Traditional dress of Algeria

« The Berber lands begins where men wear burnus and stops where people does not eat Couscous »... That is how Ibn Khaldoun use to define Maghreb region. Let's go today to Algeria, where burnus is a crucial piece of the traditional men suit.

A traditional suit common in Maghreb

Burnus, djellaba, saroual, gandoura are the highlights of Maghreb region's clothing. Wherever you go, as Morocco, Algeria, or Tunisia, you will find those lands people loving them. However, some of those traditional clothing make the popularity of its country. Algerian burnus and algerian djellaba named kechabia, are crucial prieces of clothing of the country.

Algerian djebllaba : kechabia

The algerian djellaba has the particularity of being made of Loubar, which is camel whool. A know-how perfectly controled by the Ouled Nail, a famous arabe Berber tribe.

Source : https://niarunblog.unblog.fr/lartisanat-en-algerie/l%E2%80%99habit-traditionnel-algerien/

A work for ants

Kechabia is a clothe which basic material allows combatting brutal cold. Made of camel hair, the making needs two steps. The first one is the work of the whool, controled only by women. Men are in charge of putting the pieces together : sewing and embroidery.

From hair to whool

In order to make a lovely djellaba, choosing the very best whool is the first step. Smaller than one-year-old young camelide have women's favour. Those women are gifted with patience, dexterity and precision. Qualities that make Kechabia a prestigious traditional clothe.

Camel whool : a smart material

The hollow and empty hair of the camel explains why its whool is so cherished by algerian people. Unlike the sheep's whool, the camel one is softer and smoother. Light but strong, here are  the advantages of the camel hair :

• it is waterproof,

• it is a buckler against pollution,

• it absorbs humidity,

• it retains air,

• it allows to combat glacial cold and the heat.
  

Algerian burnus

Source : https://adnsolution.net/constantine/index.php?page=le-costume

The algerian burnus is a popular piece of the algerian suit. Camel-hair-made as kechabia, burnus is a man coat with a hood. It cab be found in the shades of dark and light brown, and yellowih as well. The kind of color depends on specie and age of the animal. Burnus, even if it needs a careful work, will need less days of work than djellaba does. Indeed, 7 days, on average, will be needed for a kechabia when just 5 days are enough for a burnus.

Eventhough Roman, Phoenician, Ottoman and French people have been there in Algeria, one after another, the algerian traditional suit has kept its personality. According to algerian people, kechabia and burnus are their favorite clothes.

*  Source first photo: https://kalboor.com/burnous