Tunisia’s first president, Habib Bourguiba, once remarked that the Maghreb region’s borders are defined by “where people eat couscous.”
The political rivalry between Algeria and Morocco took a culinary turn this week when Algeria’s Minister of Communication accused Rabat of cultural appropriation, this time over the dish of couscous.
Speaking before lawmakers in the country’s lower house of parliament, Mohamed Meziane claimed Thursday that Morocco had wrongly laid claim to the North African staple, arguing that couscous, “with all its utensils,” first appeared in Algeria.
“All ancient historians agree on this”, Meziane said without citing any specific evidence. He alluded vaguely to a “major study” conducted by a French historian in the early 20th century but declined to name the scholar.
“This is just one of many examples of products whose origins have been unjustly attributed to our western neighbour,” he added.
Meziane went further, accusing Morocco of taking advantage of Algeria’s civil war in the 1990s and early 2000s to appropriate various symbols of Algerian heritage, including musical traditions and architectural styles.
This is not the first time couscous has become a proxy for deeper tensions between the two North African neighbours.
Morocco and Algeria have been in a state of political stand-off for decades, with their land border closed since 1994 and diplomatic ties severed in 2021.
But even amid disputes over the Western Sahara territory, espionage accusations and energy politics, the rivalry has found fertile ground in softer terrain: music, traditional clothes and cuisine.
Couscous has emerged as a flashpoint in this slow‑burning cultural Cold War.
In 2016, Algeria sought UNESCO recognition for couscous as part of its intangible heritage.
The move sparked outrage in Morocco, where couscous is also a national symbol, served at family gatherings, and weddings, and staple meal after Friday prayer.
Tunisia, too, lays claim to the dish, which it describes as central to its culinary identity.
Couscous refers to both the small steamed semolina grains and the meal as a whole. It’s usually cooked in a two‑tiered pot called a “kiskis” or “couscoussier”, with meat or fish and a rich stew of vegetables and spices ladled over the top.
Each country adds its own signature. In Morocco, the broth is often sweetened with caramelised onions and raisins and spiced with saffron, ginger and cinnamon.
In Algeria, couscous is heartier and earthier, often centred on vegetables like carrots, courgettes and turnips. Morocco also has a savoury version made with seven different vegetables.
In Tunisia, the dish, like most dishes in the country, becomes redder and spicier thanks to tomato paste and harissa. Coastal communities serve it with fish, while southern ones favour camel.
Libyan couscous is typically served with a spiced lamb or beef stew, featuring robust Mediterranean flavours without the sweetness found in Moroccan versions.
Mauritanian couscous is spicier and more aromatic, often paired with lamb or goat and served with fermented milk or spicy broths, with a Sub-Saharan twist.
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Tunisia’s first president, Habib Bourguiba, once remarked that the borders of the Maghreb, the region occupying the northwest half of Africa’s crown, are defined by “where people eat couscous.”
Yet the dish’s origins likely predate any of today’s borders.
According to historians, namely Lucie Bolens, couscous was most likely first made by the Amazigh—the Maghreb’s indigenous people—using barley or acorn flour before switching to durum wheat by the 11th or 12th century.
The name “kseksu“, the root of the word “couscous”, is Amazigh in origin. Today, barley couscous is still made in the Atlas Mountains, which stretch across Morocco and Algeria.
The tradition of making the dish is passed down through generations, and each village in the region, sometimes each family, has its own variation of a couscous recipe.
Despite their differences and occasional disagreements about what defines “real” couscous, the four Maghreb countries—Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Mauritania—joined forces to submit a bid to UNESCO in 2019. This marked a rare moment of unity since the establishment of the now-defunct Maghreb Union.
Libya’s couscous traditions were not included in the UNESCO listing because the country had not ratified the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage at that time.
UNESCO accepted the bid in 2020, declaring couscous a shared element of Maghreb heritage.
That spirit of unity, however, has faltered.
Tensions between Algiers and Rabat have only deepened since. In the Maghreb, when political tempers flare, the UNESCO often becomes the battleground.
In May 2024, Morocco filed a complaint accusing Algeria of monopolising Maghreb heritage and erasing shared claims, not only to couscous but also to traditional dresses such as the Caftan.
As Morocco and Algeria spar over who owns couscous, the dish itself may be one of the few things still connecting them.
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