Lakhsas
| Lakhsas الأخصاص ⵍⴰⵅⵙⴰⵙ |
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| Basic data | |||||
| State : |
 Morocco
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| Region : | Guelmim-Oued Noun | ||||
| Province : | Sidi Ifni | ||||
| Coordinates | 29 ° 21 ′ N , 9 ° 45 ′ W | ||||
| Residents : | 4,729 (2014) | ||||
| Area : | 10.5 km² | ||||
| Population density : | 450 inhabitants per km² | ||||
| Height : | 930 m | ||||
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Lakhsas or Lakhssas (from the mazirischen ⵍⴰⵅⵙⴰⵙ ; arabic الأخصاص, DMG al-Aḫṣāṣ ) is a mountain oasis in the province of Sidi Ifni in the region Guelmim-Oued Noun in the south of Morocco .
Location and climate
Lakhsas is located at an altitude of about 930 m in the western foothills of the Anti-Atlas about 140 km (driving distance) south of Agadir and about 66 km northeast of Guelmim . The provincial capital Sidi Ifni is about 60 km to the west. The main road runs parallel to the Atlantic coast from Tangier through the Western Sahara to Mauritania . The climate is almost desert-like; Rain (approx. 200 mm / year) falls mainly in the winter months.
Population development
| year | 1994 | 2004 | 2014 |
| Residents | 3,329 | 4,194 | 4,729 |
The sustained slight population growth is mainly due to the immigration of Berber families from the Anti-Atlas Mountains. On the other hand, the high-altitude place is also losing inhabitants to the larger cities of Tiznit or Agadir.
economy
Field management is hardly possible in the mountainous landscape, but numerous herds of sheep and goats still roam the area. Numerous argan trees grow in the region , the seed flakes of which are surrounded by hard kernels and are processed into oil in cooperatives .
history
Since the 11th century, the place was a stopover for large caravans that moved from Mauritania and Senegal through the Western Sahara to Agadir and on to Marrakech . Dromedaries , goats and sheep are still traded today , but only in a regional context.
Cityscape
The old houses made of rammed earth have become rare and almost without exception have fallen into disrepair. The new houses are made of hollow blocks and concrete ; then they are plastered and mostly painted in shades of red.