Taza
| Taza تازة ⵜⴰⵣⴰ |
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| Basic data | |||||
| State : |
 Morocco
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| Region : | Fès-Meknes | ||||
| Province : | Taza | ||||
| Coordinates | 34 ° 13 ′ N , 4 ° 1 ′ W | ||||
| Residents : | 148,456 (2014) | ||||
| Area : | 25 km² | ||||
| Population density : | 5,938 inhabitants per km² | ||||
| Height : | 500 m | ||||
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Taza ( Arabic تازة, Tamazight : ⵜⴰⵣⴰ) is a large Moroccan city with approx. 160,000 inhabitants; it is the capital of the homonymous province of Taza . The name is probably derived from the Tamazight word tizi for "hill" or "pass". The Medina of Taza and the Great Mosque of Taza are since 1995 on the list of candidates for inclusion in the UNESCO - World Heritage Site .
location
Taza is about 120 km (driving distance) east of Fez in north-east Morocco between the southern foothills of the Rif mountain range and the northern foothills of the Middle Atlas . The older part of the city ( Medina ) lies at a height of approx. 550 m and is surrounded by a fortress wall made of rammed earth. The newer part of the city, founded by the French in 1920, lies in a fertile valley at a height of just over 450 m . The location of Taza made the city an important place on the east-west connection, which was already used in prehistoric times, as indicated by fossil finds. In Roman and Islamic times, the Taza valley was of great military importance and as a trade route: it represented the main route to the fertile plains on the Atlantic coast. During the French colonial period (1914–1956) and afterwards, the only east-west Connection in northern Morocco plays an important role; Since 2011, a motorway passing Taza has connected the central plateaus of Morocco - and thus the cities of Rabat , Meknes and Fès - with Oujda and Nador , the industrial centers of the northeast. The climate is temperate to warm, rain (approx. 565 mm / year) falls mainly in the winter months.
population
| year | 1994 | 2004 | 2014 |
| Residents | 120,971 | 139,686 | 148,456 |
The majority of the residents of Taza are Berbers ; most of them have only left their home villages since the 1970s and hope to find work as day laborers, taxi drivers, small traders etc. in the big city. Leading positions in administration, trade, banking and industry, as well as in the transport, education and health sectors, on the other hand, are in the hands of people of Arab origin, who make up only around 20% of the population. Berbers and Arabs mostly speak Moroccan Arabic among themselves .
history
Taza was around the year 700 of Miknasa - Berbers founded and was fought continuously due to its strategic location. After the spread of Islam in the western Maghreb , the balance of power changed constantly between the different dynasties of the still young, unconsolidated Islam and the (already Islamized) Berber tribes (rule of the Idrisids , uprising of the Maysara around 740, rule of the Fatimids , uprising under Abu Yazid around 944). In 1074 the city fell to the Almoravids under Yusuf ibn Tashfin and about 65 years later (under Abd al-Mu'min ) to the Almohads , who built the first fortress wall around the city and who - until the capture of Marrakech (1147 ) - made them their capital. This was followed by other Berber tribes ( Merinids , Wattasids ), as well as the - probably of Arab origin - the Saadian and Alawid dynasties . The latter were able to maintain their rule in Morocco , but the country fell since the 18th and 19th. Century more and more under European influence.
In 1903 Jilani Zerhouni ( Bou Hamara ), returning from Algerian exile, took power over Taza under a false identity (Mulai Mohamed). He sold ore mining rights in the Rif massif to a Spanish company ( Compañía Española de Minas del Rif ) and was kidnapped by rival Berbers in 1908, which helped trigger the Rif War.
On May 10, 1914, Taza became a French protectorate and remained under French influence until the independence of Morocco (1956).
Attractions
Medina
European tourists rarely find their way to Taza and so the medina with its - often right-angled alleys - has remained quite original, but cannot keep up with the atmosphere of Fez. Nevertheless, a short stay is worthwhile: On the main street of the old town you will find the grain market and the souks , where wickerwork, carpets, jewelry and handicrafts from the Berbers from the surrounding mountains are offered. The street leads to the parade ground and the Great Mosque , which in large parts (including the minaret ) dates from the 12th century. Bab el-Qebbour Street crosses Kissaria (Covered Market) and then leads to the Market Mosque where it meets Bab-Jamaa Gate, the main entrance to the Taza Medina. A little further south, on the other side - not far from the Great Mosque - the Bab el-Rih ("Gate of the Wind"), a bastion from the 16th century, closes the ring around the Kasbah . Taza's city wall, which was built in the 12th century and often reinforced on later occasions, was given a borj, a fortified tower, 26 meters wide in the 16th century by the Saadian Ahmad al-Mansur . The city gate with iron grating and the casemates with terraced roofs clearly show the influences of European military architecture of the time.
Surroundings
Only about 14 km south of Taza is the Gouffre du Friouato , the only stalactite cave in Morocco open to visitors. At a distance of about 35 km, the national park of the 1980 meter high Jbel Tazzeka with its cedar and cork oak forests, gorges, caves and waterfalls attracts mainly Moroccan tourists. During the ascent and descent, there are magnificent views of the surrounding mountain landscape of the Middle Atlas .
Twin cities
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Dole ( France ), since 2007 -
Srebrenica ( Bosnia and Herzegovina ), since 2010
literature
- Arnold Betten: Morocco. Antiquity, Berber Traditions and Islam - History, Art and Culture in the Maghreb. DuMont, Ostfildern 2012, p. 227f, ISBN 978-3-7701-3935-4 .
- Ingeborg Lehmann, Rita Henss u. a .: Morocco. Baedeker-Verlag, Ostfildern 2010, p. 432f, ISBN 978-3-8297-1251-4 .
Web links
- Official website (French)
- Information about cave Gouffre du Friouato (English)
- Website of the National Park Parque National de Tazekka (French)