TRAVEL TO MOROCCO | TETOUAN THE WHITE DOVE

Tétouan (Arabic: تطوان‎, Berber languages: ⵜⵉⵟⵟⴰⵡⵉⵏ, French: Tétouan, Spanish: Tetuán) (nicknamed the White Dove - Arabic: الحمامة البيضاء)[2] is a city located in northern Morocco. It lies along the Martil Valley and is one of the two major ports of Morocco on the Mediterranean Sea, a few miles south of the Strait of Gibraltar, and about 60 km (40 mi) E.S.E. of Tangier. In the 2014 Moroccan census the city recorded a population of 380,787 inhabitants.[1] It is part of the administrative division Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima.

The city has witnessed many development cycles spanning over more than 2000 years. The first settlements discovered a few miles outside of the modern city limits belonged to Mauretanian Berbers and date back to the 3rd century BC. A century later Phoenicians traded there and after them the site -known now as the ancient town of Tamuda- became a Roman colony under Emperor Augustus.[3][4]

In late 13th century, the Berber Marinids started by building a casbah and mosque in what is now the old city. Soon after, in 1305, the scale of the settlement was expanded by sultan Abu Thabit Amir who fortified the place.[5] Around early 15th century the Castilians destroyed in retaliation for piracy.

The modern history of the city starts around late 15th century. It was re-built and fortified by Ali al-Mandri who emigrated from the Andalusian city of Granada in the decade before it fell in the hands of the Catholic kings Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile during the Spanish Reconquista of 1492. Thousands of Muslims and Jews from Andalusia settled in the north of Morocco in general and on the ruins of the city of Tétouan.[6] The city has known a prosperous period of reconstruction and growth in various fields and became a center for the reception of Andalusian civilization. It is often linked to Granada and is labelled Granada's daughter[7][8] and some families still keep keys belonging to their old homes in Granada.[6] It is also nicknamed "Pequeña Jerusalén" (Little Jerusalem) by Sephardi Jews.[9][10] The vast majority of the population are Muslims and small Christian and Jewish communities also exist[11] although their presence has declined sharply in recent decades.

In 1913, Tétouan became the capital of the Spanish protectorate of Morocco, which was governed by the Jalifa (Moroccan prince serving as Viceroy for the Sultan), and the Spanish "Alto Comisario" accredited to him. It remained such a capital until 1956, when Morocco regained its full independence.