Djouab is a town and

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

Médéa Province Médéa ( ar, ولاية المدية) is a province (''wilaya'') of Algeria. The capital is Médéa. Administrative divisions The province is divided into 19 districts (''daïras''), which are further divided into 64 ''communes'' or municipali ...

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , religi ...

. According to the 1998 census it has a population of 16,751. Djouab is located at 36°08′00″ n., 3°26′00″ e. Djouab is a commune in the wilaya of

Médéa Médéa ( ber, Lemdiyyet, ar, المدية ''al-Madiya''), population 123,535 (1998 census) is the capital city of Médéa Province, Algeria. It is located roughly 68 km south of Algiers. The present-day city is situated on the site ...

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , religi ...

. It was sometimes called Sour-Djouab, the "rampart of the Djouabs".

History

The

Rapidum Rapidum was a Roman settlement and fort located in Mauretania Caesariensis, nearly 100 km south of Icosium (Algiers). History The Romans built a fort in what is now Sour Djouab (south of present-day Algiers) during the first century of ...

military command had a fixed task if one took into account the urban framework of the town of Rapidum, with four

bastion A bastion or bulwark is a structure projecting outward from the curtain wall of a fortification, most commonly angular in shape and positioned at the corners of the fort. The fully developed bastion consists of two faces and two flanks, with fi ...

s, a

barrack Barracks are usually a group of long buildings built to house military personnel or laborers. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word "barraca" ("soldier's tent"), but today barracks are u ...

s, cellars, a large armory and well-aligned houses. Rapidum was a large agglomeration; Composed of families of soldiers and could have a population, estimated at more than 8 500 inhabitants. The town of Rapidum is erected over a total area of 375 ha, an army of four centurions under the orders of a Præfectus castris; And a Præfectus statorum, in charge of organizing the city police. The three military posts were constructed on the basis of a geographical study to allow for a rapid connection, taking into account the location of each post in relation to the other, designed to defend Auzia against repeated attacks by the Bavars (a Berber tribe, Also known as the Quinquagesimes or the five federated tribes from the regions of Djurdjura, the Babors and the Bibans. The

Ruins Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...

are protected by the APC which had erected a fence in 1996 to preserve the stones (rectangular form) were ransacked and stolen for use in constructions. Djouab is the ancient Roman city of Rapidum, in the province of

Mauretania Caesarean Mauretania (; ) is the Latin name for a region in the ancient Maghreb. It stretched from central present-day Algeria westwards to the Atlantic, covering northern present-day Morocco, and southward to the Atlas Mountains. Its native inhabit ...

, identified by inscriptions which indicate its name and rank of municipality. The site was recognized by the archaeologist

Adrien Berbugger Adrien is a given name and surname, and the French spelling for the name Adrian. It is also the masculine form of the feminine name Adrienne. It may refer to: People Given name * Adrien Auzout (1622–1691), French astronomer * Adrien Baillet ( ...

in 1845, and

Henri Choisnet Henri is an Estonian, Finnish, French, German and Luxembourgish form of the masculine given name Henry. People with this given name ; French noblemen :'' See the ' List of rulers named Henry' for Kings of France named Henri.'' * Henri I de Mo ...

found in 1882 the

gate A gate or gateway is a point of entry to or from a space enclosed by walls. The word derived from old Norse "gat" meaning road or path; But other terms include '' yett and port''. The concept originally referred to the gap or hole in the wal ...

s of the city. Seston William. Le secteur de Rapidum sur le Limes de Mauritanie césarienne après les fouilles de 1927. In: Mélanges d'archéologie et d'histoire T. 45, 1928. pp. 150-183. [archive]
File:Djouab مدخل بلدية جواب - panoramio.jpg, Djouab مدخل بلدية جواب - panorama. File:Djouab جواب.jpg , Djouab جواب. File:Djouab بلدية جواب - panoramio.jpg, Djouab بلدية جواب - panorama

References

Communes of Médéa Province {{MédéaDZ-geo-stub