The Hubous ( ''al-Hubous'' or حَي الأَحْباس ''Hay al-Aḥbās''), or colloquially Habous, is one of the older neighborhoods of

Casablanca Casablanca, also known in Arabic as Dar al-Bayda ( ar, الدَّار الْبَيْضَاء, al-Dār al-Bayḍāʾ, ; ber, ⴹⴹⴰⵕⵍⴱⵉⴹⴰ, ḍḍaṛlbiḍa, : "White House") is the largest city in Morocco and the country's econom ...

, Morocco. Its development dates back to 1916, in the early stages of the French protectorate. The neighborhood is a cultural and religious center for Casablanca and for Morocco, as it hosts the Moroccan Ministry of Islamic Affairs as well as bookstores of important Moroccan and Arabic publishing houses. The many traditional and historic buildings also make the Hubous a popular tourist destination.

Name

The words ''ḥubous'' () and ''aḥbās'' () are plurals of the word ''ḥabs'' (), also called a '' waqf'' (وَقْف): an inalienable charitable real estate

endowment Endowment most often refers to: *A term for human penis size It may also refer to: Finance *Financial endowment, pertaining to funds or property donated to institutions or individuals (e.g., college endowment) *Endowment mortgage, a mortgage to b ...

for

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

ic religious purposes or charity. The Moroccan Ministry of Hubous and Islamic Affairs is located in the neighborhood.

History

In 1916, almost a decade after the French invasion and occupation of Casablanca and four years after the official establishment of the French protectorate, General Lyautey's handpicked urban planner Henri Prost and his team decided to build, to the east of the new center, a "," a new development for Muslims including a palace for the sultan. A Moroccan Jewish man named

Haim Ben-Dahan The name ''Haim'' can be a first name or surname originating in the Hebrew language, or deriving from the Old German name ''Haimo''. Hebrew etymology Chayyim ( he, חַיִּים ', Classical Hebrew: , Israeli Hebrew: ), also transcribed ''Haim ...

, a cereal trader and financier, owned the land and gifted it to the sultan. However, it was not acceptable for a gift of land to be given from a Jew to the sultan, an administration of religious properties, now the Ministry of Hubous and Islamic Affairs, was established to receive and administer the land, and still owns it today. The Mosque of Sultan Yusuf was designed by Auguste Cadet and

Edmond Brion Edmond Brion (1885 Soissons - 1973) was a French architect active in Casablanca during the French Protectorate. Biography After World War I and after having studying at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris in the Paulin studio, Brion settled in ...

, and the Mosque of Sultan Muhammad Bin Yusuf was designed by Cadet and built from 1934 to 1936. Mahkamat al-Pasha, one of the most important buildings in the Hubous, was built 1941–1942.

References

Neighbourhoods of Casablanca Morocco geography articles needing translation from French Wikipedia {{CasablancaSettat-geo-stub

Name

History

See also

References