Click HERE or on the image above for 33 page, fully referenced work on the significance of henna.  PDF format.

Introduction:

Before the modern era, Moroccan villagers applied henna for Id al-Adha, circumcision, and the “Night of the Henna".  This paper establishes the common ground of these events, and the importance of henna in the celebrations, based on eyewitness accounts from the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.
 

Religious holidays and major life events punctuated Moroccan village life with feasting, parties, celebrations and henna.  Id al-Adha, male circumcision, and “Night of the Henna” were the most elaborate and joyous village celebrations, and families went to great expense to entertain guests with food, music, and hospitality at these events.  Henna was an integral part of all of these celebrations in Morocco, although most people are only familiar with bridal henna use.  An examination of henna application in these three disparate events can reveal the purpose of henna body art.

Id a-Adha

Id al-Adha  is and was an Islamic holiday commemorating Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael in obedience to God.   For this observance, which was the culmination of the Hajj, every head of household who was financially able sacrificed a male domestic ruminant (such as a yearling ram) in honor of Abraham and as a demonstration of personal willingness to be obedient to Allah in all things.  Three days of celebration and feasting followed the Id al-Adha sacrifice.  People adorned the sheep, the sacrificer, and all the feast participants with henna.

Circumcision

Islam requires male circumcision, the excision of penile foreskin.  This surgery was performed in 19th and 20th century Moroccan villages on boys between the ages 4 and 14, in a public celebration (Westermarck 1926, vol 2: 417 – 18: Mouette 1710, p. 97).  People adorned the son, the family, and all the guests at the circumcision party with henna for circumcision.

“Night of the Henna”

“Night of the Henna” was an elaborate family and community celebration for a bride prior to marital defloration (Westermarck, 1914). The “Night of the Henna” festivities were the most elaborate events in Moroccan village life, with complex extensive henna applications to the bride, the groom, the family and all of the guests during the night’s ritual actions. These traditions were widespread and well established during the late 19th century, when described by anthropologists Westermarck (1914, 1926), Legey (1926), Laouste (1921) and other visitors to Morocco. Though the use of henna in these rituals has declined since Moroccan independence in the 1950’s, henna is still an important part of rural village life in Morocco.