Muslim convert's speech with explanation in French by Lomax's interpreter

Audio file
Date recorded: September 1, 1967 to September 30, 1967
Contributor(s): Performer: Unidentified man; Performer: Unidentified interpreter; Performer: Lomax, Alan; Recordist: Lomax, Alan
Subject(s):
Genre: interview/commentary
Culture: High Atlas, Moroccan
Instruments: voice
Setting: Marriage festival
Language: Moroccan Arabic, French
Location: Imilchil, Midalt, Drâa-Tafilalet, Morocco
Physical form: Reel to Reel
Tape number: T2093
Track Number: 12
Archive ID: T2093R12
Note: Lomax explains in the following track that this unidentified man is announcing his recent conversion from Judaism to Islam. "I testify that there is no God but God and that Muhammad is the Messenger of God… [this convert] was released from his sleep…may your parents be with God and his Prophet (may they be blessed)." The speaker tends towards the formal register of Arabic in religious formulae such as salah 'alaihi wa salam (prayer and peace be upon him) as well as when he recites from his letter, but we have identified this recording as Moroccan Spoken Arabic due to the incidence of colloquial phrases like allah yekhaliq (May God release you – thank you) when the speaker shifts to a more informal register.
Belongs to: Imilchil I 9/67
About the session: In September 1967, Alan Lomax visited the annual Marriage Festival in the High Atlas village of Imilchil. According to local lore, this festival is held to commemmorate the tragic deaths of two sundered lovers from the warring Ait Yaaza and Ait Ibrahim tribes. Unmarried men and women from the entire Atlas region come to the festival to meet and choose from a great number of prospective spouses. The festival is also known for its numerous and varied musical performances, as traveling musicians often take advantage of the opportunity to play for the large crowds.
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