Title:
SOME SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ASPECTS OF FOLK STORIES IN THE REGION OF ERRACHIDIA, MOROCCO

Authors:
Moulay Sadik Maliki, Hamid Housni, Morocco

Abstract:

The term folklore is composed of two words, namely “folk” and “lore”; which mean “people” and “wisdom”, respectively’. It is the wisdom, beliefs and ‘oral history” (Clayton, 2016) associated with the common people of a specific community. Folklore also includes the traditions, customs, beliefs, music, rituals, myths, legends, folk songs and folk stories/tales which are transmitted from one generation to another and kept active by active tradition bearers, give a sense to people’s lives and reveal the hidden part of human genius (Utley 1968: 12). The present article examines folk stories in the region of Errachidia (Morocco) from a socio- cultural and anthropological point of view. To be more precise, it tries to get insights into how these artistic creations, (i.e. folk stories) reveal the complex cultural values and linguistic systems in this semi-rural area and how people use these stories to create and maintain socio-cultural constructs.