The countries of the Maghreb share many cultural traditions.

Among these is a culinary tradition that

Habib Bourguiba defined as Western Arab, where bread or couscous are the staple foods, as opposed to
Eastern Arab, where bread or white rice are the staple foods.[citation needed] In terms of food,
similarities beyond the starches are found throughout the Arab world.

Genetics of the Maghreb population

The Y-chromosome genetic structure of the Maghreb population seems to be modulated chiefly by
geography. The Y-DNA Haplogroups E1b1b and J make up the vast majority of the genetic markers of
the populations of the Maghreb. Haplogroup E1b1b is the most widespread among Maghrebi groups,
especially the downstream lineage of E1b1b1b1a, which is typical of the indigenous Berbers of North-
West Africa. Haplogroup J is more indicative of Middle East origins, and has its highest distribution
among populations in Arabia and the Levant. Due to the distribution of E-M81(E1b1b1b1a), which has
reached its highest documented levels in the world at 95–100% in some populations of the Maghreb, it
has often been termed the "Berber marker" in the scientific literature. The second most common marker,
Haplogroup J, especially J1,[57][58] which is typically Middle Eastern and originates in the Arabian
peninsula, can reach frequencies of up to 35% in the region.[59][60] Its highest density is found in the
Arabian Peninsula.[60] Haplogroup R1,[61] a Eurasian marker, has also been observed in the Maghreb,
though with lower frequency. The Y-DNA haplogroups shown above are observed in both Arabic
speakers and Berber-speakers.

The Maghreb Y chromosome pool (including both Arab and Berber populations) may be summarized for
most of the populations as follows, where only two haplogroups E1b1b and J comprise generally more
than 80% of the total chromosomes:[62][63][64][65][66][67][68][69]