The ancient ksour of

Ouadane Ouadane or Wādān () is a small town in the desert region of central Mauritania, situated on the southern edge of the Adrar Plateau, northeast of Chinguetti. The town was a staging post in the trans-Saharan trade and for caravans transporti ...

Chinguetti Chinguetti ( ; ) is a ksar and a medieval trading center in northern Mauritania, located on the Adrar Plateau east of Atar. Chinguetti had a population of 4,800 as of 2013. Founded in the 13th century as the center of several trans-Saharan trad ...

Tichitt Tichit, or Tichitt (, ), is a village at the foot of the Tagant Plateau in central southern Mauritania that is known for its vernacular architecture and proximity to the Dhar Tichitt archaeological sites. The main agriculture in Tichit is date ...

and

Oualata Oualata or Walāta () (also Biru in 17th century chronicles) is a small oasis town in southeast Mauritania, located at the eastern end of the Aoukar basin. Oualata was important as a caravan city in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries as th ...

Mauritania Mauritania, officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a sovereign country in Maghreb, Northwest Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Western Sahara to Mauritania–Western Sahara border, the north and northwest, ...

were inscribed on the UNESCO

World Heritage World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

List in 1996. Ouadane and Chinguetti are located in the

Adrar Region Adrar () is a large administrative region in Mauritania, named for the Adrar Plateau. The capital is Atar. Other major towns include Choum, Chinguetti and Ouadane. The region borders Western Sahara and the Mauritanian region of Tiris Zemm ...

, Tichitt in the Tagant Region and Oualata in the

Hodh Ech Chargui Region Hodh Ech Chargui () is a large Regions of Mauritania, region in eastern Mauritania, with an area of 182,700 km2. Its capital is Néma, but the largest town, in Bassikounou (department), Bassiknou Department, is Fassala (or Vassale) at the extreme ...

. These cities were founded around the 11th century as stopping places for the

caravan Caravan or caravans may refer to: Transport and travel *Campervan, a type of vehicle also known as a motor caravan *Caravan (travellers), a group of travellers journeying together **Caravanserai, a place where a caravan could stop *Caravan (trail ...

s of the Trans-Saharan trade crossing the Sahara.Outstanding Universal Value of Ancient Ksour of Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata
Once prosperous centres of Saharan culture, these cities survive today with many difficulties, not only due to the radical transformation of the trade routes, but above all because of the advancing sands of the desert.

References

{{World Heritage Sites in Mauritania World Heritage Sites in Mauritania