Chlef () is the capital of Chlef Province,

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 ...

. Located in the north of Algeria, west of the capital,

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

, it was founded in 1843, as Orléansville, on the ruins of Roman ''Castellum Tingitanum''. In 1962, it was renamed al-Asnam, but after the devastating earthquake on October 10, 1980, it has borne its present name, Chlef, which is derived from the name of the

Chelif River Chelif River () (also spelled Chéliff, or Sheliff) is a river in Algeria, the longest in the country. It rises in the Saharan Atlas near the city of Aflou, flows through the Tell Atlas and empties into the Mediterranean Sea north of the cit ...

, the longest river in Algeria. It is home to the soccer club ASO Chlef, the Hassiba Ben Bouali university, and the ruins of the

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica (Greek Basiliké) was a large public building with multiple functions that was typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek Eas ...

of Reparatus, who was bishop of Castellum Tingitanum from 465 to 475. A corner of the flooring of the basilica contained a mosaic

labyrinth In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth () is an elaborate, confusing structure designed and built by the legendary artificer Daedalus for King Minos of Crete at Knossos. Its function was to hold the Minotaur, the monster eventually killed by the h ...

, the oldest known example of Christian use of this motif.

History

Ancient Castellum Tingitii

The Roman citadel, Castellum Tingitanum, was a city of the Roman province of

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 ...

. The site became known as Al-Asnam (Arabic for "sculptures") during the

Umayyad Caliphate The Umayyad Caliphate or Umayyad Empire (, ; ) was the second caliphate established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the Rashidun caliphs, was also a member o ...

period. It covered an area of and contained many statues.

Former bishopric

A Christian

dating back to the reign of the Emperor Constantine was discovered here, with an elaborate mosaic. This is the oldest church to be found in Africa. The Bishop Felix (Italian: Felice), was among the Catholic prelates summoned to the

Council of Carthage (484) 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 ...

by the Arian Vandal 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 ...

before he was

exile Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...

d. No other details are known about the ancient bishopric. It was revived nominally as a Roman 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 ...

in 1965, and was filled regularly since.

Titular bishops

* Agustín Rodríguez (1965.12.07 – 1968.12.25) * Antonino Nepomuceno, Oblate O.M.I. (1969.07.11 – 1997.02.14) * Ireneusz Józef Pękalski,

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 the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Łódź (Poland) (1999.12.11 – present)

Al-Asnam and the Ouled Kosseir

Chellif Valley was from the 15th century the territory of the

Bedouin The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu ( ; , singular ) are pastorally nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia (Iraq). The Bedouin originated in the Sy ...

Ouled Kosseir, who settled there under the leadership of Hamou El Kosseir (H'ammü'l-Quççayri) having displaced the indigenous Berber tribes. This tribe is a tribal Djouadi (military nobility). If they even call themselves descendants of the Beni Makhzum (Either Khaled Ibn El Walid). Some historians believe that it belongs to the Confederation of Ibn Suwayd Zoghba of Beni Hillal and therefore cousins of Mehal, other military nobility. Documents of the French army and other historians speak of "most powerful and wealthy tribes' in the Chellif Valley in 1830, with more than 500,000 hectares of very fertile land and more than 19,000 soldiers. The Ouled Kosseir participated in the moubayâa of the Emir Abdelkader, and their territory was granted under the Treaty of Tafna. After the defeat of the Emir and his allies, their lands were in large part confiscated and distributed among settlers and other indigenous people, including Medjadja, marabouts who supported the French army on arrival. The French Administration of Napoleon III, under the "Arab kingdom", tried to honour the leaders of the Ouled Kosseir with Djouadi. As such, some were decorated with the Legion of Honour (or Med Foudad Kharoubi Ben Ben Bia). The last Kaid (tribal leader) after the arrival of the French army was Foudad Ben Adda, who served during 1867 on the city council of the municipality of Orleansville. He was also a member of the General Council of Algiers until his death in 1869.

Orléansville

In 1843 Maréchal Bugeaud founded the city of Orléansville at the modern site of Chlef. The town was located at the confluence of the Chlef River and the Tsighaout River. The town developed due to the harsh climate, one of the hottest in northern Algeria. The 6.7 Chlef earthquake shook northern

on 9 September 1954 with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (''Extreme''). At least 1,243 people were killed and 5,000 were injured. Chlef centre

At that time the town had a population of 44,400 inhabitants. It was the home of the Algerian Division of the artistic group Lettrist International (LI), some of whom died in the earthquake. Mohamed Dahou survived and went on to become involved in the

Situationist International The Situationist International (SI) was an international organization of social revolutionaries made up of avant-garde artists, intellectuals, and political theorists. It was prominent in Europe from its formation in 1957 to its dissolution ...

. The LI described the town as "the most

lettrist Lettrism is a French avant-garde movement, established in Paris in the mid-1940s by Romanian immigrant Isidore Isou. In a body of work totaling hundreds of volumes, Isou and the Lettrists have applied their theories to all areas of art and culture ...

city in the world".

Population

In the 2018 census the province of Chlef had just over 1 million inhabitants, of which 178,616 were living in the provincial capital Chlef.

Geography

Chlef lies in a valley at an elevation of between two ranges of hills to the north and west. The city is surrounded by farmland; there are scattered trees both in the valley and on the hills.

Climate

Chlef has a

hot semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of sem ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''BSh'') bordering a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

(''Csa''), with very hot, dry summers and mild, moist winters.

Transportation

Chlef has a station on the Algiers-Oran railway line. The city is served by Chlef International Airport.

References

External links

*
A website about colonial Chlef

{{Authority control Communes of Chlef Province Cities in Algeria Province seats of Algeria Populated places established in 1843 Chlef Province