Atay

What it is

Atay is the Moroccan word for tea.¹ Harrell’s 1966 dictionary of Moroccan Arabic lists it without an article, alongside berrad for the teapot and l-iqama de-s-siniya for the tea service, everything needed to prepare and pour it.² It means green tea with fresh mint and sugar, which stands for hospitality, sharing and sociability.³

In Amazigh folk songs, in aïta and in chaâbi, the preparation of tea often stands for hospitality and affection, and the tray, teapot and glasses for the home.⁴ In 1972 the group Nass El Ghiwan made the tea tray the image of their song “Siniyya”, literally “the Chinese woman”.⁵

Where it comes from

The tea comes from China: according to a report by a Chinese trade association, 80,600 tonnes of tea went to Morocco in 2024, 99.85 per cent of it green tea.⁶ This makes Morocco the most important destination for Chinese green tea.⁷

According to a widely held view, the word atay arrived in the 18th century with British or Dutch traders, from the English “tea” or the Dutch “thee”, perhaps via Tamazight.⁸

History

European trading companies brought green tea into Moroccan trade in the 17th and 18th centuries.⁹ From the middle of the 19th century, British merchants delivered large quantities to Mogador, today’s Essaouira, and to Tangier; traders from Guelmim carried it on into the Sahel, for example to Mauritania and Mali.¹⁰

As prices fell and supply became secure, tea spread in the 19th century, first in the towns, then in the countryside, and was no longer reserved for the upper classes.¹¹

How it is made

First the tea leaves are rinsed, then the sugar loaf is broken up with a small hammer.¹² The tea is poured from a height; this brings air into it and a light froth forms.¹³ In a novel of 1990, the writer Edmond Amran El Maleh describes waiting for the froth of the teapot over the charcoal brazier (kanoun).¹⁴ Harrell’s dictionary has a term of its own for topping up: leqqem l-berrad, to add fresh tea, mint leaves, sugar and boiling water to the pot for the next infusion.¹⁵

When

When there are visitors, the ritual begins as soon as the guest arrives; the tea invites people to linger and talk, and is often served with Moroccan pastries.¹⁶ In the big cities today it also stands alongside coffee and other drinks.¹⁷ On International Tea Day 2025, Morocco presented its tea ceremony at the FAO headquarters in Rome as a sign of hospitality.¹⁸ Among the Berbers of southern Morocco, according to Lagdim Soussi, every meal ends with glasses of tea served very sweet.¹⁹