Azemmour

Azemmour
City
Azemmour old city
Interactive map of Azemmour
Coordinates: 33°17′16″N 8°20′32″W / 33.28778°N 8.34222°W / 33.28778; -8.34222
Country Morocco
RegionCasablanca-Settat
ProvinceEl Jadida
Population
 (2024)
 • Total
42,098
Time zoneUTC+0 (GMT)

Azemmour or Azammur (Arabic: أزمور, romanized: azammūr; Standard Moroccan Tamazight: ⴰⵣⵎⵎⵓⵔ, romanized: azemmur) is a town on the Atlantic coast of Morocco. It is located in El Jadida Province, on the left bank of the Oum Er-Rbia River, 75 kms southwest of Casablanca.

Etymology

The word Azemmour comes from the Berber word Azemmur (ⴰⵣⵎⵎⵓⵔ) which means "wild olive tree".

History

Azemmour is generally identified as the Punic Azama, latinized as Asama.

Before 1486, it was a dependency of the King of Fez. In 1486 its inhabitants became vassals and tributaries of João II of Portugal.

In 1513 Azemmour's governor Moulay Zayam refused to pay the tribute and mustered a powerful, well-equipped army. The Portuguese king Manuel responded to this challenge by sending a massive fleet of 500 ships and 15 thousand soldiers (Bergreen, 19). Dom James, Duke of Braganza led this army and on September 1 he conquered the city with no resistance from its inhabitants. Ferdinand Magellan, the navigator famed for leading the first-ever circumnavigation of the earth, was among the Portuguese soldiers; he lost his horse in skirmishes outside the city. Portuguese control of the city lasted only for a short period; it was abandoned by João III of Portugal in 1541 due to his court's economic difficulties.

Historically, Azemmour functioned as the capital of the Bedouin tribe of the Doukkala.

Geography

Azemmour is located on the Oum Er-Rbia River 75 kilometres (47 mi) west of Casablanca.

Azemmour's beach is a place for surfing and kitesurfing. Also called Haouzia, the area's flora includes eucalyptus and pine.

Culture

A spring festival used to be held annually in Azemmour in March. It was first held in 2007. The patron saint of Azemmour is Abu Shuayb. His mausoleum was built on the order of Mohammed ben Abdallah. Each year, a moussem is celebrated to honour him. The Old City's walls are decorated by several local artists. The city features a medina, which has three parts, a Jewish mellah, a kasbah, and the old medina. A historic lighthouse called Sidi Boubeker is located 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) north of Azemmour.

Notable natives or residents

Images

See also

References

Citations

  1. ↑ "Population légale du Royaume du Maroc répartie par régions, provinces et préfectures et communes selon les résultats du Recensement général de la population et de l'habitat 2024" (in Arabic and French). High Commission for Planning, Morocco. 7 November 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Fodor's Travel Publications, Inc (2012). Fodor's Morocco. Fodors Travel Publications. p. 123. ISBN 978-0-307-92832-0.
  3. ↑ Wild, Stefan (2009). "Toponyms". In Versteegh, Kees (ed.). Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics. Vol. 4. Leiden/Boston: Brill Publishers. p. 511. ISBN 9789004144767.
  4. ↑ Ricard, R. (1986) [1960]. "Azammūr". In Bearman, P.; Bianquis, Th.; Bosworth, C.E.; van Donzel, E.; Heinrichs, W.P. (eds.). Encyclopaedia of Islam. Vol. I (2nd ed.). Leiden, Netherlands: Brill Publishers. p. 809. ISBN 9004081143.
  5. ↑ Fodor (1967), p. 271.
  6. ↑ Lacroix (1998), p. 170.
  7. ↑ Lhoussain Simour (19 November 2014). Recollecting History beyond Borders: Captives, Acrobats, Dancers and the Moroccan-American Narrative of Encounters. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 55. ISBN 978-1-4438-7142-6.
  8. ↑ EPUB 2-3 (23 October 2013). Ferdinand Magellan. Infobase Learning. ISBN 978-1-4381-4851-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. ↑ Leonor Freire Costa; Pedro Lains; Susana Münch Miranda (3 May 2016). An Economic History of Portugal, 1143–2010. Cambridge University Press. p. 43. ISBN 978-1-107-03554-6.
  10. ↑ Paydar, Niloo Imami; Grammet, Ivo (2002). The Fabric of Moroccan Life. Indianapolis Museum of Art. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-936260-76-1.
  11. ↑ "Azemmour Travel Guide - VirtualTourist". www.virtualtourist.com. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  12. 1 2 DK (2 February 2015). DK Eyewitness Travel Guide Morocco. DK Publishing. p. 117. ISBN 978-1-4654-3832-4.
  13. ↑ Marcello Balbo (15 May 2012). The Medina: Restoration and Conservation of Historic Islamic Cities. I.B.Tauris. p. 160. ISBN 978-1-84885-713-1.
  14. ↑ Travel guide of Lonely Planet: Morocco, 9th Edition Feb 2009, ISBN 978-1-74104-971-8 p. 149.
  15. ↑ Edward E. Curtis (2010). Encyclopedia of Muslim-American History. Infobase Publishing. p. 172. ISBN 978-1-4381-3040-8.

Bibliography