Morocco

History

Morocco (Berber: Tagldit n Umrruk; Arabic: Al-Mamlaka al-Maghribiyya, “kingdom of the west”) is a country in North Africa, in the western part of the region also known as the “Maghreb”. Its name derives from the city of Marrakesh. The word Marrakesh derives from the Berber word Mur-Akush, which means Land of God; the name was given to the city by its founder Yusuf ibn Tashfin. Its coasts are lapped by the Mediterranean to the North, and by the Atlantic along the stretch of the straight of Gibraltar. On land it borders with Algeria to the east and south east, and with the lands of the Western Sahara (Morocco has claimed sovereignty over this land and considers its southern Touareg border to be with Mauritania). There are also 4 Spanish enclaves along the part facing the Mediterranean: the cities Ceuta and Melilla, the peninsula of Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera and the island of Peñón de Alhucemas. There are also the Chafarinas islands on the Mediterranean coast, 45km east of Melilla which belong to Spain, together with the Canary Islands, off the southernmost stretch of Morocco’s Atlantic coast. Lastly there is the island of Perejil, an uninhabited cliff in the straight of Gibraltar which is still disputed by Morocco and Spain.

Politics

Morocco is a constitutional monarchy: its current monarch is Mohammed VI and the head of government is Abbas El Fassi. The country’s official languages are Arabic and Berber (under the new constitution Amazigh is also an official language, together with Arabic), the Arabic language is the most widely spread and spoken by the Moroccan population; French is a wide spread second language and is used a lot in administration, higher education and trade.

Religion

Islam is the official religion of Morocco, it was introduced in the kingdom in 680 AD, and it is practiced by 90% of the population in its Sunni variant.
The coexistence with other religions is harmonious in that their profession is guaranteed by the constitution.
The king, Mohamed VI, is considered the “commander of the faithful and the supreme representative of the Muslim community”, and he is entrusted with the responsibility of protecting Islam within the country.
Islam, like Judaism and Christianity, is a monotheistic religion with its sacred books: the Koran and the Sunna. The faithful believe that the last of the prophets is Muhammad (Muhammad) and that the first is Adam.

The Islamic religion is based on 5 pillars which must be respected and which regulate the life of every Muslim:

the faith (believe in one God, Allah, and in his prophet, Muhammad);
the ritual prayers which are called “Salah” and which take place 5 times a day;
almsgiving to the needy (Zakat);
fasting during the month of Ramadan;
the pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a lifetime. Mecca, located in Saudi Arabia, is the holy city of the Islamic religion: the “black stone”, a meteorite considered sacred, is kept here, and all prayers are performed facing the direction of this city.

The chanting of the muezzin resonates in every city in Morocco and marks the day by inviting the faithful to pray five times a day:

fajr, before dawn
dhor, at noon
asar, the afternoon
maghrib, at sunset
isha, an hour and a half after sunset.

Tourism

Morocco is fast becoming the most important tourist destination in North Africa, especially for organized tourism. The most visited destinations are the so-called imperial cities and the Sahara desert. You can find: cultural tourism (Berber civilizations, Phoenician, Roman, Arabic, Spanish and French); natural tourism (from the snow covered peaks of the Atlas to the Sahara desert) and seaside tourism, with the country’s Atlantic and Mediterranean beaches. Over the last few years the number of tourists has been estimated at just over five million, half of which come from Europe with France, Germany and Spain at top place.