The Berber languages are a group of very closely related languages and dialects spoken in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egyptian area of Siwa, as well as by large Berber communities in parts of Niger and Mali. A relatively sparse but very old population extends into the whole Sahara and the northern part of the Sahel. Berber belongs to the Afro-Asiatic languages phylum.

There is a movement among speakers of the closely related northern Berber languages to unite them into a single standard Berber. The name Tamazight, which traditionally referred specifically to Central Morocco Tamazight and is used by the native speakers of Tarifit, is being increasingly used for this standard Berber, or even for Berber as a whole. Its usage is less consistent in some areas like the Sous and Kabylia where locals name their language Tashelhit or Taqbaylit rather than Tamazight.

Due to the rising Berber cultural and political activism and its recent prominence in the North African media, the popularity of the term Tamazight made it known and recognizable by virtually every citizen in North Africa including non-Berber speakers. Among the Berber languages (or dialects) are Central Morocco Tamazight, Tarifit (called Tamazight by its native speakers), Taqbaylit (Algeria), Tashelhit (central Morocco), and Tuareg Berber. The Berber languages have had a written tradition, on and off, for over 2000 years, although the tradition has been frequently disrupted by various invasions.

It was first written in the Tifinagh alphabet, still used by the Tuareg; the oldest dated inscription is from about 200 BC. Later, between about 1000 AD and 1500 AD, it was written in the Arabic alphabet (particularly by the Shilha of Morocco); since the 20th century, it has often been written in the Latin alphabet, especially among the Kabylians. A variant of the Tifinagh alphabet was recently made official in Morocco, and a smiliar one in Algeria, while the Latin alphabet is still predominant in Algeria (although unofficially) and official in Mali and Niger; however, both Tifinagh and Arabic are still widely used in Mali and Niger.

Tifinagh and Latin scripts are increasingly being used in Morocco and parts of Algeria, while the Arabic script is almost totally abandoned by Berber writers. The term Berber has been used in Europe since at least the 17th century, and is still used today. It was borrowed from the Arabic designation for these populations, البربر, el-Barbar.

The latter might have been derived from the Arabic or Persian words "barbakh"/"barbar" and "khanah", a house or guard on the wall. Although the Berbers obviously fell under that definition, Romans usually called them under more specific names, such as "Numidians" or "Mauri". The Egyptians referred to them as Rebu (= Libu), or Meshwesh, the ancient Greeks as "Libyans", the Byzantines as "Mazikes"[verification needed].

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