Moroccan Rug Names and What They Mean
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Moroccan rug names puzzle almost everyone at first. Beni Ourain, Azilal, Boujaad, Beni Mrirt, Boucherouite, kilim, hanbel, Zanafi: they sound alike and mean quite different kinds of thing. Some are the names of tribes. Some are towns or provinces. Some describe how a textile is made, and one describes what it is made from. Once you know which is which, a product listing becomes much easier to read, and it becomes easier to notice when a name is being stretched. This page is a plain glossary of the names you will meet, grouped by what they actually refer to.
From the Atelier
Currently in our collection
Names that are tribes
Beni Ourain, also written Beni Ouarain, is a group of tribes of the north-eastern Middle Atlas. Beni means sons of. The name now describes an ivory rug with dark lines. Beni Mguild, also written Beni M'Guild, is a tribe of the Middle Atlas around Azrou, and the name describes a thick rug in deep red or blue.
Zemmour is a confederation between Rabat and Meknes, known for red banded weavings. Zaiane and Marmoucha are Middle Atlas tribes. Aït Ouaouzguite is a confederation of the south, around Taznakht. Aït has the same sense as Beni in the Amazigh languages.
Names that are places
Azilal is a province and a town in the central High Atlas, and an Azilal rug is a colourful, freely drawn rug in the manner of that area. Boujaad, or Boujad, is a town on the plains, and the name describes rugs in warm reds and pinks.
Beni Mrirt takes its name from Mrirt, a town in the Middle Atlas, and describes a dense, heavy, usually plain rug. Taznakht is a town in the south, and Rabat is the capital, whose workshop carpets are a tradition of their own. Glaoua refers to the country around Telouet in the High Atlas.
Names that are techniques or materials
Kilim is a Turkish word for a flat-woven rug without pile. Hanbel is the Moroccan word for a flat-woven cover or rug. Zanafi is used for black and white banded weavings of the south. These three say how a textile was made, and nothing about a tribe.
Boucherouite comes from a Moroccan Arabic expression for a scrap of used cloth, and names a rag rug made from strips of recycled fabric. Shag is simply English for a long pile. A pile rug, or knotted rug, is one made of tufts tied onto a foundation, as all our rugs are.
Berber, Amazigh and Moroccan
Amazigh, plural Imazighen, is the name the indigenous people of North Africa use for themselves. Berber is the older name given by outsiders, and it is the one the rug trade has kept. A Berber rug and an Amazigh rug are the same thing.
Moroccan rug is the widest term and covers rural and city rugs alike. Be aware that Moroccan, Berber and Beni Ourain are also used freely for machine-made rugs in the same style. In that use the words describe a pattern and say nothing about where or how the rug was made.
The Moroccan rug names used in our collection
We use five type names, each in the sense given above: Azilal for 120 rugs, Beni Mrirt for 119, Beni Ourain for twenty-two, Beni Mguild for eleven and Boujaad for two. One further piece is listed as vintage. All 275 are hand-knotted pile rugs in wool.
A type name tells you the style of a rug. It is not a claim about a particular village or weaver. The rugs shown on this page come from the whole collection. Each rug is one of a kind, with its exact measurements on its own page. Delivery is free worldwide, duties and taxes included.
What you can verify about us
- Origin
- Made in MoroccoHand-knotted Berber rugs from the Atlas regions. Every rug is one of a kind.
- Construction
- Hand-knotted woolVerified at every stage — never machine-tufted.
- Delivery
- Duties includedFree shipping; import duties and taxes are included in the price.
- Returns
- 14 daysIn condition received, full refund of the purchase price.
Frequently Asked
Questions
- What does Beni Ourain mean?
- It is the name of a group of tribes in Morocco's Middle Atlas. Beni means sons of.
- What does Azilal mean?
- Azilal is a province and town in the High Atlas. An Azilal rug is made in the colourful style of that area.
- What does Boucherouite mean?
- It comes from a Moroccan Arabic expression for a scrap of used cloth, and names a rag rug.
- Is a Berber rug the same as a Moroccan rug?
- A Berber rug is a rural Moroccan rug. Moroccan rug is the wider term and also covers city carpets.
Sources & References
What this page rests on
- 1. Royal Institute of Amazigh Culture
- 2. Berber Heritage Project
The person behind the piece
“Before you buy, I’ll send you a video of the actual rug in natural light — not a stock photo. I answer the messages myself.”
I’m Youssef. I started ARINID because this market is full of middlemen and machine-made imitations sold as the real thing — and I grew up close enough to the looms to know the difference.
Every piece we list is one of a kind, hand-knotted in Morocco. If you want to talk through sizing for your room, I’m on the other end of the message. A rug at this level is a thirty-year decision. You should be able to look the person selling it to you in the eye.
Youssef
Founder, ARINID
The next step
See every rug we currently offer
Each piece is hand-knotted in Morocco and delivered to your door, with shipping, duties and taxes included.