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Mellah
A ''mellah'' ( or 'saline area'; and he, מלאח) is a Jewish quarter of a city in Morocco. Starting in the 15th century and especially since the beginning of the 19th century, Jewish communities in Morocco were constrained to live in ''mellah'' districts in many Moroccan cities. The name ''mellah'' derives from a local toponym in Fez which became the name of the first separate Jewish district in Morocco (the Mellah of Fez) created in that city during the 15th century. In cities, a ''mellah'' was often surrounded by a wall with a fortified gateway. Usually, the Jewish quarter was situated near the royal palace or the residence of the governor, in order to protect its inhabitants from recurring riots since its inhabitants played a vital role in the local economy. In contrast, rural ''mellahs'' were separate villages inhabited solely by the Jews. History Origins of the first ''Mellah'' in Fez (15th century) The first ''Mellah'' of Morocco was created in the city of Fez. Fez ...
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Moroccan Jews
Moroccan Jews ( ar, اليهود المغاربة, al-Yahūd al-Maghāriba he, יהודים מרוקאים, Yehudim Maroka'im) are Jews who live in or are from Morocco. Moroccan Jews constitute an ancient community dating to Roman times. Jews began immigrating to the region as early as 70 CE. They were later met by a second wave of migrants from the Iberian peninsula in the period which immediately preceded and followed the issuing of the 1492 Alhambra Decree, when Jews were expelled from Spain, and soon afterward, from Portugal. This second wave of immigrants changed Moroccan Jewry, which largely embraced the Andalusian Sephardic liturgy, to switch to a mostly Sephardic identity. The immigration of Moroccan Jews to Israel has occurred throughout the centuries of Jewish history. Moroccan Jews built the first self-made neighborhood outside the walls of Jerusalem ( Mahane Israel) in 1867, as well as the first modern neighborhoods in Tel Aviv, Haifa and Tiberias. At its peak in ...
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Mellah Of Fez
The Mellah of Fez () is the historic Jewish quarter (''Mellah'') of Fez, Morocco. It is located in Fes el-Jdid, the part of Fez which contains the Royal Palace (Dar al-Makhzen), and is believed to date from the mid-15th century. While the district is no longer home to any significant Jewish population, it still contains a number of monuments and landmarks from the Jewish community's historical heritage in the city. History Background: the Jewish community before the Mellah (9th to 14th centuries) Fez had long hosted the largest and one of the oldest Jewish communities in Morocco, present since the city's foundation by the Idrisids (in the late 8th or early 9th century). They lived in many parts of the city alongside the Muslim population, as evidenced by the fact that Jewish houses were purchased and demolished for the Almoravid expansion of the al-Qarawiyyin Mosque (located at the center of the city), and by the claims of Maimonides' residence in what later became the ...
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Marrakesh
Marrakesh or Marrakech ( or ; ar, مراكش, murrākuš, ; ber, ⵎⵕⵕⴰⴽⵛ, translit=mṛṛakc}) is the fourth largest city in the Kingdom of Morocco. It is one of the four Imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh-Safi region. The city is situated west of the foothills of the Atlas Mountains. Marrakesh is southwest of Tangier, southwest of the Moroccan capital of Rabat, south of Casablanca, and northeast of Agadir. The region has been inhabited by Berber farmers since Neolithic times. The city was founded in 1070 by Emir Abu Bakr ibn Umar as the imperial capital of the Almoravid Empire. The Almoravids established the first major structures in the city and shaped its layout for centuries to come. The red walls of the city, built by Ali ibn Yusuf in 1122–1123, and various buildings constructed in red sandstone afterwards, have given the city the nickname of the "Red City" ( ''Almadinat alhamra) or "Ochre City" (). Marrakesh grew rapidly and e ...
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Marinid Sultanate
The Marinid Sultanate was a Berber Muslim empire from the mid-13th to the 15th century which controlled present-day Morocco and, intermittently, other parts of North Africa (Algeria and Tunisia) and of the southern Iberian Peninsula (Spain) around Gibraltar. It was named after the Banu Marin (, Berber: ''Ayt Mrin''), a Zenata Berber tribe. The sultanate was ruled by the Marinid dynasty ( ar, المرينيون ), founded by Abd al-Haqq I.C.E. Bosworth, ''The New Islamic Dynasties'', (Columbia University Press, 1996), 41-42. In 1244, after being at their service for several years, the Marinids overthrew the Almohads which had controlled Morocco. At the height of their power in the mid-14th century, during the reigns of Abu al-Hasan and his son Abu Inan, the Marinid dynasty briefly held sway over most of the Maghreb including large parts of modern-day Algeria and Tunisia. The Marinids supported the Emirate of Granada in al-Andalus in the 13th and 14th centuries and made a ...
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Fes Jdid
Fes Jdid or Fes el-Jdid () is one of the three parts of Fez, Morocco. It was founded by the Marinids in 1276 as an extension of Fes el Bali (the old city or ''medina'') and as a royal citadel and capital. It is occupied in large part by the historic Royal Palace (the ''Dar al-Makhzen''), which was once the center of government in Morocco and which is still used on occasion by the King of Morocco today. The district also contains the historic Mellah (Jewish quarter) of the city. Since 1981 it has been classified, along with Fes el-Bali, as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. History Marinid period (13th–15th centuries) Fes el-Jdid was founded in 1276 by the Marinid Sultanate, Marinid sultan Abu Yusuf Yaqub ibn Abd al-Haqq, Abu Yusuf Ya'qub. It was to serve as the new royal citadel and center of government for Morocco under Marinid rule, including a Royal Palace (Dar al-Makhzen), military barracks, and residential neighbourhoods. Before then, the main center of power and govern ...
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Fes Mellah IMG 2012
Fez or Fes (; ar, فاس, fās; zgh, ⴼⵉⵣⴰⵣ, fizaz; french: Fès) is a city in northern inland Morocco and the capital of the Fès-Meknès administrative region. It is the second largest city in Morocco, with a population of 1.11 million according to the 2014 census. Located to the north west of the Atlas Mountains, Fez is linked to several important cities of different regions; it is from Tangier to the northwest, from Casablanca, from Rabat to the west, and from Marrakesh to the southwest. It is surrounded by hills and the old city is centered around the Fez River (''Oued Fes'') flowing from west to east. Fez was founded under Idrisid rule during the 8th-9th centuries CE. It initially consisted of two autonomous and competing settlements. Successive waves of mainly Arab immigrants from Ifriqiya ( Tunisia) and al-Andalus ( Spain/ Portugal) in the early 9th century gave the nascent city its Arab character. After the downfall of the Idrisid dynasty, other e ...
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Garrison
A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a military base or fortified military headquarters. A garrison is usually in a city, town, fort, castle, ship, or similar site. "Garrison town" is a common expression for any town that has a military base nearby. "Garrison towns" ( ar, أمصار, amsar) were used during the Arab Islamic conquests of Middle Eastern lands by Arab-Muslim armies to increase their dominance over indigenous populations. In order to occupy non-Arab, non-Islamic areas, nomadic Arab tribesmen were taken from the desert by the ruling Arab elite, conscripted into Islamic armies, and settled into garrison towns as well as given a share in the spoils of war. The primary utility of the Arab-Islamic garrisons was to control the indigenous non-Arab peoples of these co ...
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Mercenary
A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rather than for political interests. Beginning in the 20th century, mercenaries have increasingly come to be seen as less entitled to protections by rules of war than non-mercenaries. The Geneva Conventions declare that mercenaries are not recognized as legitimate combatants and do not have to be granted the same legal protections as captured service personnel of the armed forces. In practice, whether or not a person is a mercenary may be a matter of degree, as financial and political interests may overlap. Modern mercenary organizations are generally referred to as private military companies or PMCs. Laws of war Protocol Additional GC 1977 (APGC77) is ...
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Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It is a unitary republic that consists of 14 governorates (subdivisions), and is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east and southeast, Jordan to the south, and Israel and Lebanon to the southwest. Cyprus lies to the west across the Mediterranean Sea. A country of fertile plains, high mountains, and deserts, Syria is home to diverse ethnic and religious groups, including the majority Syrian Arabs, Kurds, Turkmens, Assyrians, Armenians, Circassians, Albanians, and Greeks. Religious groups include Muslims, Christians, Alawites, Druze, and Yazidis. The capital and largest city of Syria is Damascus. Arabs are the largest ethnic group, ...
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Archery
Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In modern times, it is mainly a competitive sport and recreational activity. A person who practices archery is typically called an archer, bowman, or toxophilite. History Origins and ancient archery The oldest known evidence of the bow and arrow comes from South African sites such as Sibudu Cave, where the remains of bone and stone arrowheads have been found dating approximately 72,000 to 60,000 years ago.Backwell L, d'Errico F, Wadley L.(2008). Middle Stone Age bone tools from the Howiesons Poort layers, Sibudu Cave, South Africa. Journal of Archaeological Science, 35:1566–1580. Backwell L, Bradfield J, Carlson KJ, Jashashvili T, Wadley L, d'Errico F.(2018). The antiquity of bow-and-arrow technology: evidence from Middle Stone Age laye ...
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Zaouia Moulay Idriss II
The Zawiya of Moulay Idris II is a '' zawiya'' (an Islamic shrine and religious complex, also spelled ''zaouia'') in Fez, Morocco. It contains the tomb of Idris II (or Moulay Idris II when including his sharifian title), who ruled Morocco from 807 to 828 and is considered the main founder of the city of Fez."Fes".'' Encyclopædia Britannica''. 2007. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. 3 Mar. 2007 It is located in the heart of Fes el-Bali, the UNESCO-listed old medina of Fez, and is considered one of the holiest shrines in Morocco. The current building experienced a major reconstruction under Moulay Ismail in the early 18th century which gave the sanctuary its overall current form, including the minaret and the mausoleum chamber with its large pyramidal roof. Background: Moulay Idris II Idris II, born in 791, was the son and successor of Idris I. Idris I was a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad who fled from Abbasid-controlled territory after the Battle of Fakh because he ...
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False Etymology
A false etymology (fake etymology, popular etymology, etymythology, pseudo-etymology, or par(a)etymology) is a popular but false belief about the origin or derivation of a specific word. It is sometimes called a folk etymology, but this is also a technical term in linguistics. Such etymologies often have the feel of urban legends and can be more colorful and fanciful than the typical etymologies found in dictionaries, often involving stories of unusual practices in particular subcultures (e.g. Oxford students from non-noble families being supposedly a forced to write ''sine nobilitate'' by their name, soon abbreviated to ''s.nob.'', hence the word '' snob''). Many recent examples are " backronyms" (acronyms made up to explain a term), such as ''posh'' for "port outward, starboard homeward". Source and influence Erroneous etymologies can exist for many reasons. Some are reasonable interpretations of the evidence that happen to be false. For a given word there may often have bee ...
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