Whistle language may fade

>>> Sharp sounds carry for nearly 3km in high ranges.

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In Morocco's High Atlas mountains, shepherds Hammou Amraoui and his son hardly need words to speak. Across peaks, they whistle at each other in a centuries-old language, now jeopardised by rural flight.

"The whistle language is our telephone," joked Hammou, 59, the elder of a family known for the tradition in Imzerri, a hamlet in the remote commune of Tilouguit, about a two-hour drive from the nearest city.

In Tilouguit, Hammou said people learn it "like we learn to walk or to talk".

The Assinsg language replaces spoken words with sharp whistles that can carry for nearly three kilometres in the mountains, according to researchers.

"The principle of the language is simple: the words are said in whistles and the key to understanding it is practice," said Hammou's 33-year-old son, Brahim.

"It makes it easier for us to communicate, especially when we're herding livestock."

Moroccan heritage researcher Fatima Zahra Salih described the whistle language as a cultural "treasure".

For five years, she has studied it to prepare a case for its recognition and protection by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation.