People of Algiers

The long colonial rule has had various serious impacts on the people of Algiers. The majority of Algerians are a mixture of Arab and Berber. Some regions, like the Kabylie region of the north, are marked by well-preserved Berber traditions. For the majority of Algerians, however, culture and life have been profoundly affected by 130 years of colonial rule, by the bitter war of independence, and by the subsequent broad mobilization policies of the post-independence era.

Poverty and droughts in the Saharan region have also contributed to the destruction of traditional ways of living for many Algerians, notably, the Tuareg people, who are Berbers. The result has been the emergence of a mobile, often rootless society, especially in the cities.