Yennayer - The Amazigh New Year: History, Date, and Traditions

My father never spoke to me about Yennayer as a holiday. He spoke of it as a custom – the winter meal, chicken couscous, dates and walnuts on the table. It wasn’t a conscious celebration. It was just how things were done, always, without necessarily knowing why. Today I know why.

What is Yennayer?

Yennayer (ⵉⵏⵏⴰⵢⵔ) is the first day of the year in the Amazigh calendar. It falls every year on January 12 in the Gregorian calendar.

It is the New Year for the Imazighen – the Berber people of North Africa. Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Mali, Niger: wherever the Amazigh are present, Yennayer marks the beginning of a new agricultural and symbolic year.

In Algeria, Yennayer has been an official public holiday since 2018. In Morocco, official recognition is slowly progressing, but the holiday has been celebrated in families, associations, and schools for decades.

The Amazigh Calendar

The Amazigh calendar begins in 950 BCE. This date marks the accession to the throne of Egypt by the Berber king Shoshenq I – the first Amazigh to rule Pharaonic Egypt.

The calculation is simple:

Gregorian Year	Amazigh Year	Yennayer Date
2026	2976	January 12, 2026
2027	2977	January 12, 2027
2028	2978	January 12, 2028

Rule: Gregorian year + 950 = Amazigh year.

Why January 12?

The Amazigh calendar is a Julian agricultural calendar – the same one used by ancient farmers to organize seasons, sowing, and harvests.

The 13-day difference between the Julian and Gregorian calendars explains why Yennayer falls on January 12 and not January 1.

It is an agricultural calendar before it is a political calendar. My grandfather, a nomad from Souss-Massa, probably didn't know he was following an Amazigh calendar – he followed the rhythm of the desert, the rains, and the herds.

How is Yennayer celebrated?

Traditions vary by region and family. There isn't just one Yennayer – there are as many as there are Amazigh villages.

The Meal

This is the heart of Yennayer. Families eat well together, with dishes symbolizing abundance.

• Couscous – with chicken, winter vegetables, chickpeas
• Dates, walnuts, almonds, dried figs – to invite prosperity
• Milk – symbol of purity and a good year
• Aghroum (Berber bread) – baked in wood-fired ovens in villages

In some villages of Souss-Massa, a whole chicken couscous is prepared – the chicken represents renewal. This is the version my father described to me.

Tamazight Greetings

Families gather and exchange greetings:

ⴰⵙⴳⴳⵯⴰⵙ ⴰⵎⴰⵢⵏⵓ – Asggwas Amaynu – Happy New Year.

Literally: may the year be new. Simple and true.

Regional Traditions

In Kabylie, ivy is hung on doors to protect the house. In the Rif, the house is thoroughly cleaned the day before – a symbolic renewal. In the Souss, the family meal takes precedence over everything.

These variations are normal: the Imazighen share common roots, but each region has its nuances. To learn more: the history of the Imazighen of Morocco.

Yennayer and Modernity

For a long time, Yennayer almost disappeared. Generations of the diaspora no longer knew about it.

Since the 2000s, something has changed. Social media, cultural associations, and Amazigh artists have brought Yennayer back into the spotlight. Today, on January 12, thousands of accounts post Asggwas Amaynu.

Families who no longer remembered it have started making Yennayer couscous again. Not for politics – but to find something they felt they had lost.

That's Yennayer. Not an invented holiday. A memory returning.

Yennayer 2977 – January 12, 2027

The next celebration: January 12, 2027, Yennayer 2977.

If you've never celebrated it – start with the meal. A chicken couscous, dates, walnuts. Say Asggwas Amaynu around the table. That's all it takes to start.

And to mark the day with a symbol, the yaz ⵣ is embroidered on our high-neck organic unisex t-shirt and our cap – a simple way to wear Amazigh memory on January 12.

And if you want to understand the symbols that have adorned Amazigh carpets and creations for millennia: The 20 Amazigh symbols and their meanings.