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People
The original population of Morocco was Berber, and about three-quarters
of all present-day Moroccans are of Berber descent. Arabs, who constitute
the bulk of the inhabitants of the larger cities, form the second
largest ethnic group.
Considerable intermarriage among Arabs, Berbers, and the country's
small number of black Africans has broken down differences among
ethnic groups. Morocco has about 100,000 Europeans, most of them
French.
The rural population in 1997 was 47 percent of the country's total.
The estimated population of Morocco in 1998 was 29,114,497, giving
the country an overall population density of 64 persons per sq km
(166 per sq mi).
Language
The Berber languages, once dominant throughout Morocco, have declined
in importance, and in the early 1990s about 25 percent of the people
used Berber as their first language. Many of these people also spoke
Arabic, the country's official language, which is the primary language
of some 75 percent of the population. Numerous Moroccans also use
French and Spanish.
Religion
Islam is the established state religion of Morocco. Almost the entire
population is Sunni Muslim. The monarch is the supreme Muslim authority
in the country. About 1 percent of the population is Christian,
and less than 0.2 percent is Jewish.
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