Moroccan National Research Articles

The post-colonial novel and the re-construction of national identity in Morocco: conflicts and paradoxes

ABSTRACT Tainted by decades of direct colonial influence, Moroccan cultural identity in the postcolonial era became the battleground for conflicting discourses and competing voices grappling for recognition and dominance. The project of cultural decolonisation and national identity construction was avidly endorsed by Moroccan nationalist authors whose ‘engaged’ literature aimed at resurrecting Moroccanness on solid Islamic and nationalist foundations. Modernist writers, however, espoused a different vision that is based on modernisation, liberalism and secularism. Some other writers wrote ‘undesirable’ literature that is highly individualistic and unconcerned with the question of identity. The cultural scene in general and the novel genre in particular, being a new and a widely receptive genre, vehicled these postcolonial conflicting discourses and ideologies and reflected the discursive and ideological heterogeneity of postcolonial Morocco. This article sheds light on this heterogeneity as manifested in the works of prominent Moroccan post-colonial novelists. I, therefore, contend that there were several literatures at play subsequent to Morocco’s political independence; one is progressive, another reactionary, and the other is ahistorical; all representing the three major currents of post-colonial Moroccan literature.

Evolution of a flexible pavement deterioration, analyzing the road inspections results

For each policy of road maintenance, there are two methods of assessing the pavement condition, the environmental inspection which is generally based on a visual survey to define the various surface damages such as: Potholes, pull-outs, and cracks, and another physical one using new technology equipment to evaluate the pavement structural deterioration based on the measurements of the evenness and deflection using the longitudinal profile analyzer and the deflectograph. In this cedi, Pavement condition is an essential parameter for assessing pavement quality at a given time and to prevent future scenarios of possible maintenance. In this regard, the analysis, collection and abstraction of the different road data base is a very complex and essential process to study. In this respect, and in the framework of our collaboration with the Moroccan National Center for Road Studies and Research, we propose in this article a macroscopic evolution study of the pavement surface and structural condition by comparing the inspection results carried out between 2008 and 2016 with the one we carried out in 2018, on a 50 Km length starting from the kilometer point KP 0 + 080 to the KP 0 + 130 belonging to the Moroccan National road number 06, linking the city of Khemissat to Meknes. This operation begins with a section subdivision into 1 km sections, the analysis and abstraction of the Road Data Base (RDB), the representation in the form of a deterioration matrix subdivided into four levels: A, B, C and D, with the aim of quantifying and classifying the deteriorations, providing a picture of the paved surface network condition, identifying the equi-quality areas classified according to the deterioration levels, linear interpolation of the data, and a probabilistic projection of possible future deteriorations.

“Radical Bilingualism” in Fouad Laroui’s Une année chez les Français

This article considers language practices in Une année chez les Français, a 2010 novel by the multilingual Moroccan writer Fouad Laroui, by drawing on Abdelkébir Khatibi’s concept of “radical bilingualism” and on Mikhail Bakhtin’s understanding of “polyglossia”. It focuses on ways in which French cultural and linguistic domination is both reinforced and contested by a range of textual and linguistic strategies, including relexification, code-switching, translation, neologism and word play. Laroui’s radical bilingualism will be shown to blur language borders and destabilize the notion of language purity, while creating a literary space that is playful, dynamic, plural and unstable. Radical bilingualism in this novel will be revealed as a subversive strategy that Laroui uses to engage in a “double critique” of French neo-colonial domination and privilege and of Moroccan nationalist essentialism.

THE PORTRAYAL OF THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE IN SCHOOL TEXTBOOKS AND NATION FORMATION IN MOROCCO

This article investigates the portrayal of the pledge of allegiance in school textbooks of middle school with a focus on nation construction. Drawing on the Ethno-Symbolist approach to nation formation, as developed by Anthony Smith, the school textbooks are analyzed qualitatively. The findings reveal that pledge of allegiance is portrayed as a national symbol that characterizes Moroccan nation formation and persistence over a long durée, from ethnie to pre-modern to a modern entity.

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on blood transfusion systems: International review and the Moroccan blood transfusion system experience

Introduction: Transfusion systems worldwide have had to face many challenges against the emergence or the re-emergence of numerous infectious diseases. Some of those viruses have posed significant impacts on blood transfusion activities. Several scientific and transfusion experts consider the current COVID-19 pandemic to present a potential risk of reducing and compromising the supply of blood products. Blood establishments had to activate their emergency plans and to propose appropriate response measures. Method: It is an international review where we used key terms search strategy to identify necessary information about: (i) the impact of some previous emergent viruses on the availability and the safety of blood products and (ii) the impact of the current COVID-19 pandemic on the blood transfusion activities worldwide. Additionally, we presented the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Moroccan transfusion system activities and the measures established by the Moroccan National Centre of Blood Transfusion and Hematology (MNCBTH) to ensure management of this health crisis on the availability and the safety of blood products in Morocco. Results: Viruses like Zika, Influenza A (H1N1), Chikungunya, SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and Ebola have been of great concern in terms of virulence, modes of transmission, and impact on blood transfusion activities. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the availability of blood products in blood establishments worldwide. In Morocco, the COVID-19 pandemic affected blood collections and caused a significant decrease in the number of blood donors nationally. Data provided from all regional blood transfusion centers and blood banks in Morocco show that the total number of blood donations made in 2020 was 297,841 blood donations nationally compared to 334,510 blood donations made in 2019, with a decrease of 36,669 blood donations. The number of LBP produced in 2020 was 455,805 units compared to 695,974 units produced in 2019, which corresponds to a reduction of 57,654 units. The number of Labile Blood Products (LBP) delivered in 2020 is 455,805 units against 451,736 delivered in 2019, with an increase of 4069 units. The pandemic impacted other activities of the blood transfusion system in Morocco like continuing education programs, meeting activities, technical missions, and the Moroccan plasma removal for the fractionation. Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on blood transfusion activities worldwide. The MNCBTH has expressed continued adaptability to ensure proper management of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the availability and safety of blood products in Morocco.

Allal Al-Fassi’s Utopia: Liberalism and Democracy within the Revivalist System of Thought

This paper examines the political writings of the Moroccan nationalist Allal Al-Fassi (1910-1974). It argues that there exists a considerable political tendency in these writings with excessive utilisation of jargon related to liberalism and political theory. In his intellectual and political project, Al-Fassi theorises about the possibility of creating a modern state on solid democratic and liberal foundations. Yet, however legitimate and seemingly liberal his theorisation might seem, the paper argues that the formation of a liberal state and a democratic society appears to be a mere dream given the fact that Al-Fassi grounds his conceptions within the Salafist and revivalist intellectual systems. Reading between the lines of his political works, nevertheless, reveals the dominance of Salafist intellections which deem the past and Islam as restorative in attaining a modern renaissance, at the political, economic, and cultural levels. This work, thus, problematizes three central points: the political tendency of Al-Fassi’s project, his religious and Salafist remnants and conceptions, and finally the possible ideological implications and interests that Al-Fassi seems to defend.

The Moroccan Nationalist Movement and its Anticolonial Activism from 1925 to 1944

During the latter part of the Nineteenth Century, the European colonial rivalry over Morocco intensified. The European powers targeted the North African country because of its strategic location and rich natural resources. Hence, after establishing the French and Spanish Protectorates over Morocco, the colonial powers started to implement their exploitative policies in the Sherifian Kingdom. Those policies provoked the Moroccan people, who refused any foreign presence in their country and pushed them to engage in armed resistance. However, the failure of the armed resistance to liberate Morocco and the emergence of a new generation saturated with the spirit of peaceful resistance contributed to the birth of the Moroccan nationalist movement as a political organization aiming to confront the colonizers’ plans and ambitions by peaceful means. The present paper is intended to highlight the political struggle of the Moroccan nationalist movement from its inception to 1944. More specifically, the paper aims to outline the factors contributing to the emergence of the movement and the means of actions it adopted in its peaceful struggle against colonialism. Finllay, it discusses the historical events that encouraged the nationalist movement to move from calling for reforms to calling for full independence.

Dispatches From New York: The Travels of a Moroccan diplomat at the end of the age of empire

ABSTRACT The Moroccan nationalist Mehdi Bennouna traveled to New York in 1947 to advocate for his country's independence before the United Nations. Throughout his six-month stay, he wrote daily reports to inform his colleagues back home about his activities, focusing not only on politics but also detailing the rhythm of daily life in the global metropolis. He thereby reasserted Morocco's rightful place on the global stage and portrayed the kingdom's urban bourgeoisie as the social force most capable of leading the nation into the future. In many ways, his diary contained resonances of the rihla account penned by the Moroccan diplomat Mohammad al-Saffar, who had provided a detailed report about life under industrial modernity upon his return from France in 1845. Contrasting the two travelogues offers unique a window onto the transformation Moroccan society during a century of European colonial expansion and contraction. The same international system, which had once posed an eminent threat to the kingdom's sovereignty, now seemed to invite Morocco's return on the basis of true equality.

Desecularising the postcolonial resistance: the role of Islamic spirituality in the framing of Moroccan anticolonial thought

ABSTRACT It is worth noting that Marxist and secular forms of resistance have been given much priority in postcolonial discourse. We find that almost all prominent postcolonial works produced in the 1980s and 1990s celebrated the secular and Marxist nature of anticolonial liberation struggles. This emanates from the fact that the concept of resistance within postcolonialism has been defined in secular terms. Postcolonial historians and critics marginalised the role of religious anticolonial movements in favour of secular, nationalist and Marxist liberation movements. It is ‘odd’ that postcolonialism did not devote some space for Islam and anticolonial Islamic liberation movements. However, the post-9/11 global resurgence of religion has prompted postcolonial studies to re-open the question of the sacred. Because 9/11 has provoked an upsurge of spirituality and religion worldwide, postcolonialism has entered the ‘God debate’ and postcolonial writers have started to investigate the multiple roles religion played in the imperial project. In this sense, this article sheds light on the role Islam played in shaping Moroccan anticolonial consciousness. It presents Islam – Salafism and Sufism - as a mobilising ideology for the anticolonial liberation movement in Morocco. In other words, being aware of the fact that the future of postcolonialism is the return to the past as well as of the growing interest in religion within postcolonialism, in this essay I am going to desecularise the postcolonial resistance by highlighting the theological origins of Moroccan nationalist movement and attempting to incorporate North African anticolonial spirituality into the realm of postcolonial studies.

Evolution of acute lower respiratory infection in children aged < 5 years in Morocco from 2005 to 2014.

Acute lower respiratory infection is a major cause of death in children aged < 5 years in Morocco. The 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) was introduced to the Moroccan National Immunization Programme in 2010. To investigate the trend in the incidence of acute lower respiratory infection in children aged < 5 years during 2005-2014 in Morocco. Data on acute lower respiratory infection in children aged < 5 years were obtained from the data published annually by the Moroccan Ministry of Health. We used joinpoint regression analysis to estimate the trend in incidence of acute lower respiratory infection during the study period. The incidence of acute lower respiratory infection increased significantly between 2005 and 2011: by 3.08% annually in children aged < 5 years and by 3.24% annually in children aged 1 to < 5 years. However, the incidence was stable after 2011 as the observed trends were not significant, although the incidence decreased from 2011 to 2014 by 4.26% annually in children aged < 5 years, by 3.57% annually in children aged 1 to < 5 years and by 5.14% annually in urban areas. Our results suggest a probable influence of the PCV on the trend in incidence of acute lower respiratory infection in Morocco.

What Is Moroccan Literature? History of an Object in Motion

Abstract What is Moroccan literature, where and when does it happen, and in what languages? In this essay, we tackle these questions by tracing the evolution of the definition of “Moroccan literature” from the first half of the twentieth century until the present. The earliest works of Moroccan literary historiography, such as ʿAbd Allah Kannūn’s al-Nubūgh al-maghribī fī al-adab al-ʿarabī (1937), situated Moroccan literature within the Arabic literary tradition and treated Moroccan literature as an important element in the “Arab-Islamic” identity promoted by the Moroccan nationalist movement. Since Moroccan independence in 1956, this definition of Moroccan literature has come under increasing pressure, as the languages and imaginative geographies of Moroccan literature have expanded to include new voices. In what follows, we consider these debates through a survey of a diverse corpus of literary-historical works that throw into question the linguistic, temporal, and spatial borders of Moroccan literature (and of Morocco itself).

Moroccan National Immunization Technical Advisory Group: a valuable asset for the national immunization program and the immunization agenda in the EMRO region

ABSTRACT The main mission of a National Immunization Technical Advisory Group (NITAG) is to provide impartial, evidence-based recommendations on immunization to the Ministry of Health. We report on the findings from an evaluation of the Moroccan NITAG with emphasis on its functionality, quality of work processes and outputs, and its integration into the immunization policy process. We conducted a cross-sectional study from October to December 2019. We used the standardized, US-CDC/WHO-developed “simplified assessment tool for national immunization technical advisory groups”. The evaluation included eight participants. The evaluation has shown that it fully complies with the WHO recommendations. Among its strengths, the Moroccan NITAG has a solid legal basis, diverse expertise and many years of combined experience. This composition contributed to the credibility and strength of its recommendations and facilitated their implementation. The NITAG could, however, benefit from implementing written declarations of interests and standardized operating procedures in addition to establishing a standardized methodology to guide and document the decision-making process. The Moroccan NITAG could also gain from inviting members with public health/epidemiology research experience and from exchanging with other NITAGs in the region and globally. Finally, ensuring sustainable funding for the NITAG‘s activities will be crucial, so that it can continue its valuable support to the national immunization program.

Assessment of deficit irrigation efficiency. Case study: Middle Sebou and Innaouene downstream

Abstract Future projection shows that the availability of freshwater per capita will decrease to 560 m3/year by 2030 in Morocco. In this realm of adopting efficient irrigation, alternatives become a priority to overcome water shortage. The presented study aims to investigate theoretically the likelihood of improving irrigation efficiency at the plot level of the Middle Sebou and Innaouene downstream perimeter using 75% of the total irrigation water requirement (IWR), based on the successful results obtained by the Moroccan National Institute for Agronomic Research. The methodology consists of the extraction of monthly evaporation data from MODIS16A2 and process it under Google Earth Engine (GEE); data that are used in the second part of the study, which aims to assess the efficiency of deficit irrigation on a plot of 2,500 olive tree, using three main indexes; olive three height (cm), Stomatal conductance (mmol H2O m−2 s−1), and olive tree growth (cm). The results show that 0.75 of full irrigation could save 17% of the total water used, reducing the water irrigation supply by an average of 5 Mm3, with a slight decreasing of the olive production, estimated as 0.5 t/ha. Furthermore, water use efficiency and water productivity have been enhanced under deficit irrigation by respectively 0.25 kg/m3 and 0.54 Dh/m3. In economic terms, the result shows that with deficit irrigation, the decision-maker, or the farmer, could save about 5 million m3 per year, which is a boost to the global economy if the method is transposed and applied to other Moroccan regions and also a support for the new agricultural strategy called Generation Green.

Applying Geographic Information Systems (GIS) for surface condition indicators modeling of a flexible pavement

In Morocco, as in all world countries, deteriorating road conditions, increasing traffic loads, and decreasing funds have presented a complex management challenge for the road maintenance and rehabilitation process. Hence the need to assess the condition of the pavement network, decide on maintenance strategies, set rehabilitation priorities and implement a maintenance management system. In this regard, Geographic Information System (GIS) is a powerful tool for managing and analyzing data referenced to a geographic location, especially in the field of road infrastructure where information on pavement sections stored in textual databases can be linked by location and attribute in geographical maps. This paper presents a case study, explores the ability of a GIS to visualize the different levels of surface degradation of flexible pavement through the analysis of GIS surface indicator matrices and the reduction of road databases containing the results of the environmental inspection carried out in 2018 on a 50 km section of the Moroccan national road number 06 from KP 0+080 to KP 0+130, applying the Moroccan method carried out by the Moroccan National Center for Road Studies and Research. These thematic maps can justify a budgetary request for the investment of public funds and help in maintenance decisions.

Analysis of structural and surface deteriorations of a flexible pavement, based on inspection results using the MCA method

For several years, the behavior of layers interfaces has appeared as an important element that can be dimensioned for civil engineering structures, in particular for a road pavements. As technologies have evolved, both for surface layers and rolling loads (tires), new damage pathologies have appeared (rutting, tearing, slipping, potholes, top down cracking…). The basis of any maintenance strategy is usually a study of surface deterioration and an associated interpretation. In most cases, surface deterioration is one of the earliest and most sensitive indicators of changes which impacts the structural and surface characteristics of pavements which are subjected to several types of stress during their lifetime. The main causes of the deterioration are heavy vehicle traffic and thermal variations. Within the framework of our collaboration with the Moroccan National Center for Road Studies and Research, we present in this paper a descriptive statistical analysis of the inspection results carried out on the section of the national road number 06, linking the city of Meknes and Khemissat over a length of 50 km which consists in assessing the interactions between different types of structural and surface deteriorations.

Blood donor eligibility after COVID-19 vaccination: the current state of recommendations

The medical screening practices for blood donor eligibility after vaccination against several conventional infectious agents are well known to blood transfusion centres worldwide. Classically, blood donations are contraindicated for four weeks after vaccination with a live attenuated virus vaccine. For other types of vaccines, no postponement is necessary as there is no proven infectious risk. But for the COVID-19 vaccine, besides the classic platforms for the vaccine, two new types of vaccine platforms have been developed and based on viral vectors vaccines and vaccines from viral genetic material. Thus, blood establishments could be worried that these COVID-19 vaccine production platforms can pose any particular safety concerns for recipients of blood or blood products from vaccinated subjects. Our work aims to provide professionals in blood transfusion centres with all the available information to clarify any confusion relating to the need or not to defer donors who have received a COVID-19 vaccination. So in this paper, we provide an international review of the data available to date about the recommendations of international scientific societies about blood donation after COVID-19 vaccination, all types of COVID-19 vaccines included. We also present some experiences of blood transfusion establishments worldwide concerning this topic and among them our institution, the Moroccan National Centre for Blood Transfusion and Haematology.

Have the Moroccan National Accounting Council and Academics Researchers Overestimated the Benefits of Adopting IFRS?

Purpose: In Morocco, the opening to IFRS standards was made in 2007 through the obligation made to the new rules will allow financial institutions to publish their consolidated financial statements in accordance with international accounting standards. The adoption of IFRS accounting standards has the effect of increasing the relevance of accounting and its usefulness to stakeholders. However, the adoption of these standards often emanates from the requirements of international financial institutions which impose the "IFRS label" to align with the best practices of developed countries. Following on from the question asked by Christensen in 2012, have the Moroccan National Accounting Council and academics researchers overestimated the benefits of adopting IFRS?Design/Methodology/Approach: Based on the price and yield model developed by Amir et al (1993) our study focuses on the effects of IFRS on the relevance of financial reporting in Morocco.Findings: The results show that the adoption of IFRS does not bring value relevance compared to national accounting standards. The coefficients of determinations are low. Implications/Originality/Value: This study presents a scientific and managerial contribution on several levels. Indeed, for financial managers, accountants, and shareholders of listed companies, the implementation of IFRS does not have a significant impact on the quality of accounting figures. That being said, national accounts are as relevant in terms of quality as IFRS. It may be necessary to invest in other projects such as the modernization of accounting information systems to better manage financial reporting.

Colonial vs Colonized Counter-Hegemonies: Two Vistas of Moroccan Educational Models

Both France and Spain used schooling as a vehicle in service of colonization during the Protectorate era in Morocco, whereas Moroccans retaliated with counter-hegemonic tools to resist and interrogate imposed educational models in order to implement their oppositional agendas. Thus, the paper is threefold: it attempts to revisit and sketch out both colonial policies in education with their ramifications, while outlining and analyzing their strengths and limitations. The study also seeks to investigate how Moroccans establish resistance movements to react to the newly-imposed colonial hegemonies, such as free schools and reformed traditional Qur’anic schools (Msids), discussing their goals, structures, success and failure. Finally, the paper explores colonial education as a site of interaction or “contact zones” between French and Spanish colonizers and elite Moroccan Muslims and Nationalists who sought to counter the processes of acculturation, marginalization and subalternization. The study covers the Moroccan schooling system from 1912 to 1956. The study dwelled on the congruity of education as an ideological apparatus to shape identity and/or dominate in a battlefield over power between the Protectorate powers and the Moroccan nationalists, who made use of different discourses as an instrument of power. This essay unravels some conclusions that both French and Spanish Protectorates utilized different vistas to establish and sustain their hegemonies through education and instruction, such as Franco-Berber schools and Spanish-Arab/Spanish-Jewish schools respectively. While, Moroccan Muslims and nationalists countered the former hegemonies through creating a free-school system and reforming traditional Qur´anic schools.

THE SOUNDS OF NATIONALISM: MUSIC, MOROCCANISM, AND THE MAKING OF SAMY ELMAGHRIBI

AbstractSamy Elmaghribi was a mid-twentieth century Moroccan superstar. From his debut in 1948 through his professional zenith in 1956, the Jewish musician was a ubiquitous presence on radio and in concert. His popularity owed to his pioneering of modern Moroccan music and to his performance of Moroccan nationalism through song and on stage. Elmaghribi's brand of anti-colonial nationalism, however, was not that of any particular political party. Instead, he espoused what might be termed, “Moroccanism,” a territorial nationalism that placed Sultan Mohamed ben Youssef at its center. Like Elmaghribi, it enjoyed widespread support. This study demonstrates that a focus on musical culture gives voice to mainstream forms of Moroccan nationalism that have received little scholarly attention to date. It also points to the active participation of Jews in postwar MENA societies. Finally, this article reconsiders the dynamics of decolonization through study of Elmaghribi's career, which spanned colony and independent nation.

Colonial al-Andalus: Spain and the Making of Modern Moroccan Culture Culture by Eric Calderwood

Reviewed by: Colonial al-Andalus: Spain and the Making of Modern Moroccan Culture Culture by Eric Calderwood Adolfo Campoy Calderwood, Eric. Colonial al-Andalus: Spain and the Making of Modern Moroccan Culture Culture. Belknap Press of Harvard UP, 2018. 400 pp. Colonial al-Andalus offers a well-documented and fascinating account of the interaction between Spanish colonialism and Moroccan nationalism. Calder-wood traces some of the key tropes of Moroccan nationalism to the Spanish Africanista discourse developed during the second half of the nineteenth century. The book focuses on the different political iterations of Al-Andalus and andalusí cultural identity by the Moroccan nationalists and the Spanish colonial authorities before, during, and after the Spanish Protectorate of Morocco. Calderwood's central thesis in this book, that Moroccan nationalism appropriated the central tenets of Spanish colonial discourse to articulate its own narrative of the cultural origins of the Moroccan nation, is both provocative and insightful. As he explains, Francoism emphasized the importance of the Andalusi past shared by both nations to justify Spain's suitability as the colonizer of Morocco. Moroccan nationalists, on the other hand, embraced the myth of the Andalusi origins of the Moroccan nation and proceeded to present themselves as the true representatives of this cultural tradition. The origin of Moroccan nationalism has been a point of contention for quite some time. Early post-independence historical accounts like Alal AlFassi's The Independence Movements in Arab North Africa (1970) and Abdullah Laroui's Origines culturelles et politiques du nationalism marocain (1977) privileged an idealized pre-colonial past as the origin of Moroccan nationalism and emphasized the contribution of the urban Arab elites to the movement. Edmund Burke highlighted the importance of the political role played by [End Page 575] rural Berber populations in his Prelude to Protectorate in Morocco: Precolonial Protest and Resistance, 1860–1912 (1976). Other accounts like John P. Halstead's Rebirth of a Nation (1967) and more recently Jonathan Wyrtzen's Making of Morocco (2015) have emphasized that Moroccan nationalism originated as a backlash against the Berber Dahir instituted in 1930 by the French colonial administration. According to this account, the effort to drive a wedge between the Arab and Berber populations that characterized this legislation backfired uniting all Moroccans in a shared nationalist movement. Finally, new accounts like Daniel Zisenwine's The Emergence of Nationalist Politics in Morocco (2010) argues that Moroccan nationalism is really a much later development that appears after World War II. As Edmund Burke acknowledges, "colonial and nationalist histories are deeply imbricated in one another" in that "both derive from post-Enlightenment thought" (11). I would hasten to add that postcolonial histories have equally been indebted to Post-Enlightenment thought in that they have, for the most part, ignored any elements that contributed to the articulation of Moroccan nationalist discourse other than definitions of the modern nation/state informed by the French Revolution. This teleological account of Moroccan nationalism has been criticized by, among others by Moroccan historian Muhammad El Mansour in his article "Moroccan Historiography since Independence" (1997) for its deliberate attempt to ignore the role played by nationalist leaders of the Spanish zone like Abdessalam Bennuna, Abd al-Khaliq al-Turris, or Muhammad Dawud. Calderwood's contribution provides a much-needed account of the extent to which Spanish narratives of shared cultural affinity with the Andalusi civilization, particularly as developed during the Francoist regime, influenced and became a corner stone of Moroccan nationalist discourse. As Calderwood explains, the crosspollination between Spanish colonialist ideologues and Moroccan nationalist was, of course, deeply informed by strategic calculations on both sides. Many of the early leaders of the nationalist movement initially presented themselves as reformers rather than advocates for independence trusting that with the arrival of the Spanish II Republic they would be able to increase their role the government of the Protectorate. The Spanish Civil War and the consolidation in power of General Francisco Franco marked the beginning of the radicalization of Moroccan nationalist discourse. The Francoist regime had chosen to undertake pro-Arab policies in order to counter French colonial policy of divide and conquer based on emphasizing ethnic differences between the Berber and the Arab population. Franco sought to...