eastern High Atlas around Imilchil⁷. A study in the journal Clio describes it through the example of the small town of M'rirt and its rural surroundings⁸.

What it is made of

The only instrument is the frame drum, called allun or adjoun in Tamazight and bendir in Arabic⁹. It consists of a wooden hoop with a goatskin stretched over it, which is warmed over the fire to tighten it¹⁰; snares under the skin give it its buzzing sound¹¹. In the countryside, the players often make and look after their drums themselves; in town they are usually borrowed or bought¹².

What is sung are izlan (singular izli), short couplets composed by local improvisers; they are mostly about love, are often mocking, and several hundred of them circulate by word of mouth, over the radio and on cassettes¹³.

How it is made

The songs consist of short couplets, which the two groups of the dance repeat in turn¹⁴; one singer leads, and the others take up the song in chorus¹⁵. At an Ahidous of the Ayt Brahim in 1981, two lines stood facing each other, the lead singer struck up the izli, the other line sang it, and then followed knee bends, up-and-down movements and leaps on tiptoe¹⁶. The movements consist of trembling, swaying and stamping to the beat of the drum¹⁷, which usually counts five beats¹⁸. The shoulders rise and fall, and with steps to the right the circle turns¹⁹.

The best dancers and players are called imchaden (singular amchad): they set the rhythms, lead the dance, know the songs and teach them to the younger ones²⁰. Boys learn by watching and imitating at weddings and work their way step by step up to the drum; girls learn much at home, where women drum and sing with great skill²¹.

When

The main occasion is weddings: guests from the surrounding villages and the families of the bride and groom join in the circle²², especially in autumn at the long evening celebrations²³. There is a special Ahidous of the bride, Ahidous n'tislit, before she moves to her husband’s house²⁴. It is also danced at the moussem of Imilchil and spontaneously on the summer pastures, where shepherds and shepherdesses form a circle²⁵.

Since 2000, the National Ahidous Festival has been held in Aïn Leuh in the province of Ifrane, organised by the association Taymate des arts de l'Atlas with the Ministry of Culture²⁶. The 25th edition was scheduled for 23 to 25 July 2026, supported by the regional cultural directorate of Fès-Meknès and the association; around forty groups came to the 2025 edition²⁷.

How to recognise it

Ahidous differs from the ahwach of the Chleuh in the Anti-Atlas and the western High Atlas in choreography and sound: there the drums have no snares, the rhythm counts two or four beats, and men and women often dance separately²⁸.