Category: Morocco

Morocco is situated in North Africa and the country is the part of Maghreb region. The capital of the country is Rabat. The earliest known kingdom of Morocco was Berber kingdom of Mauretania under the rule of King Bocchus I and the kingdom dated back to 110 BC. During 7th century BC, the Umayyad Arabs conquered Morocco and Berbers converted to Islam even after the Arab rule is receded. The first Muslim State came into being was Kingdom of Nekor which was founded by a Yemen immigrant in 710 AD. Several powerful Berber dynasties came into power in Morocco from 11th century.

Both France and Spain became the protectorates of Morocco in the year 1912, based on the Treaty of Fez. Morocco gained independence from France and Spain in 1956. Morocco is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system and Moroccan King has wide executive powers. The king can dissolve the government and has the power for the deployment of military. Head of the government is the Prime Minister and executive power is vested on the government. Legislative power is exercised by both parliament and government. Supreme Court is the highest court in which King appoints the judges. Moroccan economy is a liberal economy and the economy mainly depends on agriculture, tourism and phosphates.

The population of the country is more than 35.7 million and 99.1% of Moroccan population consists of Berbers and Arab-Berbers. Other minor ethnic groups are Haratin, Gnawa, mixed race or black, Jewish, French and Spanish. Majority of the population are following Islam and remaining are Jews. The official language of Morocco is Modern Standard Arabic and other languages used are French, English and Spanish. The people are speaking a mixture of Berber and Darija Languages and the country has several regional dialects. The Berber-speaking people are divided into three main groups of dialects such as Shlouh Berbers, Middle-Atlas Berbers and Riffians.

Morocco is famous for its tourist destinations and tourism is popular in Moroccan cities such as Rabat, Meknes, Marrakech and Fes. Rabat, the capital of the country is a modern city with several tourist spots such as beaches, museums and specimens of Islamic architecture. Bab Rouah is a historical attraction in Rabat which was built in the year 1197. Chellah Gardens have a landscape that display numerous flowers creates a richly colored carpet. Mamora Forest is located in proximity to the city of Rabat with numerous cork trees, pine groves, eucalyptus trees and wild pear trees.

The former capitals of Morocco, Marrakech and Casablanca are worth visiting. Marrackech is known as the Pink City with its mosques and minarets, palaces, serpentine lanes, musicians throng, acrobats and snake-charmers. Casablanca is a cruise port where you can find a developed market for the tourists. Boulaouane Kasbah is a fortress situated south of Casablanca overlooking the river Wadi Oum er-Rbia with beautiful mosaic designs and other decorations. Majorelle botanical garden of Marrackech is worth visiting. Rif and Atlas Mountains are famous for adventure and activity tourism in Morocco. Trekking and hiking around the mountains are interesting for the tourists because of the beautiful locations.