taza

Historically Taza was known first as Ribāt Taza ({{Langx|ar|رباط تازة|links=no}}), a military camp belonging to the Fatimid state, founded by the local governor Musa ibn Abi'l-Afiya ({{Lang|ar|موسى بن أبي العافية}}) who was also the leader of the Miknasa.{{Cite book |title=History of the Arabs and the Berbers and Their Powerful Contemporaries by Ibn Khaldun}}{{Full citation needed|date=November 2022}} Up to at least the early 20th century, Taza was a considerable trading centre on the route between Fez and the Algerian frontier.{{Cite EB1911 |wstitle=Morocco |volume=18 |page=854 |first1=James |last1=Meakin |first2=Kate |last2=Meakin}} Taza as a toponym could be derivative from Tizi (Tamazight for a hill that lies between mountains) which is where it stands up.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}

Taza was first settled by Miknasa tribesmen, who gave it its name: Miknasa Taza, similar to Miknasa al-Zeitoun (present-day Meknes, another Miknasa settlement). The Almoravid empire took over Taza in 1074. They were replaced by the Almohad empire in 1132. In 1248 the city was captured by the Marinids. Although Taza barred the route of the Turks from Algiers seeking conquest in what is now Morocco,{{Cite news|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Taza|title=Taza {{!}} Morocco|work=Encyclopedia Britannica|access-date=2017-05-05|language=en}} it fell to the French in 1914. The old town has Berber monuments, mosques, and a 14th-century madrasa (Koranic school). Population in 1982 stood at 77,216.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}

Taza is located in north-central Morocco, in the south of the Rif region right outside the mountain range on a narrow plain. The city is composed of two formerly separate towns built on separate terraces overlooking a mountain valley. The old-Taza town is at an elevation of 1,919 feet (585 m) above sea level and is surrounded by fortifications; the newer town, established by the French in 1920, is located in a fertile plain at an elevation of 1,460 feet (445 m). Fossil remains indicate that caves in the area were inhabited as early as the Paleolithic Period. One of the most important caves in Morocco, Rhar Chara, is close to Taza. This cave is over 7.6 kilometres long.{{cite book|editor-last=Gunn|editor-first=John|title=Encyclopedia of caves and karst science|year=2003|publisher=Dearborn|location=New York [u.a.]|isbn=1579583997|page=26}}

The city is located in a mountain pass known as the "Taza Gap", where the Rif mountains and the Middle-Atlas range come together. Through this pass successive waves of invaders moved westward onto the Atlantic coastal plains of north-western Africa.

The Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as hot-summer Mediterranean (Csa).{{cite web|title=Climate: Taza تازة - Climate graph, Temperature graph, Climate table|url=http://en.climate-data.org/location/763640/|publisher=Climate-Data.org|access-date=28 August 2013}} Located along the Atlas Mountains, Taza has a seasonal climate, shifting from cool in winter to hot days in summer. Rainfall can reach up to 900 mm per year. The highest temperature ever registered in Taza was {{convert|46.4|°C}}, on July 23, 2021.{{cite web |url=https://www.ogimet.com/cgi-bin/gsynres?ind=60127&ano=2021&mes=7&day=24&hora=6&min=0&ndays=30 |title=60127: Taza (Morocco) |author= |date= 23 July 2021|website=ogimet.com |publisher=OGIMET |access-date= 24 July 2021|quote=}}

{{Infobox Weather

|location = Taza (1991–2020)

|metric first = yes

|single line = yes

|Jan record high C = 25.2

|Feb record high C = 28.7

|Mar record high C = 31.6

|Apr record high C = 33.5

|May record high C = 39.6

|Jun record high C = 44.2

|Jul record high C = 46.4

|Aug record high C = 45.7

|Sep record high C = 44.3

|Oct record high C = 38.5

|Nov record high C = 34.5

|Dec record high C = 26.7

|year record high C =

|Jan high C = 15.7

|Feb high C = 17.3

|Mar high C = 20.1

|Apr high C = 22.4

|May high C = 27.1

|Jun high C = 32.5

|Jul high C = 37.0

|Aug high C = 36.9

|Sep high C = 31.2

|Oct high C = 26.3

|Nov high C = 19.8

|Dec high C = 16.5

|year high C =

|Jan mean C = 10.7

|Feb mean C = 12.1

|Mar mean C = 14.5

|Apr mean C = 16.6

|May mean C = 20.6

|Jun mean C = 25.2

|Jul mean C = 29.1

|Aug mean C = 29.3

|Sep mean C = 24.8

|Oct mean C = 20.5

|Nov mean C = 14.8

|Dec mean C = 11.8

|year mean C =

|Jan low C = 5.6

|Feb low C = 6.8

|Mar low C = 8.9

|Apr low C = 10.8

|May low C = 14.0

|Jun low C = 17.9

|Jul low C = 21.2

|Aug low C = 21.7

|Sep low C = 18.4

|Oct low C = 14.6

|Nov low C = 9.8

|Dec low C = 7.0

|year low C = 13.1

|Jan record low C = -5.3

|Feb record low C = -2.6

|Mar record low C = 0.0

|Apr record low C = 4.5

|May record low C = 5.2

|Jun record low C = 10.6

|Jul record low C = 13.8

|Aug record low C = 12.9

|Sep record low C = 10.9

|Oct record low C = 5.6

|Nov record low C = -1.1

|Dec record low C = -0.1

|year record low C =

|precipitation colour = green

|Jan precipitation mm = 73.0

|Feb precipitation mm = 71.1

|Mar precipitation mm = 72.6

|Apr precipitation mm = 58.1

|May precipitation mm = 27.2

|Jun precipitation mm = 6.0

|Jul precipitation mm = 2.1

|Aug precipitation mm = 5.0

|Sep precipitation mm = 19.9

|Oct precipitation mm = 55.7

|Nov precipitation mm = 79.2

|Dec precipitation mm = 85.3

|year precipitation mm = 555.2

|unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm

|Jan precipitation days = 6.8

|Feb precipitation days = 6.5

|Mar precipitation days = 6.4

|Apr precipitation days = 6.2

|May precipitation days = 4.2

|Jun precipitation days = 1.3

|Jul precipitation days = 0.6

|Aug precipitation days = 1.0

|Sep precipitation days = 2.6

|Oct precipitation days = 5.8

|Nov precipitation days = 6.9

|Dec precipitation days = 7.2

|year precipitation days =

|Jan sun = 178.3

|Feb sun = 173.8

|Mar sun = 203.0

|Apr sun = 232.1

|May sun = 263.0

|Jun sun = 291.7

|Jul sun = 309.2

|Aug sun = 277.3

|Sep sun = 225.6

|Oct sun = 203.4

|Nov sun = 171.7

|Dec sun = 162.6

|year sun =

|source 1 = World Meteorological Organization (sun, 1981-2010){{cite web

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211111001033/https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/data/normals/WMO/1981-2010/RA-I/Morocco/WMO_Normals_ASCII_60127.csv

| archive-date = 11 November 2021

| url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/data/normals/WMO/1981-2010/RA-I/Morocco/WMO_Normals_ASCII_60127.csv

| title = World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1981–2010

| publisher = World Meteorological Organization

| access-date = 10 November 2021}}

|source 2 = NOAA {{cite web

| url = https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-1-WMO-Normals-9120/Morocco/CSV/TAZA_60127.csv

| title = Taza Climate Normals for 1991–2020

| publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

| access-date = 8 October 2023

| url-status = live

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20231008052738/https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-1-WMO-Normals-9120/Morocco/CSV/TAZA_60127.csv

| archive-date = 8 October 2023}}

}}

The city's most famous historic monument is the Great Mosque of Taza, an important piece of Moroccan architecture from the Almohad and Marinid periods.{{Cite book|last=Terrasse|first=Henri|title=La grande mosquée de Taza|publisher=Les Éditions d'art et d'histoire|year=1943|location=Paris}}{{Cite book|last=Bloom|first=Jonathan M.|title=Architecture of the Islamic West: North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula, 700-1800|publisher=Yale University Press|year=2020|isbn=9780300218701|pages=121–123, 182–184}}{{Cite book|last=Marçais|first=Georges|title=L'architecture musulmane d'Occident|publisher=Arts et métiers graphiques|year=1954|location=Paris|pages=201, 271}} The old town's main thoroughfare is enlivened by the Grain Market and the Souks where wickerwork, tapestries, jewellery and other goods are sold. The road terminates at a square doubling as a parade ground which sports the Al-Andalous Mosque. The Mosque's minaret, constructed in the 14th century, is wider at the top than at its base.

Bab el-Qebbour Street crosses the Kissaria (covered marketplace), then leads on to the Market Mosque where it meets up with Bab Jamaa gate, the main point of entry of Taza. Somewhat further south, across from Bab el-Rih, the Wind Gate, a bastion dating from the 16th century closes the ring around the kasbah. Taza's city walls, raised in the 12th century and frequently enlarged on later occasions were equipped with a Borj or fortified tower 26 metres (85 ft) wide at the base by the Saadian sultan Ahmed el-Mansour in the 16th century. The gate with an iron grate and the casemates with terraced roofs are clearly influenced by European military architecture.

The topology of the area has imposed a pattern of urban spread. Viewed from above, the city takes the form of a "T". It has its root in Taza high and stretches north to reach the bed of the Oued Larbaâ. Since the urban stretches east and west along the N6 between Fez and Oujda.

At the dawn of independence, the city consisted of the Medina High Taza, the European district occupying a hill called "No Adrar Illouz. People usually pronounce Draâ louz. This area became the center of town, and finally the station area a few kilometers below.

During the following years (60s, 70s) districts have emerged, midway between downtown and the train station (Bit Goulem, Ourida, Bin-Jradi).

During the 80s, other districts make their appearance, especially north of the city (and Massira Al-Quds), extended and developed areas today. The goal of this extension was the slum clearance. It was a success, since 1986 the city was declared a city without slums. The craze is such that sections like (Massira II) are villa style.

The 90s marked the beginning of the urbanization of the axis center - Taza above. These are buildings with 6 or 7 floors occupying a strategic content between public facilities (municipality, space, civil protection, hospital ibn baja, high school and college ...) and on the other hand, it is down the high rock a hundred yards. This area is also adjacent to the uptown-Qessou meddah, Friouato and Hay Shuhada (developed throughout the last three decades).

More recently this area continues to morph and promises a beautiful view from the heights of the city. The planning now also spread on the road to Fez for several kilometers to reach the intermittently R508 (about Tainast).

The development plan provides a direct link between Taza West (at the "white bridge") and Taza high.

• Abdelkrim El Hadrioui - Former moroccan footballer
• Achraf Bencharki – Moroccan footballer
• Ahmed Bouzfour – Moroccan novelist
• Aicha Mekki – Moroccan Journalist
• Jaouad Zairi - Former Moroccan-French footballer
• Mohsine Loukili – Moroccan novelist
• Niro, Moroccan-French rapper
• Rachid Ben Ali – Moroccan-Dutch painter

• Taza Province
• Medina of Taza
• Great Mosque of Taza
• Taza Airport
• Bou Hamara - early 20th century pretender to the throne of Morocco, based in Taza

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Wikivoyage|Taza}}

• [http://www.ville-taza.com Taza online] in French
• [http://www.tazekka.com Parc national de Tazekka] in French

{{Fès-Meknès}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Taza

Category:Biosphere reserves of Morocco

Category:Populated places in Taza Province

Taza