Tinmel (

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 ...

: Tin Mel or Tin Mal, ) is a small mountain village in the High Atlas 100 km from Marrakesh,

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

. Tinmel was the cradle of the Berber Almohad empire, from where the Almohads started their

military campaign A military campaign is large-scale long-duration significant military strategy plan incorporating a series of interrelated military operations or battles forming a distinct part of a larger conflict often called a war. The term derives from th ...

s against the Almoravids in the early 12th century.

History

With the seizure of Marrakesh in 1147, Tinmel became the spiritual capital and the artistic centre of the Almohad Caliphate. The village is home to the tombs of the Almohad rulers. In Tinmel, the Almohad dirham, symbol of its economic prosperity, was struck.

Tinmal Mosque

The Tinmal Mosque is a mosque located in the High Atlas mountains of North Africa. It was built in 1156 to commemorate the founder of the Almohad dynasty, Mohamed Ibn Tumart. The edifice is one of the two mosques in

open to non-Muslims, the other being the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca. The prototype for the Tinmal mosque was the Great Mosque of Taza, also built by

Abd al-Mu'min Abd al-Mu'min (c. 1094–1163) (; full name: ʿAbd al-Muʾmin ibn ʿAlī ibn ʿAlwī ibn Yaʿlā al-Kūmī Abū Muḥammad) was a prominent member of the Almohad movement. Although the Almohad movement itself was founded by Ibn Tumart, Abd al-Mu' ...

. The Koutoubia Mosque in

Marrakech Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...

was in its turn modelled on it. On 8 September 2023 a powerful earthquake crumbled the mosque’s intricate domes and graceful arches. A team of

archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

s, historians and engineers had nearly finished months of work restoring the mosque set deep in the mountains of Morocco.

World Heritage Status

The Tinmel mosque was added to the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Tentative List on 1 July 1995 in the Cultural category.Mosquée de Tinmel - UNESCO World Heritage Centre
/ref>

References

Sources

External links

*MWN

*Front of the mosqu

{{Authority control Almohad Caliphate Berber populated places Berber words and phrases Mountain villages in Morocco Populated places in Al Haouz Province Former capitals of Morocco