Roman roads in Morocco were the western roads of Roman Africa.

Characteristics

In 42 AD, the western part of the kingdom of

Mauretania Mauretania (; ) is the Latin name for a region in the ancient Maghreb. It extended from central present-day Algeria to the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, encompassing northern present-day Morocco, and from the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean in the ...

was reorganized as a province of Rome

Mauretania Tingitana Mauretania Tingitana (Latin for "Tangerine Mauretania") was a Roman province, coinciding roughly with the northern part of present-day Morocco. The territory stretched from the northern peninsula opposite Gibraltar, to Sala Colonia (or Chellah ...

. During the reign of emperor

Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; ; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54), or Claudius, was a Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Nero Claudius Drusus, Drusus and Ant ...

(41–54) infrastructure was improved. A road leading in the southern direction from

Tingis Tingis (Latin; ''Tíngis'') or Tingi ( Ancient Berber:), was the ancient name of Tangier in Morocco and an important Carthaginian, Moor, and Roman port on the Atlantic Ocean. It was eventually granted the status of a Roman colony and made the ...

split in two at Ad Mercuri (possibly modern Bled Mers). One of the two followed the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

coast through

Iulia Constantia Zilil Iulia Constantia Zilil (called later ''Arzeila'') was an ancient Roman-Berber city in Dchar Jdid, located 40 km southwest of Tangier and 13 km northeast of Asilah. It was one of the three colonias in Mauretania Tingitana (in northern Mo ...

( Dchar Jdid), Lixus (

Larache Larache () 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. Many civilisations and cultures have ...

) and

Sala Colonia The Chellah or Shalla ( or ; ), is a medieval fortified Muslim necropolis and ancient archeological site in Rabat, Morocco, located on the south (left) side of the Bou Regreg estuary. The earliest evidence of the site's occupation suggests that th ...

(near

Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ) is the Capital (political), capital city of Morocco and the List of cities in Morocco, country's seventh-largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan population of over 1.2 million. ...

). The other, more to the east, ended in Tocolosida, near

Volubilis Volubilis (; ; ) is a partly excavated Berber-Roman city in Morocco, situated near the city of Meknes, that may have been the capital of the Kingdom of Mauretania, at least from the time of King Juba II. Before Volubilis, the capital of the kin ...

and modern Fez. There is the possibility that a Roman road was built toward south, from Sala Colonia to

Anfa Anfa (Berber language: ''Anfa'' or ''Anaffa'', ⴰⵏⴼⴰ; ; ; ) was the ancient toponym for Casablanca during the classical period. The city was founded by Berbers around the 10th century BC, with the Romans under Augustus later establishing t ...

(or Anfus), in the area of modern

Casablanca Casablanca (, ) is the largest city in Morocco and the country's economic and business centre. Located on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Chaouia (Morocco), Chaouia plain in the central-western part of Morocco, the city has a populatio ...

, where there was a small port used by the

Phoenicia Phoenicians were an Ancient Semitic-speaking peoples, ancient Semitic group of people who lived in the Phoenician city-states along a coastal strip in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily modern Lebanon and the Syria, Syrian ...

ns and later the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

s since 15 BC. This port was used for Roman expeditions toward the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

. There was another important road that connected

with

Mauretania Caesariensis Mauretania Caesariensis (Latin for "Caesarea, Numidia, Caesarean Mauretania") was a Roman province located in present-day Algeria. The full name refers to its capital Caesarea, Numidia, Caesarea Mauretaniae (modern Cherchell). The province had ...

(modern western

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

). It ran from

Tamuda Tamuda was an ancient Berber city and military camp in Mauretania Tingitana. It is located 6 km (4 miles) west of the present-day Tetouan in northern Morocco. Stone ruins from the site are found by the south bank of the Martil Valley. It w ...

to Numerus Syrorum.Septimius Severus road in Mauretania Tingitana (in Italian)
/ref> Africa Roman map

Notes

Sources

* M. Euzennat. 1962. "Les voies romaines du Maroc dans l' Itineraire d' Antonin," ''Hommages à Albert Grenier'' (Brussels) vol. II, 595-610.

External links

*Diplomatie France (updated map) ''Les voies antiques du Maroc d’après l’Itinéraire Antonin'' (retrieved November 17, 2012
Mauretania Tingitana (in Spanish)
{{List of Roman roads Mauretania Tingitana Roman roads in Africa Ancient Roman buildings and structures in Morocco History of transport in Morocco Roads in Morocco

Characteristics

See also

Notes

Sources

External links