Hodna
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Hodna
| native_name =حضنة
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| settlement_type = Natural region
| image_skyline = Chottaryel.jpg
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| image_caption = Landscape of the Chott el Hodna south of M'Sila
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| image_map = Les communes de la région de la Hodna.svg
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| map_caption = A map of the Hodna region showing the communes of the two provinces
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| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = Algeria
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| elevation_m = 1000
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The Hodna ({{langx|ar|حضنة}}) is a natural region of Algeria located between the Tell and Saharan Atlas ranges at the eastern end of the Hautes Plaines. It is a vast depression lying in the northeastern section of M'Sila Province and the western end of Batna Province.
History
The Hodna region was home to the Kingdom of Hodna,{{cite book |last1=Mahjoubi |first1=Ammar |last2=Salama |first2=Pierre |title=General History of Africa: Volume 2 |chapter=The Roman and post-Roman period in North Africa |page=508 |date=1981 |publisher=UNESCO Publishing |url=https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000184265 |access-date=2024-02-21 |archive-date=2023-04-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406060147/https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000184265 |url-status=live }} born out of the Mauro-Roman Kingdom in the post-classical era.
Geography
The Hodna region has a length of about 120 km in an NW - SE direction and a width of about 80 km. It is characterized by the Chott El Hodna, an endorheic salt lake, in its centre with seasonal brackish and saline pools and marshes. A thin film of water collects during wet seasons on the level terrain of the large lake basin, which becomes a salt flat when it dries. The elevation of the lake's surface is slightly below 400 m, while the surrounding steppe-like plain, characterized by wadis and oases, averages between 500 and 600 meters in elevation in the communes near the lake.{{cite web|title=Chott el-Hodna (lake, Algeria)|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/268629/Chott-el-Hodna|publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica|accessdate=21 June 2013}}
The Hodna natural region gives its name to the Hodna Mountains located to the north. Its southern limit is marked by the Ouled Nail Range. There are no mountains in its western limit, where the plateau stretches further westwards. The northern part of the Hodna is composed of silt and the southern part is mainly sandy. The lowest area of the basin is covered by the sebkha, the salt lake, with a surface of 76 000 ha of naked salty clay that is seldom covered with water and is completely devoid of vegetation.[http://www.ramsar.org/cda/en/ramsar-pubs-notes-annotated-ramsar-17047/main/ramsar/1-30-168%5E17047_4000_0__ The Annotated Ramsar List: Algeria]
The Hodna is a steppe where the climate is harsh, with very dry summers, cold winters and very irregular precipitation. Formerly all the inhabitants of the Hodna were nomads. The soil is poor and local agriculture is limited to the grazing of sheep and goats on grassy high plateau areas and to some cereal cultivation. There are uncultivated areas of djerr, small hillocks, to the north and to the east. The mountains have good reserves of water and there are freshwater springs in the area, but historically they have not been properly exploited.[http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/geo_0003-4010_1954_num_63_335_14314 J. Despois Le Hodna (Algérie)]
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [http://remmm.revues.org/6388 Mohamed Meouak, Le Hodna occidental entre régions méditerranéennes et plaines désertiques : organisation des terroirs, communautés rurales et productions agricoles au Moyen Âge]
- [http://www.persee.fr/web/revues/home/prescript/article/geoca_0035-113x_1963_num_38_3_1756 Persée : L'évolution du nomadisme dans les hautes plaines]
- [http://www.aves.be/fileadmin/Aves/Bulletins/Articles/45_2/45_2_93.pdf Introduction: Les hautes plaines de l'Est de l'Algérie]
{{Coord|35|30|N|4|50|E|display=title|source:nlwiki}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2017}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:Natural regions of Africa
Category:Geography of M'Sila Province
Category:Geography of Batna Province
{{M'Sila-geo-stub}}
{{Batna-geo-stub}}