El-Ksar el Kebir (

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

: القصر الكبير; ber, ⵍⵇⵚⵔ ⵍⴽⴱⵉⵔ, lqṣr lkbir) is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

in northwestern

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria t ...

, about 160 km north of Rabat, 32 km east of

Larache Larache ( ar, العرايش, al-'Araysh) is a city in northwestern Morocco. It is on the Moroccan coast, where the Loukkos River meets the Atlantic Ocean. Larache is one of the most important cities of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region. Man ...

and 110 km south of

Tangier Tangier ( ; ; ar, طنجة, Ṭanja) is a city in northwestern Morocco. It is on the Moroccan coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar, where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel. The town is the capi ...

. It recorded a population of 126,617 in the

2014 Moroccan census The 2014 Moroccan census The moroccan census of the population, officially named general census of the population and the habitat (RGPH), is a census taking place every ten years in the kingdom. It is established under the responsibility of the Hig ...

. The city is also known as Alcazarquivir in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

or Alcácer-Quibir in

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

. The name means "the big castle". The city is located nearby the Loukous river that makes El-Ksar-el-Kebir one of Morocco's richest agricultural regions. El-Ksar el-Kebir provides almost 20% of the needed sugar of Morocco. Neighbouring cities and towns include Larache, Chefchaouen, Arbawa and Tateft.

History

1st millennium BCE: Established as a Carthaginian colony; after the Punic Wars it came under Roman control with the name ''Oppidum Novum''. In 1578, King

Sebastian of Portugal Sebastian ( pt, Sebastião I ; 20 January 1554 – 4 August 1578) was King of Portugal from 11 June 1557 to 4 August 1578 and the penultimate Portuguese monarch of the House of Aviz. He was the son of João Manuel, Prince of Portugal, and hi ...

suffered a crushing defeat in the

Battle of Alcácer Quibir The Battle of Alcácer Quibir (also known as "Battle of Three Kings" ( ar, معركة الملوك الثلاثة) or "Battle of Wadi al-Makhazin" ( ar, معركة وادي المخازن) in Morocco) was fought in northern Morocco, near the t ...

at the hands of the King Abd al-Malik of

, which ended Portugal's ambitions to invade and Christianize the

Maghreb The Maghreb (; ar, الْمَغْرِب, al-Maghrib, lit=the west), also known as the Arab Maghreb ( ar, المغرب العربي) and Northwest Africa, is the western part of North Africa and the Arab world. The region includes Algeria, ...

. Both kings died during the battle, as did Abdallah Mohammed, who was allied with Sebastian. The death of King Sebastian started the events which led to the temporary

union of the crowns The Union of the Crowns ( gd, Aonadh nan Crùintean; sco, Union o the Crouns) was the accession of James VI of Scotland to the throne of the Kingdom of England as James I and the practical unification of some functions (such as overseas dip ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

and

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

under Philip II of Spain. King Abd al-Malik's victory gave Morocco substantial strength and international prestige. The city experienced a substantial growth with the settling of an important Spanish garrison in 1911 as a part of the Spanish Morocco

Protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its int ...

in Morocco. After Morocco's independence and the building of the Oued el Makhazine reservoir by

King Hassan II Hassan II ( ar, الحسن الثاني, translit=al-Ḥasan aṯ-ṯhānī;), with the prefix "Mulay" before his enthronement 9 July 1929 – 23 July 1999) was the King of Morocco from 1961 until his death in 1999. He was a member of the 'Alaw ...

to manage the Loukkos' river regime, the city became an important regional agricultural distribution center. *12th century: City walls are built by the command of the

Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur Abū Yūsuf Yaʿqūb ibn Yūsuf ibn Abd al-Muʾmin al-Manṣūr (; c. 1160 – 23 January 1199 Marrakesh), commonly known as Yaqub al-Mansur () or Moulay Yacoub (), was the third Almohad Caliph. Succeeding his father, al-Mansur reigned from 118 ...

, according to

Leo Africanus Joannes Leo Africanus (born al-Hasan Muhammad al-Wazzan, ar, الحسن محمد الوزان ; c. 1494 – c. 1554) was an Andalusian diplomat and author who is best known for his 1526 book '' Cosmographia et geographia de Affrica'', later ...

. *1578: The

Battle of the Three Kings A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and forc ...

is fought at the location of Ksar el-Kebir. *17th century: Sultan Moulay Ismail destroys the city walls of Ksar el-Kebir, after being angered by a local chief. *1911: Spain conquers Northern Morocco, and the town is rebuilt, and given a Spanish name, Alcazarquivir. *1956: With Morocco's independence, Alcazarquivir is transferred from Spanish control, and renamed Ksar el-Kebir.

Culture

El-Ksar el-Kebir is reputed for the leading artists, writers, poets and sportsmen on national plane. *In sports, football player

Abdeslam Laghrissi Abdeslam Laghrissi (; born 5 January 1962), also known as Abdeslam El-Ghrissi, is a Moroccan former Association football, footballer. Club career Laghrissi started his professional career in Morocco, Moroccan side FAR Rabat. Early in the ninetie ...

still keeps his record as the best marksman in the Moroccan championship with 26 goals in 1986. *In music, Abdessalam Amer (died 1979) who is well known in the Arab world as a unique music composer. He left such eternal songs as: ''Red Moon'', ''Beach'', ''Leaving'', ''The Last Oh!''. *In poetry,

Mohamed El Khammar El Guennouni Muhammad was an Islamic prophet and a religious and political leader who preached and established Islam. Muhammad and variations may also refer to: *Muhammad (name), a given name and surname, and list of people with the name and its variations ...

(died 1991) was a pioneer in modern Moroccan poetry and is regarded as master of free poetry in Morocco. There is also poet Ouafae El Amrani in the new poetic generation. *In novel-writing, there are such novelists as

Mohamed Aslim Muhammad was an Islamic prophet and a religious and political leader who preached and established Islam. Muhammad and variations may also refer to: *Muhammad (name), a given name and surname, and list of people with the name and its variations ...

, Mohamed Harradi,

Mohamed Tetouani Muhammad was an Islamic prophet and a religious and political leader who preached and established Islam. Muhammad and variations may also refer to: *Muhammad (name), a given name and surname, and list of people with the name and its variations ...

, Mohamed Sibari and Moustafa Jebari. *In short-story writing, there is

Mohamed Said Raihani Mohamed Saïd Raïhani ( ar, محمد سعيد الريحاني) is a Moroccan translator, novelist and short-story writer born on December 23, 1968 in Ksar el Kebir, north of Morocco. He is a member of ''Moroccan Writers’ Union'', holder of a ...

, who is a trilingual writer (he writes in Arabic, French and English) and who has finished his fortieth manuscript before reaching the age of forty. *Education there is Mohammadia high school

Notable people

Hamid El Kasri Hamid El Kasri ( ar, حميد القصري; born 1961) is a Moroccan Gnawa musician traditionally considered a ''maâlem'' ( ar, مُعَلِّم), or "master musician". Born in Ksar El Kebir, Morocco, he now lives in Rabat. He began training a ...

- Moroccan

Gnawa music Gnawa music (Ar. ) is a body of Moroccan religious songs and rhythms. Its well-preserved heritage combines ritual poetry with traditional music and dancing. The music is performed at ''lila'', communal nights of celebration dedicated to prayer ...

singer. *

- former international moroccan footballer.

Twin towns

Lagos Lagos (Nigerian English: ; ) is the largest city in Nigeria and the second most populous city in Africa, with a population of 15.4 million as of 2015 within the city proper. Lagos was the national capital of Nigeria until December 1991 fo ...

, Portugal

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:El-Ksar-El-Kebir Cities in Morocco Former Portuguese colonies Kingdom of the Algarve Ksars Populated places in Larache Province Populated places established in the 1st millennium BC Roman towns and cities in Morocco Morocco geography articles needing translation from French Wikipedia