The climate is Mediterranean, which becomes more extreme towards the interior regions where it is mountainous. The terrain is such that the coastal plains are rich and accordingly, they comprise the backbone for agriculture. Forests cover about 12% of the land while arable land accounts for 18%. 5% is irrigated.
The dirham (Arabic: درهم, plural: درهمان , دراهم or درهما) is the currency of Morocco. The plural form is pronounced darahim, although in French and English "dirhams" is commonly used. Its ISO 4217 code is "MAD". It is subdivided into 100 santimat (singular: santim, Arabic singular: سنتيم, plural: سنتيما or سنتيمات). The dirham is issued by the Bank Al-Maghrib, the central bank of Morocco. It is also the de facto currency in Western Sahara. While the dirham is a fully convertible currency, export of the local currency is prohibited by law.
At 172,402 sq.mi (446,550 sq.km), Morocco is the fifty-seventh largest country in the world (after Uzbekistan). It is comparable in size to Iraq, and is somewhat larger than the US state of California.
Algeria borders Morocco to the east and southeast though the border between the two countries has been closed since 1994. There are also four Spanish enclaves on the Mediterranean coast: Ceuta, Melilla, Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera, Peñón de Alhucemas, and the Chafarinas islands, as well as the disputed islet Perejil. Off the Atlantic coast the Canary Islands belong to Spain, whereas Madeira to the north is Portuguese. To the north, Morocco is bordered by and controls part of the Strait of Gibraltar, giving it power over the waterways in and out of the Mediterranean sea. The Rif mountains occupy the region bordering the Mediterranean from the north-west to the north-east. The Atlas Mountains run down the backbone of the country, from the south west to the north east. Most of the south east portion of the country is in the Sahara Desert and as such is generally sparsely populated and unproductive economically. Most of the population lives to the north of these mountains, while to the south is the desert. To the south, lies the Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony that was annexed by Morocco in 1975 (see Green March).[3] Morocco claims that the Western Sahara is part of its territory and refers to that as its Southern Provinces.
Morocco's capital city is Rabat; its largest city is its main port, Casablanca.
Other cities include Agadir, Essaouira, Fes, Marrakech, Meknes, Mohammadia, Oujda, Ouarzazat, Safi, Salè, Tangier and Tétouan.
The Phoenicians explored this corner of Africa around 1000BC and found the area away from the coast to be inhabited by people they called barbaroi (meaning "not our people"), which later became known as the Berbers. The Berbers may have had links with the Celts, Basques, or tribes from the Lebanon.
Around 150 years BC, the Romans added this part of the north African coast to their empire but did not generally disturb the Berbers who were further inland and in the mountains.
The 7th century AD saw the Arab armies spread across northern Africa and into Morocco. They didn't stop there of course, joining with the Berbers, they invaded most of Spain, where they had a presence for around 600 years.
In 788, a descendant of the Prophet Mohammed, named Moulay Idriss, was proclaimed king by the Berber tribes. Moulay Idriss quickly became powerful and influential but was murdered by a rival. The village which is the location of his tomb is now called Moulay Iddriss and is one of the most sacred shrines in Morocco.
The son Moulay Idriss, Moulay Idriss II took over and founded the present city of Fez, the capital at that time. After his death in 828, power was split between several sons, resulting in a weakness of leadership.
In the mid 11th century, an army of strict muslims moved out from their fortified monestry in the desert to the south and conquered southern Morocco, destroying musical instruments and drinking places as they went. These Almoravids eventually captured Fez, after founding their own capital at Marrakech and later had influence in Spain also.
Later, in the mid 12th century, another fanatic group, the Almohads, moved from their fortified monestry in the Atlas mountains to take control of all northern Africa and much of Spain.
Eventually the Almohads were weakened by infighting and in the mid 13th century the Beni Merin Berber tribe took control. The Merinids were more materialistic than their predecessors and built some fine buildings, including the Alhambra at Granada, Spain.
After the Christians eventually pushed the Moors (Arabs and Berbers) out of Spain, the Spanish and Portuguese invaded the Moroccan coastline (Spain still holds control of Ceuta and Melilla on the north Moroccan coast).
This encouraged the Saadi Arab tribe from the Draa valley to move north and eventually take control during the mid to late 16th century, bringing King Ahmed el Mansour to power. The Saadians lavished much wealth on Marrakech.
After King Ahmed's death in the early 17th century, the Saadians power fell apart and allowed the Alaouites to take control under the sultan Moulay Ismail. In fact the Alaouites were invited by the people of Fez to restore order to the country. Ismail was believed to be cruel and ruthless but was also a leader and restored order.
The Alaouites kept control for over two centuries but during the 19th century, Morocco became increasingly dependent on France (Europe had been colonising Africa and the French had taken control of Morocco's neighbour, Algiers).
In 1912. Morocco became a Franco-Spanish protectorate but with an Alaouite sultan, chosen by the French. The French controlled the central and southern areas while the Spanish controlled north. Tangiers was an international zone and Rabat the capital.
During this time the Franco Spanish influence resulted in roads, railways and schools being built and many new towns were built beside the old.
The second world war weakened the position of the French and there were as strong movement for independence. To control this, the French exiled the sultan Mohamad V to Corsica but only succeeded in strengthening the independence movement.
Eventually the French had to bring Mohamed V back and he became king in 1956 when independence was declared.
King Mohamed V died suddenly in 1961 and was succeeded by his son, Hassan II, who introduced a Social, Democratic and Constitutional monarchy, with elections for the parliament every 6 years but power remaining with the king.
The present king, Mohamad VI, succeeded king Hassan II on his death in 1999, has continued his fathers progressive reforms of health, education, and economics.
Morocco is modernising but also retaining it's culture which is a fascination to visitors.
January 1 New Year Public Holiday in Morocco April 25 Liberation Day Public Holiday in Morocco May 1 May Day Public Holiday in Morocco June 2 National Day Public Holiday in Morocco August 15 Assumption Public Holiday in Morocco November 1 All Saints’ Day Public Holiday in Morocco December 8, 25 & 26 Public Holiday in Morocco Spring: Easter; Easter Monday (day after Easter)
The population of Morocco, including Western Sahara, was estimated by the United Nations at 30,566,000 in 2003, which placed it as number 37 in population among the 193 nations of the world. In that year approximately 5% of the population was over 65 years of age, with another 32% of the population under 15 years of age. There were an equal number of males and females in the country in 2003. According to the UN, the annual population growth rate for 2000–2005 is 1.62%, with the projected population for the year 2015 at 36,496,000. The population density in 2002 was 66 per sq km (172 per sq mi); however, the population density is highest in the plains and coastal areas of northwestern Morocco. Most of the population lives in the fertile plains or near the Mediterranean coast.
It was estimated by the Population Reference Bureau that 56% of the population lived in urban areas in 2001. The capital city, Rabat, had a population of 1,453,000 in that year. Other major cities are Marrakech, 1,517,000; Fès (Fez), 1,012,000; Meknès, 750,000; Tangier, 554,000; Oujda, 962,000; Tétouan, 856,000; Safi, 845,000; and Kénitra, 905,000. According to the United Nations, the urban population growth rate for 2000–2005 was2.8%.
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