Igherm
| Igherm ⵉⵖⵔⵉⵎ |
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| Basic data | |||||
| State : |
 Morocco
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| Region : | Souss-Massa | ||||
| Province : | Taroudant | ||||
| Coordinates | 30 ° 5 ′ N , 8 ° 28 ′ W | ||||
| Residents : | 4,108 (2004) | ||||
| Height : | 1725 m | ||||
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Igherm (also written Irherm or Ighrem ; Arabic ايغرم, Taschelhit ⵉⵖⵔⵎ Iɣrem ) is a place inhabited by Berbers with about 4,000 inhabitants and an almost deserted rural community (commune rurale) in the central Anti-Atlas in the Moroccan province of Taroudannt in the Souss-Massa region .
etymology
Igherm is also the regional name for a communal reservoir ( Agadir ) in the Taschelhit language spoken in the Middle and Eastern Anti-Atlas and in the High Atlas (cf. Igherm n'Ougdal ). The - originally perhaps isolated - warehouse castle was consequently of such great identifying importance for the local and regional population that its name was at some point carried over to the entire town.
Location and climate
Igherm is located at an altitude of around 1725 m , around 95 km northeast of Tafraoute on the road to Taliouine (R106), which has been paved since around 2008 . The place can also be reached via the R109 from Taroudannt (90 km northwest) or from Tata (approx. 110 km southeast). The climate is mostly dry and warm; Rain (approx. 150 mm / year) falls almost exclusively in the winter months.
population
| year | 1994 | 2004 | 2014 |
| Residents | 4,558 | 4,624 | 4,108 |
The population of the place and the rural community consists mainly of Berbers ; we speak Berber dialects and Moroccan Arabic .
economy
In the past, date palms grew in the valleys and barley was grown on the formerly terraced, but barren and stony soils ; However, as a result of greatly reduced or no rainfall since the 1970s, agriculture in the region has almost completely come to a standstill. The men looked for work as day laborers or small business owners in the cities of the north or in Europe and so the residents of the place live mainly on cash transfers. However, after the completion of the R106 and R109 roads, Igherm has developed into an important transport hub as well as a regional trading center, as a result of which the small town has grown significantly in recent years.
history
Most places in the region have a history that goes back centuries, but this is not documented by written evidence. The only historical sources are oral traditions and the centuries-old agadirs , which on the one hand allow conclusions to be drawn about the semi-nomadic way of life of transhumance and on the other hand point to constant rivalries and attacks between the villages and by migrating nomad tribes .
The original single-storey houses, built of rock and clay, with their roofs made of crooked argan branches with a layer of straw and reed and a cover made of earth have been gradually abandoned since the 1960s and have been replaced by new houses with walls painted in reddish tones Hollow blocks and a foundation and concrete slabs have been replaced. Almost nothing is left of the old residential buildings.
Attractions
The largely new place once had two agadirs , only one of which has survived . After a restoration in 2005, the rectangular building has its towers, which existed until 1922 and which were destroyed at the instigation of a Kaid . It is surrounded by an approx. 1.50 m high and 50 cm thick wall made of mortar-less stones. The core building is two-storey and has corridors with over 50 storage chambers on both sides, each about 2.50 m (width), 5.20 m (depth) and 1.70 m (height) and notched palm trunks or can be reached via ladders; In front of the cell doors there are stepping stones protruding from the masonry , as they are also common as "steps" in the outer walls of the storage chambers in the buildings of this type further west.
A museum on the way of life and culture of the Berbers of the Anti-Atlas is planned to be built inside the warehouse castle.
While the agadirs of Igherm and in the vicinity of the village of Tagmoute further south (e.g. Aït Kine ) can all be referred to as "court agadirs", the buildings to the west of Igherm belong to the type of "cell agadirs". Most of them, however, are no longer used and are in a more or less ruinous condition.
Web links
- Igherm - Photos and information (English)
- Agadir from Igherm - Photos + Info (French)
- Agadire - info + geo-coordinates
- Agadire Region Igherm - more photos