Rougga is a town in southern

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

located in Sfax Governorate, on the

Oued er Rougga The Oued er Rougga is a wadi in southern Tunisia that flows into Sabkhat al Jamm in the Saharan region of Tunisia. The river is at Latitude: 35°9'29.58", Longitude: 10°46'6.2" and 34 meters above sea level.wadi Wadi ( ; ) is a river valley or a wet (ephemerality, ephemeral) Stream bed, riverbed that contains water only when heavy rain occurs. Wadis are located on gently sloping, nearly flat parts of deserts; commonly they begin on the distal portion ...

. Rougga is the

Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...

name of the town, which is known as Raqqa in

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

. The town is located on the site of the Ancient

Roman Africa Roman Africa or Roman North Africa is the culture of Roman Africans that developed from 146 BC, when the Roman Republic defeated Carthage and the Punic Wars ended, with subsequent institution of Roman Empire, Roman Imperial government, through th ...

n city and former bishopric Bararus, which remains a Latin Catholic

titular see A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbi ...

History

A veteran of this city is mentioned in a list of soldiers from Nicopolis, a Roman garrison suburb of

Alexandria, Egypt Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

, recruited in Africa province. The city was devastated by an earthquake in 365 after which the forum appears to have been abandoned. The 6th century was a time of great affluence for the town, with a golden solidi coin hoard testifying to this wealth. The town appears on the Roman

Tabula Peutingeriana ' (Latin Language, Latin for 'The Peutinger Map'), also known as Peutinger's Tabula, Peutinger tablesJames Strong (theologian) , James Strong and John McClintock (theologian) , John McClintock (1880)"Eleutheropolis" In: ''The Cyclopedia of Bibli ...

road map. By the 7th century there is evidence of fortified housing, though

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...

remains indicate a continuance of occupation to the

10th century The 10th century was the period from 901 (represented by the Roman numerals CMI) through 1000 (M) in accordance with the Julian calendar, and the last century of the 1st millennium. In China, the Song dynasty was established, with most of C ...

, well after the

Muslim conquest of the Maghreb The conquest of the Maghreb by the Rashidun and Umayyad Caliphates commenced in 647 and concluded in 709, when the Byzantine Empire lost its last remaining strongholds to Caliph Al-Walid I. The North African campaigns were part of the century ...

. The Roman town was sacked by

Ibn Sa'd Abū ‘Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Sa‘d ibn Manī‘ al-Baṣrī al-Hāshimī or simply Ibn Sa'd () and nicknamed ''Scribe of Waqidi'' (''Katib al-Waqidi''), was a scholar and Arabian biographer. Ibn Sa'd was born in 784/785 CE (168 AH) and di ...

in 647 AD. A

population moved in following the

Islamic conquest The Muslim conquests, Muslim invasions, Islamic conquests, including Arab conquests, Arab Islamic conquests, also Iranian Muslim conquests, Turkic Muslim conquests etc. *Early Muslim conquests ** Ridda Wars **Muslim conquest of Persia *** Muslim co ...

and used the Roman building materials for other settlements.

Ecclesiastical history

The city was also the

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but may also refer to concentrations of power in a wider sense (i.e " seat (legal entity)"). See disambiguation. Types of seat The ...

of an ancient

bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

, like many

suffragan A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations. In the Catholic Church, a suffragan bishop leads a diocese within an ecclesiastical province other than the principal diocese, the metropolitan archdiocese; the diocese led ...

of the Metropolitan of

Carthage Carthage was an ancient city in Northern Africa, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classic ...

, in the papal sway, and like most also destined to fade, presumably at the advent of Islam. Its only historically documented bishop, ''Iulianus Vararitanus'' (or Bararitanus), was found on the lists of bishops in Byzacena province having attended in 484 the

Council of Carthage The Councils of Carthage were church synods held during the 3rd, 4th, and 5th centuries in the city of Carthage in Africa. The most important of these are described below. Synod of 251 In May 251 a synod, assembled under the presidency of Cyprian ...

called by

Arian Arianism (, ) is a Christological doctrine which rejects the traditional notion of the Trinity and considers Jesus to be a creation of God, and therefore distinct from God. It is named after its major proponent, Arius (). It is considered he ...

king

Huneric Huneric, Hunneric or Honeric (died December 23, 484) was King of the (North African) Vandal Kingdom (477–484) and the oldest son of Gaiseric. He abandoned the imperial politics of his father and concentrated mainly on internal affairs. He was ma ...

of the

Vandal Kingdom The Vandal Kingdom () or Kingdom of the Vandals and Alans () was a confederation of Vandals and Alans, which was a barbarian kingdoms, barbarian kingdom established under Gaiseric, a Vandals, Vandalic warlord. It ruled parts of North Africa and th ...

, after which most Catholic bishops (including him?) were exiles, unlike their schismatic

Donatist Donatism was a schism from the Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Carthage from the fourth to the sixth centuries. Donatists argued that Christian clergy must be faultless for their ministry to be effective and their prayers and sacraments to ...

colleagues.

Titular see

The diocese was nominally restored in 1933 as

titular bishopric A titular see in various churches is an episcopal see of a former diocese that no longer functions, sometimes called a "dead diocese". The ordinary or hierarch of such a see may be styled a "titular metropolitan" (highest rank), "titular archbish ...

of (Latin) / Bararo (Curiate Italian) / (Latin adjective). It was vacant since decades, having had the following incumbents, so far of the fitting Episcopal (lowest) rank: * Johannes Baptist Filzer (1927.02.18 – death 1962.07.13) as

Auxiliary Bishop An auxiliary bishop is a bishop assigned to assist the diocesan bishop in meeting the pastoral and administrative needs of the diocese. Auxiliary bishops can also be titular bishops of sees that no longer exist as territorial jurisdictions. ...

of Archdiocese of Salzburg (

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

) (1927.02.18 – 1962.07.13) * Bernardo José Bueno Miele (1962.11.22 – 1967.01.25) as Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Campinas (

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

) (1962.11.22 – 1967.01.25); next

Titular Archbishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of Uppenna (1967.01.25 – 1972.07.12) as Coadjutor Archbishop of

Ribeirão Preto Ribeirão Preto (Portuguese pronunciation: Help:IPA/Portuguese, �ibejˈɾɐ̃w ˈpɾetu is a city and a metropolitan area located in the northeastern region of São Paulo (state), São Paulo state, Brazil. Ribeirão Preto is the eighth-la ...

(Brazil) (1967.01.25 – 1972.07.12), succeeding as Metropolitan Archbishop of Ribeirão Preto (1972.07.12 – death 1981.12.22) * Damián Nicolau Roig, Third Order Regular Franciscans (T.O.R.) (born Spain) (1967.04.08 – resigned 1977.11.25) while first-ever Bishop-Prelate of Territorial Prelature of Huamachuco (

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

) (1963.10.23 – retired 1981.09.13), died 1998 * Michael Augustine (1978.01.30 – 1981.06.19) as Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Madras and Mylapore (India) (1978.01.30 – 1981.06.19); next Bishop of

Vellore Vellore ( ), also spelled Velur, is a sprawling city and the administrative headquarters of Vellore district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Palar River and surrounded by the Javadi Hills in the northeastern ...

(India) (1981.06.19 – 1992.02.18), Metropolitan Archbishop of Pondicherry and Cuddalore (India) (1992.02.18 – retired 2004.06.10) * Nelson Antonio Martínez Rust (1982.01.08 – 1992.02.29) as Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Valencia in Venezuela (

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

) (1982.01.08 – 1992.02.29); later Bishop of San Felipe (Venezuela) (1992.02.29 – retired 2016.03.11) * Zef Simoni (1992.12.25 – death 2009.02.21), first as Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Shkodrë (

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

) (1992.12.25 – retired 2004.01.20), then as emeritus * Luis Rafael Zarama (born Colombia) (2009.07.27 – 2017.07.05) as Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Atlanta (Georgia, USA) (2009.07.27 – 2017.07.05); later Bishop of

Raleigh Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...

(USA) (2017.07.05 – ...).

Remains

Rougga is the site of Henchir-Ronga, which comprises numerous ruins of the

Roman era In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of Rome, founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Em ...

. including the

Bararus Amphitheatre Rougga is a town in southern Tunisia located in Sfax Governorate, on the Oued er Rougga wadi. Rougga is the Berber languages, Berber name of the town, which is known as Raqqa in Arabic. The town is located on the site of the Ancient Africa (Roman p ...

. The layout of the Roman town "is organized around a forum dominated by two

temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

s.... also two large semi circular Cisterns, an

amphitheater An amphitheatre ( U.S. English: amphitheater) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ('), meaning "place for vie ...

set in an abandoned quarry, a

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communi ...

with extensive outbuildings, and a paved domus ousewith remarkable mosaics." The amphitheater is in modern Tunisia located at .

Theater

The theater is located on the opposite bank of the ''

wadi Wadi ( ; ) is a river valley or a wet (ephemerality, ephemeral) Stream bed, riverbed that contains water only when heavy rain occurs. Wadis are located on gently sloping, nearly flat parts of deserts; commonly they begin on the distal portion ...

'' from Bararus and is roughly oval in shape. The theater of Bararus is in bad condition, though a stage of 29½ by 30 meters is still discernible. The overall size of the arena was 98 by 73.5 meters with seating on a radial barrel vaulting. The Arena walls were only 3 meters high and lacked a parapet. It was estimated that the arena could seat 12,100 spectators. The arena may have been unfinished.

Cistern

The underground cisterns are very large and were excavated by the French in the 20th century.

Inscriptions

Several inscriptions were found in the town, including one recording that the

curator A curator (from , meaning 'to take care') is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the particular ins ...

''Republicae'' performed duties in the three cities of Thysdrus, Thaenae and Bararus.Guery R. and P. Trousset, Bararus
p. 1338-1340