language & religion
Mauritania's official language is Arabic. There is another
three languages called Soninke, Fula, and Wolof and they are recognized as
national languages. Hassaniyyah Arabic, is a dialect that draws most of its
grammar from Arabic and uses a vocabulary of both Arabic and Arabized Amazigh
words, and it's spoken by the Moors. Egyptian and Syrian Arabic would be also
familiar with most of the Hassaniyyah speakers, because of the effect of radio
transmissions and the television from the Middle East. In the Senegal River
basin there is the Tukulor and the Fulani they speak Fula (Fulfulde, Pular),
it's a language of the Atlantic branch of the Niger-Congo family. The other
ethnic groups have kept their own languages, such as the Soninke and the Wolof.
They are also part of the Niger-Congo family.
Almost all of the population of Mauritania belongs to Sunni
Islam, and also it's the state religion. In Mauritania the political structures
are shaped largely upon religious structures and organization. Officially Mauritania
laws are linked to Sharia, Muslim law, but not all of it, because it includes
also traditional structures that are unique for Mauritania. The Mauritanian
constitution states that Islam is the religion of both the nation and its
people. As such, over 99% of the population is Muslim, most of them are Sunnis.
There are also two effective Islamic brotherhoods in Mauritania, called the
Qadiriya and the Tijaniya. The few thousand Christians and a very small number
of Jews are mostly foreigners.
Some Food and drinks
In Mauritania meals are usually eaten communally and Mauritanians usually eat their meals from a large bowl known as a 'calabash'. Eating with the left hand is forbidden! Among most of the black African's population, the main meal is eaten at lunch time whereas within the Arab and Berber population the main meal is eaten during the evening. The diet in Mauritanian consists especially of rice, fish, millet, and sweet potatoes with meat being consumed by those who can afford it. Dates and couscous are very popular in Mauritanian. The most popular traditional dish in Mauritanian is lamb dish known as 'Mechoui'.
architecture
traditional clothes
The Mauritanian Traditional dress is consisted of light clothing to protect the people against the sun and as well as the sand storms. The women traditional dress in Mauritania is called "Melahfa". The men traditional dress is called "Daraa" (or a boubou), and they wear it with, sandals made from gazelle skin. Most of the Mauritania women also use Melhafa not only as a traditional dress; they also use it to cover their hair, because of religious reasons. The Daraas are mostly blue, black or white and they are perfect when the weather gets very hot, because the wide cloth allows air to move around.