When is Amazigh New Year (Yennayer)?
In 2026, Amazigh New Year (Yennayer) falls on Wednesday, January 14, 2026. It is classified here as a paid public holiday.
History of Amazigh New Year (Yennayer)
Amazigh New Year—Yennayer, Id n Innayer, Id n Usggwas or Hagouza—grew from North African agrarian-calendar practices marking the turn of the farming year. The Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture stresses that regional rites are old but the modern numbered Amazigh calendar and identity-focused New Year celebration were consciously developed and popularised, especially from the 1970s.
A royal decision announced in May 2023 made January 14 an official paid national holiday, implemented for the public sector by Decree 2-23-688 and for covered private work by a parallel amendment. Recognition followed the 2011 Constitution’s designation of Tamazight, alongside Arabic, as an official language; it does not erase continuing debate about practical language and cultural rights.
Amazigh New Year (Yennayer) is a paid, non-working holiday under Morocco’s public-administration Decree 2-77-169 as amended; paid holidays for covered agricultural and non-agricultural employment are governed by Decree 2-04-426 and Labour Code Articles 217–223. The decrees do not create an automatic Monday substitute when a holiday falls at the weekend. A bridge or exceptional closure requires a separate decision, as the Government issued for March 23, 2026.
How Amazigh New Year (Yennayer) is observed
Nationwide paid holiday on Wednesday, January 14, 2026. Current government notices, employer policies and local schedules in Morocco should be checked for closures, substitute dates and public-service arrangements.
Traditions of Amazigh New Year (Yennayer)
Community practice
Households may prepare region-specific foods such as seven-vegetable couscous, tagwlla porridge, ourkimn or dried-fruit dishes associated with abundance and a good agricultural year. Customs differ by region, language, religious practice and household resources.
Public programme
IRCAM and cultural associations arrange Tamazight poetry, books, exhibitions, Ahidous music and dance, storytelling and intergenerational programmes. The official programme does not imply identical participation or political interpretation across Morocco.
Planning the day
Look for the local programme and name used in that region; no single menu or rite represents all Amazigh or Moroccan families. Essential services, transport and private businesses may follow their own published schedules.
Dates and observance rules are checked against the official Morocco official holiday calendar or legislation. Government, regional, school and employer schedules in Morocco may differ; check the linked official source and current local notices before making time-sensitive plans.
History sources: Moroccan public-service legal database: consolidated Decree 2-77-169, Moroccan administration ministry: working hours and public holidays, Moroccan Labour Code, including Articles 217–223 on paid holidays, Morocco national portal: national and religious holiday calendar, Moroccan Official Gazette: Decree 2-23-688 adding January 14, Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture: Yennayer’s agrarian and modern history, IRCAM: documented foods and practices of Id n Innayer, Encyclopaedia Britannica: New Year festival.
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