Module 051 · Textile Intelligence
The Carpet
Code
A field guide to reading a rug. 30 Amazigh motifs decoded.
Every Amazigh carpet is a letter. The diamond is the womb. The zigzag is water. The comb purifies. The scorpion wards. Before the Amazigh had a written script in common use, they had wool. Weavers — always women — encoded identity, protection, fertility, and cosmology into geometric patterns passed from mother to daughter for over 3,000 years. The meaning of many symbols has been lost. What survives is a visual lexicon of at least 30 core motifs, each with a name, a function, and a regional dialect. This is the specimen plate.
Section I
The Specimens
30 motifs across six categories. Each card shows the symbol, its Amazigh name, meaning, primary region, and frequency in surviving collections. Filter by category or read as a complete atlas.
FREQUENCY: ●●● Ubiquitous — found across all regions · ●●○ Common — multiple tribes · ●○○ Rare — specific tribes or declining
Evil Eye Shield
01Tit
Concentric diamonds deflect the evil eye in four directions. The cross at centre scatters malice.
The Finger
02Doud
Hashtag grid represents five fingers of the Hand of Fatima. Shields the household from djinn.
Fibula
03Tazerzit
Triangular brooch that fastens women's garments. Symbol of feminine strength and tribal belonging. Each region has its own fibula style.
Scorpion
04Tighirdemt
Courage and endurance. Also wards off actual scorpions. The woven scorpion neutralises the living one.
Lion's Paw
05Adad n Izem
Maze of diamonds forming a paw print. Strength, courage, and fierce protection. References the Barbary lion, extinct in Morocco over 100 years.
The Diamond
06Takhelkhalt
The most recurring motif in all Amazigh art. Represents the womb — the matrix of life. Fertility, birth, motherhood. With a dot at centre: the watchful protective eye.
Seed
07Azraa
Hourglass shape. Blesses with fertility, growth, and prosperous new beginnings. The grain that becomes bread.
Frog
08Amqerqur
Fertility and magical rites. Diamond body with four extending legs. Associated with water and rain ceremonies.
Spider
09Taytut
Interlocked lines radiating from centre. Creative magic, abundant fertility, patience, and the working life. Schematises the sun.
Swallow
10Thaasiwan
Cross of intersecting rectangles forming a bird. Carries baraka (divine blessing). Heals sickness, guards against misfortune.
Yaz
11ⵣ
The Free Man. Boldest of all Amazigh symbols. Proclaims identity and the unbreakable spirit of freedom. The letter Z in Tifinagh.
Cross
12Tazeggart
Balances opposing forces. Justice, mutual respect, community harmony. Harmony between the physical and spiritual worlds.
Metalworker's Mark
13Anzzam
X-shape honouring the blacksmith. Offers respect to metal and prevents djinn. Marks the tribe's forge lineage.
Ram
14Ikerri
Fertility, complementarity and opposition. The ram is sacrificed at Eid al-Adha — bridging the sacred and the domestic.
Long Hair
15Tiziri
Parallel vertical lines. Represents the tradition of long hair among Amazigh men. Marker of manhood and tribal custom.
Water / River
16Aman
Zigzag lines. Flow of life, continuity, and the rivers that sustain the oases. Also represents mountains when vertical.
Star
17Itri
Hope, direction, cosmic connection. The star that guides man in the night. Navigation, destiny, and the divine.
Snake Spine
18Afiɣ
Vertical line with chevrons. References holy persons with medicinal and magical skills. Healing knowledge encoded in pattern.
Olive Tree
19Azemmur
Quiet and beneficent force. Represents the enduring presence of the olive — food, oil, light, and shade across centuries.
Lizard
20Tazermummit
Elevation and spiritual enlightenment. Found more on jewellery and pottery than carpet, but appears in Souss and Anti-Atlas weaving.
Comb
21Tasmekt
Vertical tines on a horizontal bar. Purifies the path of life and wards off evil. Feminine symbol of fertility and creativity.
Saw
22Amenzar
Serrated zigzag line. Honours diligence and craftsmanship. Patience shapes every masterpiece. The saw is still essential in Atlas woodworking.
Grain / Barley
23Timzin
Grain enclosed within a diamond. The wheat that becomes bread — the #1 staple of the Moroccan diet. Enclosed = protected harvest.
Anchor
24Tanzagt
Fidelity, inner balance, and lucidity. Grounding force. The weaver anchors the family to the earth.
Loom
25Azetta
The loom itself as sacred space — boundary between visible and invisible worlds. Grid pattern of warp and weft represents the structure of life.
Sun
26Tafukt
Circle with radiating lines. Life force, divine light, and the cycle of days. Schematised sometimes as spider.
Moon
27Ayyur
Crescent form. Female cycle, intuition, the passage of time. Connects to Islamic lunar calendar and pre-Islamic night sky reverence.
Stairway
28Adrar
Rising step pattern. Luck, progress, spiritual ascent. Each step a prayer answered. The mountain path to the divine.
Eye of the Partridge
29Tit n Tasekkurt
Twin checker squares. Feminine beauty, grace, and watchfulness. The partridge never sleeps — the rug that watches.
Bow Tie / Butterfly
30Taferdust
Mothers stitch this motif to shield children from harm. Two triangles meeting at a point — transformation and protection.
Section II
The Regional Dialects
The same diamond means different things in different hands. Each tribe developed its own palette, pile, and pattern language. Eight weaving traditions, each a visual dialect.
Beni Ouarain
Middle Atlas
Minimalist pile. Sparse diamond motifs on cream field. Soft, silky wool.
Azilal
High Atlas / Middle Atlas border
Single-knotted, intricate detail. Personal stories woven as abstract geometry.
Boujad
Middle Atlas foothills
Low pile. Floating shapes, distorted diamonds. Less concerned with symmetry.
Taznakht / Aït Ouaouzguite
High Atlas / Ouarzazate
Fine wool, intricate geometric designs. Bold diamond chains.
Zemmour
Rabat region
Complex lozenges and dense patterning. Some of the most elaborate compositions.
Marmoucha
Eastern Middle Atlas
Thick, high-piled. Distinct diamond patterns. Originally bedding carpets for harsh winters.
Talsint / Eastern tribes
Eastern Morocco
Linear patterns, bold horizontal bands. Desert caravan route influences.
Kilim (Hanbel)
All regions
Flat-weave. Durable, reversible. Used as floor/wall coverings, tent doors, prayer rugs. Included in bride's trousseau.
Section III
How to Read a Rug
Start at the Centre
The central motif marks the weaver's core theme — birth, marriage, protection, or identity. A large single diamond at centre means fertility and guardianship. Multiple diamonds mean a family. The centre is the thesis statement.
Trace Outward
Patterns repeat or evolve from centre to edge. This can signal life chapters — marriage to children to protection of the household. Borders are the final defence: combs, zigzags, and fingers form a perimeter of warding.
Read the Colour
Before synthetic dyes, colour was message. Red (madder root): vitality, strength, life. Blue (indigo): divine protection, peace. Yellow (saffron, turmeric): light, prosperity. White (undyed wool): purity, mourning. Black (walnut shell): earth, mystery.
Reading Notes
The Loom as Sacred Space
Before beginning a carpet, women whisper prayers and invoke protection against the evil eye. The warp (vertical threads) is the structure of life. The weft (horizontal) is experience woven through endurance. The beating of each line into place is a meditative ritual that mirrors prayer and breath.
The Bridal Trousseau
A traditional Amazigh bride brought three textiles: a large sleeping carpet with central diamond for fertility, two side rugs with zigzags and eye motifs for protection, and a small woven bag emblazoned with her tribe's mark for identity. A portable domestic universe that travelled with her.
The Swiss Researcher
Bruno Barbatti's Berber Carpets of Morocco: The Symbols, Origin and Meaning argues that all geometric motifs are fundamentally about fertility — diamonds represent wombs, long lines are phallic, and enclosed elements signal birth. When his interpretations were read to Amazigh women weavers, they laughed and asked if the author was a man.
Sources
Symbol meanings and regional attributions compiled from: The Advocacy Project, "Traditional Motifs in Amazigh Weaving" (Aïn Leuh cooperative fieldwork). Mina Abouzahra, "Symbolism" and "Regions and Types" (minaabouzahra.com). Tribaliste Magazine, "Patterns and signs in Berber crafts" (2020). iwziwn.com, "Symbolism and Spirituality in Moroccan Amazigh Weaving" (2025). Mimouna Rugs, "Berber Symbols: Decoding the Patterns and Meanings" (2025). Laetitia Demay, "Berber Symbols: Meaning and Secrets of Amazigh Patterns" (2025). Nomad33, "The Symbols of the Berber Carpet" (2022). Berber Creations, "Symbolic Meanings in Moroccan Berber Rugs" (2023). Kenza & Co, "Berber/Amazigh Symbols Meaning." Afrikesh, "Berber Carpets of Morocco the Symbols Origin and Meaning" (2024). Bruno Barbatti, Berber Carpets of Morocco: The Symbols, Origin and Meaning (referenced via Amazigh World News and Advocacy Project). Regional style data from Mina Abouzahra's tribal classification. SVG renderings are editorial interpretations of geometric motifs described across sources — they represent the structural logic of each symbol, not exact reproductions of specific rugs.
© Dancing with Lions · dancingwithlions.com · Symbol interpretations vary by tribe, region, and individual weaver. Meanings are not fixed. This guide represents documented consensus across sources, not definitive readings.