Editing Morocco (section)

=== Languages ===
{{main|Languages of Morocco}}
[[File:Morocco - Linguistic map.png|upright=1.4|thumb|Linguistic map of Morocco]]
Morocco's official languages are [[Arabic]] and [[Berber language|Berber]].<ref name="Const1" /><ref name="cons eff">{{cite web|last=Government of Morocco|title=BO_5964-Bis_Ar.pdf|url=http://www.sgg.gov.ma/BO/bulletin/AR/2011/BO_5964-Bis_Ar.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120316221623/http://www.sgg.gov.ma/BO/bulletin/AR/2011/BO_5964-Bis_Ar.pdf|archive-date=16 March 2012}}</ref> The country's distinctive group of Moroccan Arabic dialects is referred to as [[Darija]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Wehr|first1=Hans|title=A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic: (Arab.-Engl.)|date=1979|publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag|isbn=3447020024|page=319|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WTak55pG-_IC&pg=PA319|access-date=30 September 2017}}</ref> Approximately 92.7% of the whole population can speak Arabic. Berber languages are spoken by 24.8% of the population in three dialects ([[Riff language|Tarifit]] spoken by 3.2%, [[Shilha language|Tashelhit]] spoken by 14.2% and [[central Morocco Tamazight|Central Atlas Tamazight]] spoken by 7.4%).<ref name="RGPH 2024" /> According to the [[2024 Moroccan census|2024 census]], 99.2%, or almost the entire literate population of Morocco, could read and write in Arabic, whereas 1.5% of the population could read and write in Berber. The census also reported that 80.6% of Moroccans consider Arabic to be their native language, while 18.9% regard any of the various Berber languages as their mother tongue.<ref name="RGPH 2024" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Babas |first=Latifa |date=18 December 2024 |title=How many Moroccans consider Tamazight their mother tongue, and where do they live ? |url=https://en.yabiladi.com/articles/details/157719/many-moroccans-consider-tamazight-their.html |work=Yabiladi}}</ref> After Morocco declared independence in 1956, French and Arabic became the main languages of administration and education.<ref name="Rouchdy71" />

[[French language|French]] is widely used in governmental institutions, media, mid-size and large companies, international commerce with French-speaking countries and often in international diplomacy.<ref name="Marley">{{Citation|title=From Monolingualism to Multilingualism: Recent Changes in Moroccan Language Policy|date=2005|url=http://www.lingref.com/isb/4/117ISB4.PDF|work=ISB4: Proceedings of the 4th International Symposium on Bilingualism|pages=1487–1500|editor-last=James Cohen|place=Somerville, MA|publisher=Cascadilla Press|access-date=30 April 2017|editor2-last=Kara T. McAlister|editor3-last=Kellie Rolstad|editor4-last=Jeff MacSwan}}</ref> French is taught as an obligatory language in all schools. According to the 2004 census, 2.19&nbsp;million Moroccans spoke a foreign language other than French.<ref name="Haut Commisariat au Plan">[http://www.hcp.ma/ Site institutionnel du Haut-Commissariat au Plan du Royaume du Maroc] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110929061323/http://www.hcp.ma/|date=29 September 2011}}. Hcp.ma. Retrieved 23 July 2011.</ref> [[English language|English]], while far behind French in terms of number of speakers, is the first foreign language of choice, since French is obligatory, among educated youth and professionals. In 2010, there were 10,366,000 French-speakers in Morocco, or about 32% of the population.<ref>{{cite web |title=Le dénombrement des francophones |url=http://www.francophonie.org/IMG/pdf/1e.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131012052949/http://www.francophonie.org/IMG/pdf/1e.pdf |archive-date=12 October 2013 |access-date=9 January 2013 |publisher=Organisation internationale de la Francophonie}}</ref><ref name="FR" />

According to ''[[Ethnologue]]'', as of 2016, there are 1,536,590 individuals (or approximately 4.5% of the population) in Morocco who speak [[Spanish language|Spanish]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Spanish|work=Ethnologue (Free All) |url=https://www.ethnologue.com/language/spa|publisher=Ethnologue|access-date=28 January 2018|archive-date=23 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171123235008/https://www.ethnologue.com/language/spa|url-status=live}}</ref> Spanish is mostly spoken in northern Morocco and the former [[Spanish Sahara]] because Spain had previously occupied those areas.<ref>Leyre Gil Perdomingo and Jaime Otero Roth (2008) [http://www.realinstitutoelcano.org/wps/wcm/connect/dc29ac804f0199d3a40ee43170baead1/ARI116-2008_Gil_Otero_lengua_espanola_Sahara_Occidental.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CACHEID=dc29ac804f0199d3a40ee43170baead1 "Enseñanza y uso de la lengua española en el Sáhara Occidental"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924090300/http://www.realinstitutoelcano.org/wps/wcm/connect/dc29ac804f0199d3a40ee43170baead1/ARI116-2008_Gil_Otero_lengua_espanola_Sahara_Occidental.pdf?MOD=AJPERES&CACHEID=dc29ac804f0199d3a40ee43170baead1 |date=24 September 2015 }}, in ''Analysis of the Real Instituto Elcano'' nº 116</ref> Meanwhile, a 2018 study by the [[Instituto Cervantes]] found 1.7 million Moroccans who were at least proficient in Spanish, placing Morocco as the country with the most Spanish speakers outside the Hispanophone world (unless the United States is also excluded from Spanish-speaking countries).<ref>Saga, Ahlam Ben. [https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2018/11/259062/instituto-cervantes-1-7-million-moroccan-spanish Instituto Cervantes: 1.7 Million Moroccans Speak Spanish] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415113901/https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2018/11/259062/instituto-cervantes-1-7-million-moroccan-spanish/ |date=15 April 2021 }}, ''[[Morocco World News]]'', 29 Nov 2018. Retrieved 11 Apr 2022.</ref> A significant portion of northern Morocco receives Spanish media, television signal and radio airwaves, which reportedly facilitate competence in the language in the region.<ref name="Rouchdy71">{{cite book|author=Rouchdy, Aleya |title=Language Contact and Language Conflict in Arabic: Variations on a Sociolinguistic Theme|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WWZvxjoU948C&pg=PA71|year=2002|publisher=Psychology Press|isbn=978-0-7007-1379-0|page=71}}</ref>