Morocco


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Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of 35.6 million and an area of 710,850 km², including the disputed Western Sahara which is mainly under Moroccan administration. Morocco has a coast on the Atlantic Ocean that reaches past the Strait og Gibraltar into the Mediterranean Sea. It is bordered by pain to the north (a water border through the Strait and land borders with three small Spanish-controlled exclaves, Ceuta, melilla, and Penon de Vélez de la Gomera), Algeria to the east, and Mauritania to the south.

 

 

Morocco is a de jure constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. The King of Morocco holds vast executive powers, including dissolving parliament at will. Executive power is exercised by the government and by the king as well. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of parliament, the Assembly o Representatives and the Assembly of Councillors. The king can also issue decrees called dahirs which have the force of law. Parliamentary elections were held in Morocco on 7 September 2007, and were considered by some neutral observers to be mostly free and fair; although voter turnout was estimated to be 37%, the lowest in decades.

 

 

The political capital is Rabat, and the largest city is Casablanca; other large cities include Marrakesh, Tetouan, Tangir, Salé, Fes, Agadir, Meknes and Oujda. 

 

 

The history of the country's known human civilization spans over 8000 years, and it was founded by the Berbers who are the original inhabitants. The earliest well-known Moroccan independent state was the Berber kingdom of Mauretania under king Bocchus I. This Berber Kingdom of Mauretania (current northern Morocco) dates at least to 110 BC.

 

 

Umayyad Arabs conquered the region in the 7th century, bringing their language, their system of government, and Islam, to which many of the Berbers slowly converted, mostly after the Arab rule receded. In the Islamic era the first Moroccan Muslim state, independent from the Arab Empire, was The Kingdom of Nekor, an emirate in the Rif area. It was founded by an immigrant from Yemen, Salih I ibn Mansur in 710 AD, as a client state to Caliphal grant. Idris I fled to Morocco from the Abbasids' massacre against his tribe in Iraq and managed to convince the Awraba Berber tribes to break allegiance to the distant Abbasid caliphs in Baghdad. He founded the Idrisid Dynasty in 780 AD. Morocco became later a center of learning and a major power.

 

 

From the 11th century onwards, a series of powerful Berber dynasties arose. Under the Almoravid dynasty and the Almohad dynasty, Morocco dominated the Maghreb, Muslim Spain, and the western Mediterranean region. In the 13th century the Merinids gained power over Morocco and strove to replicate the successes of the Almohads. In the 15th century the Reconquista ended Islamic rule in Iberia and many Muslims and Jews fled to Morocco. Under the Saadi Dynasty, the first Moroccan dynasty initiated by ethnic Arabs since the Idrisids, the country would consolidate power and fight off Portuguese and Ottoman invaders, as in the battle of Ksar el Kebir. The reign of Ahmad al-Mansur brought new wealth and prestige to the Sultanate, and a massive Berber invasion of the Songhay Empire was initiated.

 

 

However, managing the territories across the Sahara proved too difficult. After the death of al-Mansur the country was divided among his sons. In 1666 the sultanate was reunited by the Alaouite dynasty, who have since been the ruling house in Morocco. The organization of the state developed with Ismail Ibn Sharif. With his Black Guard he drove the British from Tangier (1684) and the Spanish from Larache (1689). In 1912, after the First Moroccan Crisis and the Agadir Crisis, the Trety of Fez was signed, effectively dividing Morocco into a French and Spanish protectorate. In 1956, after 44 years of occupation, Morocco regained independence from France and Spain as the "Kingdom of Morocco".

 

 

Morocco has a rich culture and civilization, which remained mainly indigenous throughout times. The Moroccan cuisine has long been considered as one of the most diversified cuisines in the world. The population is almost entirely Berber, partly mixed with ethnic Arabs. Although Arabic is the official language, modern studies show that the Arabization process in Morocco was mostly linguistic. Berber-speaking Moroccans can be divided in three main dialectal groups: the Riffains, the Chleuh and the Central Moroccan Atlas inhabitatnt. A large Jewish Community lived in Morocco before the creation of Israel, numbering approximately 265,000 in 1948. Between 7,000 and 12,000 live there now, mostly in few major cities. A call made by late king Hassan II for Jews to return to Morocco was not answered.

 

 

Morocco is the world's biggest exporter and third producer of phosphorus. Price fluctuations of phosphates in the international market strongly influence Morocco's economy.

The Capital is Rabat

 

 

 

The biggest city is Casablanca

 

 

 

 

The King of Morocco is it's Head of State. The Head of Government is the Prime Minister, he is chosen by the people every 5th year.

 

 

 

 

The Country has one zoo mentioned on these pages in the city of Temara.

 

 

Most western Countrys do not need a Visa

 

 

 

International callingcode is +212

 

 

 

The countrys curency is the Moroccan Dirham (MAD)

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