Jebel Nafusa - The Berber Tradition
Taking your next well-deserved holiday to Libya promises to be an exciting and unforgettable experience. Libyans are proud and hospitable people who look forward to inviting you into their country and keenly wait to show off their nation’s greatest and most prominent features. Libya is indeed blessed with a stunning kaleidoscope of natural beauty and diversity from the splendours of the Saharan Desert to the pristine stretches of the Mediterranean Coastline.
While many travellers from abroad will be familiar with the Roman and Greek heritages that dominate the Libyan cultural and political landscape, there are another proud people known as the Berbers that mainly reside in the fertile areas of the Jebel Nafusa mountain range. The Nafusa Mountains are located in the western part of the country and lie between the Libyan coastal plains of Jefara in the north and the Tripolitanian Plateau in the south. Nafusa’s villages namely raise goats and grow olive, grain, apricot, and fig produce; the mountains are also the heartland for the Berber peoples who maintain a strong cultural identity in the region. Though they have been stereotyped in the West as being nomads, most Berbers live as farmers in mountainous terrains near the coast or as oasis dwellers.
The Jebel Nafusa Mountains are strongly influenced by the Berber culture, which is a wonderful excursion for those travelling through the area. The main places of interest are the Berber villages between Gharyan and Nault where the language and culture of these people still thrives strongly. There is also evidence of Berber architecture found throughout the area, which prominently showcases the life and times of these peoples.
