The official languages, the Arabic you actually hear in the street, where French, Spanish and English are spoken, and which one to use as a traveller.
Morocco has two official languages, Arabic and Amazigh (Tamazight), but the language you hear in the street, the souks and the taxis is Darija, Moroccan Arabic. French is widely used in business, government and higher education and on menus and signs, Spanish is common in the north, and English is spoken more and more in tourism and by young Moroccans.
As a visitor you can travel in English with a guide, and a few words of Darija or French help everywhere else. This guide explains how the languages fit together and which one to use where.
Arabic and Amazigh (Tamazight), both official under the 2011 constitution.
Standard Arabic is the language of government texts, the news and religion. Amazigh, the language of Morocco's Indigenous people, became official alongside it in 2011 and is written in the Tifinagh script you see on road signs; our guide to the Amazigh (Berber) people covers its three main regional languages. The constitution also protects Hassaniya, the Arabic spoken in the Saharan south.
Moroccan Arabic, the everyday language of most Moroccans.
Darija grew out of Arabic with many words from Amazigh, French and Spanish, and it sounds quite different from the Arabic of the Middle East; Arabic speakers from other countries often find it hard to follow at first. It is mostly spoken rather than written, though it appears in advertising and text messages in Arabic or Latin letters. A greeting and a thank-you in Darija get the warmest reaction of any language: see our Darija and French phrases.
| Criterion | Used for | Where you hear it |
|---|---|---|
| Standard Arabic | Government, news, religion, schooling | Official texts, TV, mosques |
| Darija | Everyday life | Everywhere: streets, souks, taxis |
| Amazigh languages | Everyday life in Amazigh regions | Rif, Atlas, Anti-Atlas, Souss, the south |
| French | Business, higher education, administration | Cities, hotels, menus, signs |
| Spanish | Second language in the north | Tangier, Tetouan, Chefchaouen |
| English | Tourism, young people | Hotels, guides, tourist areas |
Yes, widely: in business, higher education, administration and the cities.
French is a legacy of the French protectorate and remains the second language of business and university teaching. Most people in tourism, in hotels, restaurants, shops and taxis in the big cities, speak at least some French, and menus and signs are often in Arabic and French. In rural villages French is less common.
In the north, around Tangier, Tetouan and Chefchaouen, a legacy of the Spanish protectorate.
The closeness of Spain keeps it alive in the north, so in Tangier and Chefchaouen you will often be answered in Spanish. It is also understood in parts of the south, around the former Spanish zone of the Sahara.
Yes in tourism, less so elsewhere.
English is increasingly spoken by young Moroccans and by people working with tourists: guides, riad staff and many shopkeepers in Marrakech, Fes and Essaouira. Taxi drivers, small cafés and rural villages are where English runs out, and that is where a few words of Darija or French help. On our tours your driver-guide speaks English, and local guides lead the medina visits in English.
English with guides and hotels, French or a few words of Darija everywhere else.
Start in English in hotels and with guides, switch to French with taxi drivers and older shopkeepers, and use Darija for greetings and thanks: "salam" to say hello, "shukran" to say thank you. In the north, Spanish works too. Money words are worth learning first; our money guide explains the dirham and how prices are quoted.
How our private driver-guide tours work, what is included and what they cost.
See the tourThe medina in about four hours, in English. From $50 per person for two.
See the tourDarija, Moroccan Arabic, is the everyday language of most Moroccans. The official languages are Arabic and Amazigh.
Yes, widely in business, higher education, administration and the cities, and by most people working in tourism. It is less common in rural villages.
Increasingly, especially young people and those working in tourism. Away from hotels and tourist areas, French or a few words of Darija help.
No. Darija grew out of Arabic but borrows heavily from Amazigh, French and Spanish, and Arabic speakers from other countries often find it hard to follow at first.
Thank you. Salam is hello, and la shukran is no, thank you, useful in the souks.