The commune of Aïn Azel is fifty kilometres south of

Sétif Sétif ( ar, سطيف, ber, Sṭif) is the capital of the Sétif Province in Algeria. It is one of the most important cities of eastern Algeria and the country as a whole, since it is considered the trade capital of the country. It is an inner ci ...

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

, and is at the frontier between

Sétif Province Sétif Province ( ar, ولاية سطيف, kab, Agezdu n Sṭif) is a province (''wilaya'') in north-eastern Algeria. Its capital and largest city is Sétif; the next largest city is El Eulma. There is also the World Heritage Site of Djémila th ...

and

Batna Province Batna Province ( ar, ولاية باتنة, Latn, ar, Wilāyat Bātnah) is a province of Algeria, in the region of Aurès. The capital is Batna. Localities in this province include N'Gaous, Merouana and Timgad. Belezma National Park is in the ...

. The population of Aïn Azel is estimated to be around 37,970 people (2008).

Origin of the name

The name "Aïn Azel" may come from the

Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...

"Azzel" which means "he who runs" or Azel which means "precious". This name, together with the Arabic word Aïn ("Fountain") may therefore mean "the fountain that runs" or "the precious fountain". The town was known as ''Ampère'' between 1895 and 1962. Aïn Azel was the site of a mining catastrophe on June 2, 1990, which resulted in the death of approximately twenty workers when a

zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...

and

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

mine was flooded.

Geography

Latitude: 35°82 north
Longitude: 5°51 east
Altitude: 935 metres Aïn Azel is virtually surrounded by mountains: * Djebel Loumassa and Djebel Sekrine to the west * Djebel Gatiane to the south * Djebel Lehcana to the south-east * Djebel Kaläaoun to the east

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ain Azel Communes of Sétif Province