Big Square storytelling as non-material heritage of Marrakesh

Abstract

In Marrakesh people used to say - when an old storyteller dies, all the library is burning. Storytelling tradition in Morocco is thousand years old so there is no exaggeration in that statement. Today UNESCO patronizes Marrakesh storytelling (hikayat) as a non-material heritage of humanity. The story is not only about Jemaa el-Fna Square which is filled with traditional music played by local artists but about storytellers who sit in circles and tell wonderful stories. They are about history, past and trivias. During the time with the loss of the oldest Masters of Storytelling, tradition seems to fade away. But there is a generation of Moroccan youths who are trying to keep this tradition alive. They gather in riads, cafés and learn from older Masters how to tell the stories in English, Arabic or Darija. The story is like a bridge between the future and the past, it is like a new collection of the books in an old library.