Errachidia

Errachidia
الرشيدية
ⵕⵕⴰⵛⵉⴷⵉⵢⵢⴰ
City
Ksar es-Souk / Imetgharen
Coat of arms of Errachidia
Coat of arms
Interactive map of Errachidia
Coordinates: 31°55′55″N 4°25′28″W / 31.93194°N 4.42444°W / 31.93194; -4.42444
Country Morocco
RegionDrâa-Tafilalet
ProvinceErrachidia
Elevation
1,009 m (3,310 ft)
Population
 (2024)
 • Total
97,687

Errachidia (Arabic: الرشيدية, romanized: al-Rāshīdiyya), formerly known as Ksar es-Souk, (Arabic: قصر السوق, romanized: Qaṣr as-Sūq) or Imetgharen (Standard Moroccan Tamazight: ⵉⵎⵜⵖⴰⵔⵏ, romanized: Imtɣaren) is a city in Morocco, it serves as the capital of the Drâa-Tafilalet region, it is also the seat and namesake of Errachidia Province.

The city sits directly downstream from the Hassan Addakhil dam.

As of the 2024 Moroccan census, it had a population of 97,687 inhabitants.

Toponymy

Formerly officially known as "Ksar es-Souk" (Arabic: قصر السوق, romanized: Qaṣr as-Sūq, lit. 'fortified village of the market'), the city was renamed Errachidia around 1975 in honor of the second son of Hassan II, Moulay Rachid.

Culture

Located on the banks of the Ziz river, the city is considered part of the Tafilalt region, and is famous for its Medjool dates.

The city was part of the route of the 2006 and 2007 Dakar Rally.

Climate

Errachidia has a hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification BWh). The highest temperature ever registered in Errachidia was 43.9 °C (111.0 °F), on July 17, 2021.

Climate data for Errachidia (1991–2020)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 27.0
(80.6)		 28.2
(82.8)		 32.3
(90.1)		 36.3
(97.3)		 39.5
(103.1)		 41.9
(107.4)		 44.7
(112.5)		 43.7
(110.7)		 39.7
(103.5)		 36.6
(97.9)		 29.8
(85.6)		 26.7
(80.1)		 44.7
(112.5)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 15.9
(60.6)		 18.2
(64.8)		 22.1
(71.8)		 26.1
(79.0)		 30.3
(86.5)		 35.4
(95.7)		 39.5
(103.1)		 38.2
(100.8)		 32.9
(91.2)		 26.8
(80.2)		 20.6
(69.1)		 16.7
(62.1)		 26.9
(80.4)
Daily mean °C (°F) 9.0
(48.2)		 11.4
(52.5)		 15.6
(60.1)		 19.6
(67.3)		 23.8
(74.8)		 28.7
(83.7)		 32.7
(90.9)		 31.5
(88.7)		 26.4
(79.5)		 20.5
(68.9)		 14.1
(57.4)		 10.1
(50.2)		 20.3
(68.5)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 2.0
(35.6)		 4.6
(40.3)		 8.8
(47.8)		 13.0
(55.4)		 17.3
(63.1)		 22.0
(71.6)		 25.8
(78.4)		 24.9
(76.8)		 19.9
(67.8)		 14.2
(57.6)		 7.7
(45.9)		 3.5
(38.3)		 13.6
(56.5)
Record low °C (°F) −8.1
(17.4)		 −4.5
(23.9)		 −0.4
(31.3)		 4.8
(40.6)		 5.4
(41.7)		 12.2
(54.0)		 16.5
(61.7)		 16.3
(61.3)		 11.7
(53.1)		 6.1
(43.0)		 −0.6
(30.9)		 −3.8
(25.2)		 −8.1
(17.4)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 10.0
(0.39)		 12.6
(0.50)		 14.0
(0.55)		 9.4
(0.37)		 8.7
(0.34)		 5.6
(0.22)		 3.1
(0.12)		 6.3
(0.25)		 18.2
(0.72)		 20.8
(0.82)		 16.3
(0.64)		 8.0
(0.31)		 133.0
(5.24)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1 mm) 1.4 1.7 1.9 1.4 1.5 1.3 0.9 1.7 2.8 2.8 2.4 1.5 21.3
Mean monthly sunshine hours 252.3 242.6 277.1 294.5 317.0 315.8 310.1 293.8 267.0 262.3 246.7 242.3 3,321.5
Source: NOAA (sun 1981–2010)

Transport

The city is served by Moulay Ali Cherif Airport.

Notable people

References

  1. ↑ "ⵜⴰⵎⵙⴹⴼⵕⵜ ⵏ ⵉⴳⵎⴰⵎⵏ" (in Standard Moroccan Tamazight). Retrieved 2026-08-05.
  2. 1 2 "Photographies Henri Bosco". humazur.univ-cotedazur.fr. Côte d'Azur University. Retrieved 2026-10-16.
  3. 1 2 "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.
  4. ↑ Bar-Asher, Moshe, "Ksar es-Souk (Qaṣr al-Sūq)", Encyclopedia of Jews in the Islamic World Online, doi:10.1163/1878-9781_ejiw_SIM_0018090, retrieved 2025-05-05
  5. ↑ "60210: Errachidia (Morocco)". ogimet.com. OGIMET. 17 July 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  6. ↑ "World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1991–2020". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original on 5 October 2023. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
  7. ↑ "World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1981–2010". World Meteorological Organization. Archived from the original on 18 June 2024. Retrieved 10 November 2021.