When was morocco discovered

The Moorish refugees from Spain settled in the coast-towns. The largest concentration of Moroccan migrants outside Morocco is in France, which has reportedly over one million Moroccans of up to the third generation.

The Netherlands hosts about , Moroccans and Belgium hosts about , Moroccans. Moroccan Berber Jews are thought to constitute the second biggest Jewish ethnic subgroup in Israel. Most people live west of the Atlas Mountains and north of the Rif Mountains, two mountain ranges that insulate the country from the Sahara Desert.

Casablanca is the major center of commerce and industry and the leading port. Rabat is the seat of government; Tangier is the gateway to Morocco from Spain and also a major port. Fes is the cultural and religious center of Arab-Muslim culture in Morocco. Agadir, Nador, and Al Hoceima are the major Berber cultural centers, in addition to their economic importance.

Marrakesh is the top touristic city of the country and an international celebrity magnet. There is a European professional expatriate and retiree population of about 60, especially in Casablanca and Marrakesh. They are mainly of French or Spanish descent.

Many of them are teachers, technicians, international managers, in addition to the retirees. The dubious population census, conducted by the government, says that only Berber intellectuals and activists who dispute this figure cite various counter-arguments such as the lack of linguistic training of the census officers, lack of accurate linguistic census planning, absence of interest by the government in mother-tongue census and its focus on counting how many people speak French, and the difficulty or inability of census officers to distinguish between people who happen to master Moroccan Arabic as a second language and those who actually speak it as a mother tongue.

On the other hand, it is generally accepted that the numbers of Berber speakers in Morocco was, and possibly still is, on a sharp decline due to the anti-Berber government's policies in education and media the deprived Berber from development and flourishing in urban areas.

These anti-Berber policies came to an end in after the February 20th popular protests that lead to, among many other things, the recognition of Berber as an official language of the country. Moreover, in the 20th century, mass migrations of Berber speakers occurred from the countryside to the cities where French and Arabic dominate and where Berber is not integrated in the economic and governmental institutions, forcing those migrants to learn another language and teach it to their children, who in turn would grow up in a city that doesn't speak Berber or doesn't encourage it.

Morocco's official languages are Arabic and the Berber. The country's distinctive group of Moroccan Arabic dialects is referred to as Darija. Approximately As it is in Algeria and Tunisia, the French language is widely used in governmental institutions, media, mid-size and large companies, international commerce with French speaking countries, and often in international diplomacy. French is taught as an obligatory language at all schools. It is the medium of education and the curriculum language of all science and economics programs at all universities except in the programs of Arabic language, law or theology.

Al Akhawayn University is the only one that offers all programs in English. Spanish is spoken by a very small population in the north of the country especially around the Spanish exclaves Melilla and Ceuta. While French language dominance in Morocco is a direct result of the French occupation, the Spanish occupation of large parts of Morocco for about half a century didn't result in any strong Spanish language presence.

Spanish today is almost invisible in the mainstream media and in the educational system. According to the census, 2. English, while far behind French in terms of number of speakers, is the first foreign language of choice, since French is obligatory, among educated youth and professionals.

As a result of national education reforms entering into force in late , English is taught in most public schools from the fourth grade on. French is still taught nationally from the earliest grades. There are about 2 million Moroccan Berber-speakers living in Europe. Linguistically, Berber belongs to the Afro-Asiatic language family, and has many accents and dialects.

Classical Arabic of the Middle East had used the word "al-Barbariyya" The equivalent of "Berber" in English since the first contacts between Berbers and Arabs 14 centuries ago. The strong campaigns and discourses of Berber cultural activists who master Arabic have managed to influenece Arab media and Arab intellectuals as far as the Persian Gulf.

Berber activists and intellectuals have succeeded in promoting their own cultural terminology, their own symbols like the Berber flag, and their own identity keywords on a large scale in Arab and European media.

This made the Berber language and Berber culture go from unnoticed to unavoidable. Recent studies make clear no significant genetic differences exist between Arabic and non-Arabic speaking populations, HLA DNA data suggest that most Moroccans are of a Berber origin and that Arabs who invaded North Africa and Spain in the 7th century did not substantially contribute to the gene pool.

The different loci studied revealed close similarity between the Berbers and other north African groups, mainly with Moroccan Arabic-speakers, which is in accord with the hypothesis that the current Moroccan population has a strong Berber background. Morocco is a de jure constitutional parliamentary monarchy with an elected parliament. With the constitutional reforms, the King of Morocco still retains few executive powers whereas those of the prime minister have been enlarged.

Opposition political parties are legal. Politics of Morocco take place in a framework of a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, whereby the Prime Minister of Morocco is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government.

Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of parliament, the Assembly of Representatives of Morocco and the Assembly of Councillors.

The Moroccan Constitution provides for a monarchy with a Parliament and an independent judiciary. The constitution grants the king honorific powers; he is both the secular political leader and the "Commander of the Faithful" as a direct descendant of the Prophet Mohammed.

He presides over the Council of Ministers; appoints the Prime Minister from the political party that has won the most seats in the parliamentary elections, and on recommendations from the latter, appoints the members of the government. The previous constitution note constitution of theoretically allows the king to terminate the tenure of any minister, and after consultation with the heads of the higher and lower Assemblies, to dissolve the Parliament, suspend the constitution, call for new elections, or rule by decree, the only time this happened was in The King is formally the chief of the military.

He ruled Morocco for the next 38 years, until he died in Following protests in Morocco and elsewhere in the Arab world in early , King Mohammed VI announced the establishment of a committee aimed at preparing the text of a new constitution, which included further limitations on the powers of the monarch. Following the March elections, a coalition government headed by opposition socialist leader Abderrahmane Youssoufi and composed largely of ministers drawn from opposition parties, was formed.

Prime Minister Youssoufi's government was the first ever government drawn primarily from opposition parties, and also represents the first opportunity for a coalition of socialists, left-of-center, and nationalist parties to be included in the government until October It was also the first time in the modern political history of the Arab world that the opposition assumed power following an election.

The current government is headed by Abbas El Fassi. Since the constitutional reform of , the bicameral legislature consists of two chambers. The Assembly of Councillors Majlis al-Mustasharin has members, elected for a nine year term, elected by local councils seats , professional chambers 91 seats and wage-earners 27 seats.

The Parliament's powers, though still relatively limited, were expanded under the and and even further in the constitutional revisions and include budgetary matters, approving bills, questioning ministers, and establishing ad hoc commissions of inquiry to investigate the government's actions.

The lower chamber of Parliament may dissolve the government through a vote of no confidence. On 1 July voters approved the draft of a new constitution which entered into effect on 29 July On 2 July some Moroccan protesters said they were undeterred despite a landslide victory for King Mohammed in a referendum on constitutional changes they say do nothing to ease his autocratic grip on power.

The nation's interior ministry has offered the tentative date of November 11, for parliamentary elections.

Internal security is generally effective, and acts of political violence are rare with one exception, the Casablanca bombings which killed 45 people. The Saharawi group Polisario maintains an active militia of an estimated 5, fighters in Western Sahara and has engaged in intermittent warfare with Moroccan forces since the s. These regions are:. This is a list of the largest metropolitan areas, each may include several towns and cities, which are in very close proximity to each other.

The United Nations views Western Sahara as a non-self-governing territory, and as a case of unfinished decolonization. Morocco's rule in the territory is not internationally recognized, nor is the independent republic proposed by Polisario, a Saharawi group which fought against the Spanish colonial rule and then for Western Sahara's independence as the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic today headquartered in Algeria. There is a ceasefire in effect since , and a UN mission MINURSO is tasked with organizing a referendum on whether the territory should become independent or recognized as a part of Morocco.

At the time, both parties signed an agreement to this effect, but they did not agree on who would be entitled to vote. The territory is mostly administered as the Southern Provinces by Morocco since Spain handed over the territory to Morocco and Mauritania after the Madrid Accords in — A UN-administered cease-fire has been in effect since September, The Western Sahara War was the armed conflict which saw the Sahrawi rebel national liberation movement Polisario Front headquarted in Algeria battling Morocco and Mauritania for the control of the former Spanish colony of Western Sahara from to The war resulted in the Spanish retreat in , the Mauritanian retreat in and a cease fire agreement with Morocco.

The bigger part of the territory remained under Moroccan control. The proposal was encouraged by Moroccan allies such as the United States, France and Spain, and the Security Council "takes note of the Moroccan proposal presented on 11 April to the Secretary-General and welcoming serious and credible Moroccan efforts to move the process forward towards resolution".

The Security Council has called upon the parties to enter into direct and unconditional negotiations to reach a mutually accepted political solution. Morocco's economy is considered a relatively liberal economy governed by the law of supply and demand.

Since , the country has followed a policy of privatization of certain economic sectors which used to be in the hands of the government. Morocco is the world's biggest exporter and third producer of phosphorus. Price fluctuations of phosphates in the international market strongly influence Morocco's economy. Economic growth is far more diversified, with new service and industrial poles, like Casablanca and Tangier, developing.

The services sector accounts for just over half of GDP and industry, made up of mining, construction and manufacturing, is an additional quarter. The industries that recorded the highest growth are tourism, telecoms, information technology, and textile.

Morocco, however, still depends to an inordinate degree on agriculture. With a semi-arid climate and an ill-developed irrigation system, it is difficult to assure enough irrigation. Fiscal prudence has allowed for consolidation, with both the budget deficit and debt falling as a percentage of GDP. The economic system of the country presents several facets.

It is characterized by a large opening towards the outside world. France remains the primary trade partner supplier and customer of Morocco. France is also the primary creditor and foreign investor in Morocco. In Africa, Morocco has the fifth largest economy and the fastest growing internet usership.

Since the early s the Moroccan government has pursued an economic program toward accelerating real economy growth with the support of the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the Paris Club of creditors.

The country's currency, the dirham, is now fully convertible for current account transactions [ clarification needed ] ; reforms of the financial sector have been implemented; and state enterprises are being privatized. The major resources of the Moroccan economy are agriculture, phosphates, and tourism. Sales of fish and seafood are important as well. Morocco grew into an even greater object of European rivalry by the turn of the century, almost leading to a European war in when Germany attempted to gain a foothold in the mineral-rich country.

By the terms of the Algeciras Conference , the sultan of Morocco maintained control of his lands and France's privileges were curtailed. The conference was an indication of what was to come in World War I, with Germany and Austria-Hungary lining up on one side of the territorial dispute, and France, Britain, and the United States on the other.

Nationalism grew during World War II. Sultan Muhammed V was deposed by the French in and replaced by his uncle, but nationalist agitation forced his return in In , France and Spain recognized the independence and sovereignty of Morocco. At his death on Feb.

In the s, King Hassan promulgated? Hassanian democracy,? In Aug. Since then, Muhammed VI has pledged to make the political system more open, allow freedom of expression, and support economic reform. He has also advocated more rights for women, a position opposed by Islamic fundamentalists. The entrenched political elite and the military have also been leery of some reform proposals. Morocco's occupation of Western Sahara formerly Spanish Sahara has been repeatedly criticized by the international community.

In the s, tens of thousands of Moroccans crossed the border into Spanish Sahara to back their government's contention that the northern part of the territory was historically part of Morocco. Spain, which had controlled the territory since , withdrew in , creating a power vacuum that was filled by Morocco in the north and Mauritania in the south.

When Mauritania withdrew in Aug. A rebel group, the Polisario Front, has fought against Morocco since for the independence of Western Sahara on behalf of the indigenous Saharawis.

The Polisario and Morocco agreed in Sept. For the past decade, however, Morocco has opposed the referendum. In , King Muhammed VI reasserted that he?

Western Sahara. They were likely used by Neanderthals. Eyed needles emerge in the archaeological record much later, about 40, years ago. The bone tools from Morocco that Hallett discovered were shaped a bit like a spatula and would have been used to remove connective tissue. Similar bone tools are still used by some leather workers today, Hallett said.

Hides drying in the sun at Chouara Tannery in Fez, Morocco. Bone tools are still used by some leather workers today. The bone tools were found in Contrebandiers Cave on Morocco's Atlantic coast. Hallett said the climate , years ago would have been mild, as it is now, raising the possibility that early clothes could have been for ornamentation as well as protection. Court sentences more than 40 people to long prison sentences over Casablanca internet cafe suicide bombing that injured three.

Also wanted in Spain over Madrid bombings. It is Morocco's deadliest blast in eight years. The Maghreb arm of al-Qaeda denies involvement. Demonstrators continue to call for deeper reforms. Participants accuse Prime Minister Benkirane of failing to deliver on reforms. Follows suicide of year-old girl forced to marry her rapist. Morocco calls the proposed monitoring an attack on its sovereignty.

The borders between Morocco and Algeria have been closed since , and relations have remained tense because of the longstanding dispute over the territory of Western Sahara. King picks Abdelilah Benkirane for a second term as prime minister after his party wins the most seats.