Morocco
Morocco facts & history
in brief
Tangier
Excerpted from Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia.
Tangier, (in Berber and Arabic Tanja, in Spanish
Tánger and in French Tanger) is a city of northern
Morocco with a population of 350,000, or 550,000 including
suburbs.
It lies on the North African coast at the western
entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar.
According to the Berber, mythology Tangier was built
by the son of Tinjis, named Sufax. Tinjis was the wife
of the Berber hero Antaios.
Tangier was an important city for the Berber, and
Tangier is still inhabited by the Berber and the Arabs,
and even the name may come from the Berber goddess Tinjis
(or Tinga).
Founded by Carthaginian colonists in the early 5th
century BC, the settlement of Tingis came under Roman
rule as the capital of Tingitana, to come later to Byzantine
rule before passing under Arab control in 702.
Held by the Portuguese from 1471 and by the British Garrison
from 1661 to 1684, it returned to Moroccan control in 1684.
Tangier's geographical location made it a centre
for European diplomatic and commercial activity in Morocco
in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
It was here that the German Kaiser Wilhelm II's
pronouncement for Morocco's continued independence
triggered an international crisis in 1905.
In 1912, Morocco was effectively partitioned between
France and Spain, the latter occupying the country's
far north and a strip of the southern Atlantic coast.
Tangier was made an international zone in 1923 under
the joint administration of France, Spain, and Britain
(Italy joined in 1928).
The multicultural placement of Muslim, Christian,
and Jewish communities and the foreign immigrants
attracted artists like Paul Bowles, William S.
Burroughs, Brion Gysin, and the collector Jim Ede.
After a period of effective Spanish control from 1940
to 1945 during World War II, Tangier was reunited
with the rest of Morocco following the country's
independence in 1956.
This information was current & correct December 2004.
Our ferry arrived to Tangier around about 8 pm.
local time (There is one hour difference between Spain
and Morocco time).
There was some annoying hassling after we've disembarked
by Taxi drivers and self proclaimed 'tourist guides'
for a while, but we soon got into our stride and off
we went looking for an suitable and affordable accommodation.
We spent the next day exploring the city's old and new
towns and market places.
Later in the day we took the train to Rabat the capital.
List of photo
pages in my Morocco series.
Casablanca
Marrakesh or Marrakech
Morocco buses
Morocco trains
Royal Mansour Meridien Hotel, Casablanca
Rabat
Tangier
Some of my photos
taken in Tangier (Click for an enlargement)
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Tangier. |
Tangier. |
Tangier. |
Old
City. |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Waterfront. |
Tangier. |
New
City. |
'New'
Station. |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Busy
Souk. |
Busy
Souk 2. |
F.F.C.
- Fly Feeding Centre. |
Shop
closed?! |
Site
Index
Back to Top
Photos Index
Thanks for coming, I hope you
have enjoyed it, will recommend
it to your friends, and will come
back later to see my site developing
and expanding.
I'm trying to make my pages
enjoyable and trouble free for everyone,
please let me know of any mistakes
or trouble with links, so I can
fix any problem as soon as possible.
These pages are best viewed with monitor
resolution set at 640x480 and kept simple
on purpose so everyone can enjoy them
across all media and platforms.
Thank you.
Webmaster
|
