Maghrebi Arabs (original) (raw)

Maghrebi Arabs (Arabic: :العرب المغاربة al-‘Arab al-Maghariba) or North African Arabs (Arabic: عرب شمال أفريقيا ‘Arab Shamal Ifriqiya) are the inhabitants of the North African Maghreb region whose native language is Arabic and identify as Arab. This ethnic identity is a product of the Arab conquest of North Africa during the Arab–Byzantine wars and the spread of Islam to Africa. The migration of Arabs to North Africa in the 11th century was a major factor in the ethnical, linguistic and cultural Arabization of the Maghreb region.