The art of “Inshallah” in Morocco

Last Updated on February 1, 2025

After living in Morocco for a few years, I gradually adapted some of their cultural habits. One of the important daily life Moroccanisms is the Inshallah culture in Morocco.

Let’s start with the most famous  Moroccanism…

….Inshallah

In Morocco, you will hear “Inshallah” everywhere: making appointments, promising, buying, and arranging your everyday life. “Inshallah” in Arabic means “God willing” or “if God wills”. “Inshallah” refers to events one hopes will happen in the future. In Islam, people are taught not to make definitive statements about the future since only God knows what will happen.  For Moroccans, “Inshallah” is often just a figure of speech or, like one blogger noticed, it is the same as British always saying “brilliant!”.

“Inshallah” is also a polite way to say “no” with the possibility to be “yes”; in this way you can prevent yourself from disappointment if things don’t work as planned (as it often happens in Morocco).  Moreover, “Inshallah” for me means more like “going with the flow”, living a life without fixed rules, routine and arrangements, leaving room for a change in plans, or simply surrendering to what we cannot control in life – life itself. With “Inshallah” I became less stressed, chill, and enjoying the present.

Here is a funny video about “Inshallah”:

However, to master “Inshallah” is a challenge, and you have to alter the whole mindset! In the beginning, I was so frustrated when I want to arrange a meeting and my friends say “Let’s do it tomorrow,  “Inshallah”. I was always, like, so you either have time or not, don’t say this  “Inshallah”! If you can’t fix the fridge today, just say it, not  “Inshallah”! Then, after living in Morocco for a while, I understood that things don’t happen the way they do in Europe. Especially in the summer, when the heat is unbearable, and even if promised, maybe you will not have the energy to meet.  “Inshallah”.

p.s. “Inshallah” doesn’t work is the travel industry. I am happy Moroccans understand our Western mentality and try not to be “Inshallah”. No wonder why many hotel and travel companies are managed by foreigners or Moroccans who lived abroad and understood that “Inshallah” doesn’t exist everywhere.

How  “Inshallah” are you, dear reader?

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