Erfoud
| Erfoud / Arfoud أرفود ⴰⵔⴼⵓⴷ |
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| Basic data | |||||
| State : |
 Morocco
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| Region : | Drâa-Tafilalet | ||||
| Province : | Errachidia | ||||
| Coordinates | 31 ° 26 ′ N , 4 ° 14 ′ W | ||||
| Residents : | 29,279 (2014) | ||||
| Area : | 6.31 km² | ||||
| Population density : | 4,640 inhabitants per km² | ||||
| Height : | 805 m | ||||
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Erfoud or Arfoud ( Arabic أرفود, DMG Arfūd ; Tarifit ⴰⵔⴼⵓⴷ ) is a desert city in the region Drâa Tafilalet in the east of Morocco at the edge of the Sahara .
location
Erfoud is located on the Ziz about 75 km south of Errachidia and about 85 km east of Tinejdad at an altitude of about 805 m . The city is dominated by the Jbel Erfoud (935 m), about 3 km away. A popular destination are the Merzouga sand dunes, about 60 km away . The climate is semi-desert; the sparse rain (approx. 80 mm / year) actually only falls in the winter months.
population
| year | 1994 | 2004 | 2014 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residents | 18,563 | 23,637 | 29,279 |
The city's population grew enormously in the second half of the 20th century due to immigration from the surrounding mountain and desert regions. Moroccan Arabic and Tarifit are usually spoken .
economy
At the beginning of the colonial era, Erfoud was a small market town. The French stationed a garrison here. Several streets meet in Erfoud and so the city has developed into a hotel and tourist center in eastern Morocco. Many trips to the dunes of Merzouga start from here . Erfoud has been an important place for leather products of all kinds ('Filala leather') for several decades. In the vicinity of the city there are several quarries in which a fossil black marble is mined and worked; The pieces of different sizes are cut into more or less artistic objects that are offered and sold throughout Morocco.
history
Erfoud was largely rebuilt by the French as a garrison town in 1917. The city still has an important military function due to its proximity to the border with Algeria.
Townscape
The streets of the city were laid out completely at right angles by the French city planners. The rows of new blocks made of hollow blocks make a rather dreary impression, but more care has been taken with the planting of the roadsides than elsewhere in Morocco; however, many trees have died due to the lack of water and have already been felled. The center of the city is the arcade-lined Place des Forces Armées Royales with a multitude of small shops and workshops.
Movies
Erfoud - in competition with the Atlas Studios near Ouarzazate - has become very popular as a backdrop city for film productions and so scenes from films such as March or Die , The Mummy , Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time or were in the (semi) desert-like environment James Bond 007: Specter shot. In addition, the German television film Gefangen im Yemen , starring Peter Maffay , was shot here for ProSieben (production: Holm Dressler, director: Peter Patzak).
Fossils
Erfoud is located on the Ktaoua Formation , which is rich in fossils around 350 to 480 million years old , especially trilobites , orthocera and goniatites. The trilobite Flexicalymene ouzregui is very often found in the rocks , which are usually ground on site, and sold to international rock dealers or tourists.
Festivals
The date festival took place every year in October, but it was often canceled in recent years due to poor harvests due to decreasing rainfall and the falling groundwater level. Since 2010 the event has been called Salon international des Dattes .
Surroundings
Various tours are possible from Erfoud: B. Excursions to the Tafilalet with its oases and residential buildings made of clay, to Rissani and the sand dunes of Erg Chebbi near Merzouga , to the road of the Kasbahs or to the mountains of the Middle Atlas . Between Tinejdad and Erfoud there are often rows of mounds of earth along the road that point to underground water channels ( khettaras or foggaras ); they are created by backfilling the excavation during the maintenance and care work that is often necessary every year.
literature
- Arnold Betten: Morocco. Antiquity, Berber Traditions and Islam - History, Art and Culture in the Maghreb. DuMont-Verlag, Ostfildern 2009, ISBN 978-3-7701-3935-4 , p. 307f.
- Ingeborg Lehmann, Rita Henss u. a .: Morocco. Baedeker-Verlag, Ostfildern 2010, ISBN 978-3-8297-1251-4 , p. 463f.
Web links
- Erfoud - Photos and text (Engl.)