Arab-Berber of the Arab conquest of North Africa, and the intermarriage between the Arabian and Persian people who immigrated to those regions and local mainly Roman Africans and other Berber people; in addition, Banu Hilal and Sulaym Arab tribes originating in the Arabian Peninsula invaded the region and intermarried with the local rural mainly Berber populations, and were a major factor in the linguistic, cultural and ethnic Arabization of the Maghreb. Alongside Berber speakers, arabized Berbers form the core of the native populations of the Maghreb, namely Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia. Arab-Berbers primarily speak variants of Maghrebi Arabic, also known
Names of the Berber people Sheba in the "Targum". According to Leo Africanus, "Amazigh" meant "free man". Etymologically, the name may be related to the well attested "aze" strong, "Tizzit" bravery, or "jeghegh" to be brave/courageous. Further it also has a cognate in the Tuareg word "Amajegh", meaning "noble". Names of the Berber people The ethnonym Berber dates to the 19th century, derived from "Barbary" the term for the Maghreb coast used during the early modern period, itself from Greek "barbaria" "land of barbarians". The contemporary self-designation current mostly in Morocco is "Imazighen" (singular "Amazigh"). This term is common in Morocco, especially among Central Atlas,