Berber calendar December - 13 January), and 20 "black nights" (Berber: "iḍan tiberkanin/isṭṭafen", Arabic "al-lyali al-sud"), beginning on the first day of "yennayer", corresponding to the Gregorian 14 January. The first day of the year is celebrated in various ways in the different parts of North Africa. A widespread tradition is a meal with particular foods, which vary from region to region (such as a couscous with seven vegetables). In some regions, it is marked by the sacrifice of an animal (usually a chicken). In Algeria, such a holiday is celebrated even by many people who don't use the Berber calendar in
Judeo-Berber language remained, mainly in Israel; all are at least bilingual in Judeo-Arabic. Judeo-Berber is characterized by the following phonetic phenomena: Apart from its daily use, Judeo-Berber was used for orally explaining religious texts, and only occasionally written, using Hebrew characters; a manuscript Pesah Haggadah written in Judeo-Berber has been reprinted (Galand-Pernet et al. 1970.) A few prayers, like the Benedictions over the Torah, were recited in Berber. Taken from Galand-Pernet et al. 1970:121 (itself from a manuscript from Tinghir): Judeo-Berber language Judeo-Berber (, ) is any of several hybrid Berber varieties traditionally spoken as a second language in Jewish communities of