El Kef ( '), also known as ''Le Kef'', is a city in northwestern

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 ...

. It serves as the capital of the Kef Governorate. El Kef is situated to the west of

Tunis Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...

and some east of the border between Algeria and Tunisia. It has a population of (2004 census). The old town is built on the cliff face of the table-top Jebel Dyr mountain. El Kef was the provisional capital of Tunisia during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. It was the command centre of the Front de Libération Nationale during the

Algerian War of Independence The Algerian War (also known as the Algerian Revolution or the Algerian War of Independence) ''; '' (and sometimes in Algeria as the ''War of 1 November'') was an armed conflict between France and the Algerian National Liberation Front (Algeri ...

against the French in the 1950s. The Sidi Bou Makhlouf Mausoleum entombs the patron saint of the city.

Geography

The highest-elevated city of Tunisia, at , its metropolitan

area Area is the measure of a region's size on a surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while '' surface area'' refers to the area of an open surface or the boundary of a three-di ...

reaches of which lie within the interior of the old walled Medina quarter. The municipality of El Kef is shared between two national delegates, East Kef and West Kef, which correspond to the two municipal boroughs.

History

Etymology

First known by the name of Sicca during the Carthaginian era, then later Sicca Veneria during the rise of Roman domination, the city has carried numerous names throughout its history: Colonia Julia Cirta, Cirta Nova, Sikka Beneria, Shaqbanariya and finally El Kef since the 16th century.

Ancient times

El Kef has since ancient times been the principal city of the High-Tell Mountains and of the Tunisian northwest of which it constituted, until recently, the political center, the most important religious center, and the dominant stronghold. The Roman colony of Sicca Veneria appears from the character of its worship of

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is often called Earth's "twin" or "sister" planet for having almost the same size and mass, and the closest orbit to Earth's. While both are rocky planets, Venus has an atmosphere much thicker ...

to have been a

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 ...

n settlement. It was afterwards a

Numidia Numidia was the ancient kingdom of the Numidians in northwest Africa, initially comprising the territory that now makes up Algeria, but later expanding across what is today known as Tunisia and Libya. The polity was originally divided between ...

n stronghold, and under the Caesars became a fashionable residential city and one of the chief centres of Christianity in North Africa. The Christian apologist Arnobius the Elder lived here. The Roman remains include fragments of a large

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 ...

dedicated to

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

, and of the baths. The ancient

cistern A cistern (; , ; ) is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. To prevent leakage, the interior of the cistern is often lined with hydraulic plaster. Cisterns are disti ...

s remain. There are ruins of a Christian

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 ...

, the

apse In architecture, an apse (: apses; from Latin , 'arch, vault'; from Ancient Greek , , 'arch'; sometimes written apsis; : apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical Vault (architecture), vault or semi-dome, also known as an ' ...

being intact and the

narthex The narthex is an architectural element typical of Early Christian art and architecture, early Christian and Byzantine architecture, Byzantine basilicas and Church architecture, churches consisting of the entrance or Vestibule (architecture), ve ...

serving as a church. Many stones with Roman inscriptions are built into the walls of houses. In the early 5th century

Apiarius of Sicca Apiarius of Sicca was an African Christian priest convicted by the Bishops of Africa (Roman province), Africa of numerous unspecified crimes in the early 5th century AD, and excommunicated by Bishop Urbanus of Sicca Veneria (episcopal see), Sicca V ...

was a priest here, and instigated a dispute between the churches of Carthage and Rome concerning the jurisdiction of the Bishops of Africa when he appealed to the church of Rome against his excommunication by the church of Carthage. Around 439, invading

Vandals The Vandals were a Germanic people who were first reported in the written records as inhabitants of what is now Poland, during the period of the Roman Empire. Much later, in the fifth century, a group of Vandals led by kings established Vand ...

conquered the African Romans near the coast. Eventually, El Kef became part of a Berber Kingdom.

Umayyad conquest

In 688 AD, the city was raided during the

Umayyad conquest of North Africa 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 of ...

. In the 17th century, a Kasbah of Le Kef was built to house a permanent garrison (''ujaq''); the construction was completed by the addition of fortified ramparts in 1740. This did not however prevent the taking and pillaging of the city by the

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 ...

ns in 1756, nor the occupation by the French military from 1881, following the partial collapse of the Ottoman Empire. On July 8, 1884, the authorities of the new French Protectorate declared El Kef a municipality, one of the first in the country. Hamilton Alexander Rosskeen Gibb, Johannes Hendrik Kramers,

Bernard Lewis Bernard Lewis, (31 May 1916 – 19 May 2018) was a British-American historian specialized in Oriental studies. He was also known as a public intellectual and political commentator. Lewis was the Cleveland E. Dodge Professor Emeritus of Near ...

Charles Pellat Charles Pellat (28 September 1914, in Souk Ahras – 28 October 1992, in Bourg-la-Reine) was a French Algerian academic, historian, translator, and scholar of Oriental studies, specialized in Arab studies and Islamic studies. He was an editor of ...

Joseph Schacht Joseph Franz Schacht (, 15 March 1902 – 1 August 1969) was a British-German professor of Arabic and Islam at Columbia University in New York. He was the leading Western scholar in the areas of Islamic law and hadith studies, whose ''Origins of M ...

, '' The Encyclopaedia of Islam'', volume IV, éd. Brill, Leyde, 1954, p. 403

Contemporary

In 1973, there was a summit meeting here between the Tunisian president

Habib Bourguiba Habib Bourguiba (3 August 19036 April 2000) was a Tunisian politician and statesman who served as the Head of Government of Tunisia, prime minister of the Kingdom of Tunisia from 1956 to 1957, and then as the first president of Tunisia from 1 ...

and the Algerian president

Houari Boumédiène Houari Boumédiène (; born Mohammed ben Brahim Boukharouba; 23 August 1932 – 27 December 1978) was an Algerian military officer and politician who was the list of heads of state of Algeria, second head of state of independent Algeria from 196 ...

. The latter proposed a constitution for a Tunisian-Algerian union which Bourguiba declined in favor of the development of economic cooperation between the two countries.

Climate

The climate is usually unstable, ranging from summer heat waves to winter snow blizzards.

Main sights

El Kef contains a certain number of Islamic religious edifices, in its role as the center of a

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

movement. The Sidi Bou Makhlouf Mausoleum is believed to hold the tomb of the founder of the Aissawa order in Tunisia, Sidi Bou Makhlouf. El-Qadiriyya Mosque is also a significant Sufi mosque, particularly for the Qadiriyya order. A legacy of the old local Jewish community, the synagogue of the Ghriba is the object of veneration by Jews of the region, who come in pilgrimage each year during the week marked by the festival of

Sukkot Sukkot, also known as the Feast of Tabernacles or Feast of Booths, is a Torah-commanded Jewish holiday celebrated for seven days, beginning on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei. It is one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals on which Israelite ...

. In the city is the mausoleum of Ali Tukie, the father of Al-Husayn I ibn Ali at-Turki, founder of the Husainid dynasty which ruled Tunisia from 1705 to 1957. The vestiges, well preserved, of a three-naved Roman

dating from the beginning of the 5th century named Dar El Kous, dedicated to

Saint Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the Jewish Christian#Jerusalem ekklēsia, e ...

, have been discovered. The enormous Jugurtha Tableland mesa is visible from El Kef.

Culture

Museums

The Museum of the Popular Arts and Traditions of El Kef, housed within a museum built in the 18th century, presents collections which retrace the social habits and customs which prevailed before the independence of the country.

Music

The Bou Makhlouf festival is held in July each year. The Saliha Festival is held once every other year. The latter takes its name from the singer Saliha who hails from the region.

Performing arts

It is the seat of the National Center for the Dramatic and Scenic Arts of El Kef. The city also organizes the festival of "24 hours of non-stop theatre".

Cuisine

The cuisine of El Kef has two recipes specific to the region. First, a typical regional bread, ''mjamaa'' or ''khobz el aid'', is prepared at festival times, covered with an egg and decorated with pastry. Second, ''borzgane'' is a type of

couscous Couscous () is a traditional North African dish a quote: “Couscous or seksu (Image 1) in Berber language or kuskus in Arabic is by origin a Numidian (the Berber population of Numidia) dish…” of small steamed granules of rolled semolina ...

lightly sweetened by alternating layers of dry fruits, dates, and lamb meat. The Festival of Mayou, also known as the Festival of Borzgane, brings the traditional Keffish

up to contemporary taste.

Government

The city council is composed of 22 members, including a president, vice president, borough chief, six assistants and thirteen counselors.

Education

Schools, institutes, and faculties include the El Kef Higher Institute of Applied Studies in the Humanities, El Kef Higher Institute of Music and Theatre, El Kef Higher Institute of Information Technology, El Kef Higher Institute of Physical Education, El Kef Graduate School of Agriculture, and El Kef Higher Institute of Nursing Science.

Media

Radio Le Kef, the regional radio service founded November 7, 1991, covers the northwest of the country.

Transportation

The transportation company of El Kef is the only company offering a

public transit Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of wh ...

service by bus. The city is linked with surrounding cities by a network of

taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...

s called '' louage'', and with the capital, Tunis, by a regional railway line passing through Dahmani.

Sports

In sports, the Olympique du Kef, city

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

club founded in 1922 won the 2009-2010 League II Championship. The El Kef Higher Institute of Sport and Physical Education runs the annual Tunisian Women's Soccer Championship.

Sister-city

El Kef has had a sister-city relationship since 1993 with

Bourg-en-Bresse Bourg-en-Bresse (; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Ain department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Located northeast of Lyon, it is the capital of the ancient Provinces of France, province of Bresse (). I ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

, officially sealed in 1999 and 2000 with the signing of an agreement of exchange and friendship.

Media references

In 1855,

John Henry Newman John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890) was an English Catholic theologian, academic, philosopher, historian, writer, and poet. He was previously an Anglican priest and after his conversion became a cardinal. He was an ...

published a novel, '' Callista'', which was set in Sicca Veneria in the 3rd century AD (Roman era).

People

Lactantius Lucius Caecilius Firmianus Lactantius () was an early Christian author who became an advisor to Roman emperor Constantine I, guiding his Christian religious policy in its initial stages of emergence, and a tutor to his son Crispus. His most impo ...

(c. 250-325), early Christian writer, advisor to Roman emperor Constantine. *

Arnobius Arnobius (died c. 330) was an early Christian apologist of Berber origin during the reign of Diocletian (284–305). According to Jerome's ''Chronicle,'' Arnobius, before his conversion, was a distinguished Numidian rhetorician at Sicca Veneri ...

( d. 330), mentioned by

Jerome Jerome (; ; ; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. He is best known ...

as being a teacher in Sicca Veneria. * Caelius Aurelianus, c. 5th century physician and medical writer, he translated works by Soranus from Greek into Latin. * St. Fulgentius of Ruspe was ordered to be scourged here by an

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 ...

priest in 499Butlers "Lives of the Saints"

Gallery

El Kef.jpg Table de Jugurtha 01.JPG El Kasba, le kef.jpg El Kef Kasbah View.jpg Les ruines du kef 1.jpg KEf, the city.jpg Roads of kef by night 10.jpg Roads of kef by night 04.jpg

Notes and references

Sources

*Tahar Ayachi, ''El Kef'', éd. Office national du tourisme tunisien, Tunis, 2007 *Abdelhamid Larguèche ous la dir. de ''Revoir El Kef'', éd. MC-Editions, Carthage, 2005 *Camille Mifort, ''Vivre au Kef. Quand la Tunisie était française'', éd. MC-Editions, Carthage, 2008 *Cornelia Smet, ''Si ma grand-mère était Keffoise'', éd. MC-Editions, Carthage, 2005

External links

Site sur la ville du Kef
* ttp://lexicorient.com/tunisia/kef.htm Lexicorient {{Authority control Cities in Tunisia Communes of Tunisia Roman sites in Tunisia Phoenician cities Populated places established in the 3rd century BC Maghreb