Historically, Doukkala referred to a confederation of
Amazigh tribes which occupied the territory between the rivers of
Oum Er-Rbia River and
Tensift The SanHâja occupied the Atlantic coast between Azemmour and south of El Jadida. When the
Almohads under
Abd al-Mu'min captured the town of
Marrakesh in 1147, the Doukkals sided against them and in favor of the
Almoravid dynasty. They were subsequently defeated by al-Mu'min, and purged, with women and children being sold into slavery. Al-Mu'min brought in less fractious
Arab Bedouin tribes as immigrants to settle the area, including the Banu Hilal, a
coalition of whom he had defeated earlier in
Tunisia. Later immigrants included the
al-Ma'qil. By 1250, of the Doukkala, only the Ragrâga had survived intact after their conquest and the subsequent immigration of eastern tribes. The Arabization is now complete, however. When American Captain
James Riley (1770 AD) visited Doukkala, he said describing it : " the provinces of
Abdah and
Duquella, which are entirely peopled by
Arabs living in
tents, and in a primitive or wandering state, (their tents being formed of the same materials, and pitch- ed in the same manner as those of the
Arabs on the
desert) I observed that these people were of a much lighter complexion than those on the desert; but that circumstance, in all probability, was owing to the climate's being more temperate; to their being less exposed to the rays of the sun, and better clothed; yet their features were nearly the same, and those of both bear a strong resemblance to those of the
Barbary Jews, who also have black eyes and
Arab noses". According to anthropologist
David Montgomery Hart, the majority of the Doukkala tribal confederation are of Hilalian origin and in the 1960s they had either a sedentarized or semi-sedentarized Bedouin lifestyle preferring animal husbandry over agriculture. They also participated in
fantasia also known as
laʿb al-barud ("powder play"). Like with other regions in the Atlantic Coast like
Chaouia and
Chiadma, the Doukkala region is today inhabited by
ʕrubis, an ethnically
Bedouin group descending from Bedouin tribes who
migrated to North Africa in the 11th–13th century. Like with many of the large Berber tribes of Morocco like the
Ait Atta and the
Ait Waryaghar, they were divided into
khams khmas ("five fifths"). This system was imposed on them by
Makhzen for purposes of tax collection and the levying of
harzas (soldiers for military expeditions). Despite this division being abandoned during the
French protectorate, it remained as a guiding structural principle for Doukkalis and
khams khmas is seen as a symbol of strength and power in Morocco. These tribes and the
khoms are: Hart estimated the population of the Doukkala tribal confederation to be 360,000 in 1960. == Geography ==