Ahfir
| Ahfir أحفير ⴰⵃⴼⵉⵔ |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|||||
| Basic data | |||||
| State : |
 Morocco
|
||||
| Region : | Oriental | ||||
| Province : | Berkane | ||||
| Coordinates | 34 ° 57 ′ N , 2 ° 6 ′ W | ||||
| Residents : | 19,630 (2014) | ||||
| Area : | 7.5 km² | ||||
| Population density : | 2,617 inhabitants per km² | ||||
| Height : | 270 m | ||||
 |
|||||
Ahfir ( Arabic أحفير, DMG Aḥfīr ; ⴰⵃⴼⵉⵔ Afir ) is a city (commune urbaine) with about 20,000 inhabitants in the province of Berkane in the Oriental region in northeastern Morocco .
Location and climate
Ahfir lies directly on the border with Algeria at an altitude of approx. 270 m . The provincial capital Berkane is located approx. 22 km (driving distance) to the west. It is a good 38 km to Oujda in a south-easterly direction; the coastal town of Saidia is about 27 km northwest on the Mediterranean Sea . The climate is dry to temperate; Rain (approx. 345 mm / year) falls predominantly in the winter half-year.
population
| year | 1994 | 2004 | 2014 |
| Residents | 20,508 | 19,482 | 19,630 |
The population growth in previous years is largely due to the immigration of Berber families from the surrounding area. They speak the regional Berber dialect and Moroccan Arabic .
economy
Today the city is characterized by retail trade, crafts and service companies of all kinds.
history
French military units temporarily occupied the area as early as the middle of the 19th century; This happened again in 1907/08 under General Hubert Lyautey , who founded a place here called Martimprey-du-Kiss . After the independence of Morocco (1956) the place got its old name back.
Cityscape
The cityscape varies between modern and rather simple districts; there are several mosques .
