Morocco Travel

The original people of Morocco were the Berbers.  These people lived in tribes and there was no actual recognised government over the area.  Tribal Berbers lived according to the rules of their Tribal Leaders.

The country of Morocco was constantly invaded during the early stages of the country's development. First it was the Phoenicians in the twelvth century BC. The Phoenecians were then taken over by the Carthaginians . Then in the 2nd century BC, the Romans replaced the Carthaginians. Over time the Roman empire fell apart and the Arabs took over and settled in. Short but intense fights for control of the country between the Arabs and the Jews left it reeling and largely unstable. Ahmed I al-Man-sur however, managed to bring the country right during his dynasty. Between 1579 and 1603 the country flourished as Jews and Moors from Spain settled in Morocco. They brought with them their cultures and arts and retrospectively gave Morocco much of its cultural founding that is still present today.
The fighting between the Spanish and Portuguese since the early 15th century left the Portuguese in control of the Port of Cueta in 1415. In 1578 however, the Moroccans beat the Portuguese and regained control of that port, and by 1700 almost all of coastal towns that were under Portugal's rule. In 1904 Morocco was divided between France and Spain. France received the larger portion. Germany wanted in too so in 1911 a german gunboat was sent to the French owned coastline of Morocco. War was averted though, when the French made an agreement with Germany whereby the French would keep control of Morocco, whilst they allowed the Germans concessions elsewhere.

In 1950 the sultan of Morocco requested that Morocco become an independant country. Their first request was declined until 1957 when Sultan Mohammed became king. Around the same time, Spain relinquished the majority of its holdings in Morocco.

In 1974 King Hassan began a major campaign to reclaim control over the entire Sahara , much of which was owned by Spain. The International Court of Justice rejected Morocco's application for total control of the Sahara. Persistant King Hussan pushed forward nonetheless and eventually, after secretly held negotiations, Spain & Morocco made a deal. The Sahara was split into three between Morocco , Spain and Mauritania . In 1978 the Polisaro front succeeded in forcing the Mauritania out of the Sahara but Morocco stood firm and unmoved. The United Nations organised a referendum of self-determination between those concerned and whilst this was generally agreed upon, to this day Morocco has continued to push for full control of the entire Saharan Desert .

Friday July 23, 1999, King Hussan died . His death concluded the longest monarchy in modern history of the Arab world with a total serving of 38 years. </P>
Currently, King Hassan's son Crown Prince sidi Mohammed ruling Morocco as the 18th king in the Alawite Dynasty .

THE PEOPLE
In 1995, the population was about 28,481,000 inhabitants. Morocco is a young country since 60% of the population is under 20 years of age. It is also a rural country since 61% of the population lives in rural areas.

THE LANGUAGE, Arabic is the national language. The 3 Berber dialects are used in the mountainous regions and in the Souss. French is widespread, whereas Spanish is used only in the northern areas of Morocco. English is spoken in touristic locations.

THE BERBERS, the first inhabitants to be known in Morocco were the Berbers. They are the most numerous and fall into 3 main groups :

The Masmouda - (west of the Rif and Grand and Middle Atlas)
The Sanhaja - (grand central Atlas and Tafilalet, southern Middle Atlas and Mediterranean Rif)
The Zenata - (eastern Morocco, region of Taza and Meknes).
THE ARABS, they came to Morocco only toward the end of the 7th century with the advent of Islam. In the 12th century their numbers increased in different areas.

THE SOUKS, the souk is one of the most characterising
aspects of rural life.

It's a place and a means of traditional trade. Since the Moroccan population is essentially rural, each tribe has a certain number of souks that are generally held in the open or inside a special enclosing wall. These souks usually carry the name of the day they are held on.