Definitions and perceptions of the poor in Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya are largely shaped by Islamic teachings and traditions. However, they are also shaped by the political, economic, and sociocultural changes that these four Muslim North African countries have been undergoing since their national independence in 1956, 1962, 1956, and 1951, respectively. The religious ethos is increasingly fused with larger issues related to the postcolonial histories of these countries, the processes …