Zarzis, also known as Jarjis ( '), is a coastal commune (municipality) in southeastern

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 ...

, former bishopric and 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 ...

under its ancient name Gergis. To the

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 ...

ns, Romans and

Arabs Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of yea ...

the port was of strategic importance.

Geography

It lies on the coast of the Mediterranean, where the climate is mainly dry and sunny, making it a popular tourist destination mixing the old and the traditional. It has a major port where
park of economic activities
is based. Located at the southern end of the eastern peninsula that bears his name, the ''délégation'' (district) of Zarzis has a very large coastline. There are a variety of landscapes reflecting a great diversity of climatic conditions.

Buildings and structures

* 320-metre-high guyed mast for FM/TV-broadcasting, tallest structure in Tunisia.

History

The city was known in Antiquity as Gergis and located at the western end of the Lesser Syrtis (Gulf of Gabès), not far from the island of Meninx (current Djerba). The town may owe its name and/or origin to the Biblical tribes of

Girgashites Girgashites are one of the tribes who had invaded the land of Canaan as mentioned in Gen. 15:21; Deut. 7:1; Josh. 3:10; Neh. 9:8. The Girgashites are also known as the fifth ethnic group that descended from Canaan (Gen. 10:16; i Chron. 1:14). Alth ...

which, according to ancient Jewish writers, had left the

Canaan CanaanThe current scholarly edition of the Septuagint, Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus Testamentum graece iuxta LXX interprets. 2. ed. / recogn. et emendavit Robert Hanhart. Stuttgart : D ...

at the time of

Joshua Joshua ( ), also known as Yehoshua ( ''Yəhōšuaʿ'', Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yŏhōšuaʿ,'' Literal translation, lit. 'Yahweh is salvation'), Jehoshua, or Josue, functioned as Moses' assistant in the books of Book of Exodus, Exodus and ...

and went to settle in North Africa. According to Stadiasme, it had a

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

, where stood the ruins and a

citadel A citadel is the most fortified area of a town or city. It may be a castle, fortress, or fortified center. The term is a diminutive of ''city'', meaning "little city", because it is a smaller part of the city of which it is the defensive core. ...

modern still bearing the old name albeit now pronounced ''Zarzis'', and a (navy) port. Gergis was important enough in the

Roman province The Roman provinces (, pl. ) were the administrative regions of Ancient Rome outside Roman Italy that were controlled by the Romans under the Roman Republic and later the Roman Empire. Each province was ruled by a Roman appointed as Roman g ...

Tripolitania Tripolitania (), historically known as the Tripoli region, is a historic region and former province of Libya. The region had been settled since antiquity, first coming to prominence as part of the Carthaginian empire. Following the defeat ...

(in the papal sway) to become a

suffragan bishopric 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 by ...

, which was to fade, presumably at the seventh century advent of Islam. Its ecclesiastical history is confused, due to confusion in consulting the Latin sources with the near-homonymous diocese Girba (modern Djerba).

Titular see

The diocese was nominally restored in 1933 as a Latin Catholic

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 Gergis (Latin) / Gergi (Curiate Italian) / Gergitan(us) (Latin adjective). It has had the following incumbents, so far of the fitting Episcopal (lowest) rank : * John van Sambeek,

White Fathers The White Fathers (), officially known as the Missionaries of Africa (), and abbreviated MAfr, are a Roman Catholic society of apostolic life of pontifical right (for men). They were founded in 1868 by Charles-Martial Allemand-Lavigerie, who w ...

(M. Afr.) (1936.11.19 – 1953.03.25) * Otàvio Barbosa Aguiar (1954.11.06 – 1956.02.24) * Luis Aníbal Rodríguez Pardo (1956.07.28 – 1958.05.22) 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 Diocese of Cochabamba (Bolivia) (1956.07.28 – 1958.05.22); previously Titular Bishop of

Thennesus Thennesus was a town in the Roman province of Augustamnica Prima. It was on the Tanitic branch of the Nile. It is today called Tell-Tenis, Tell-Tannis or Qôm-Tannis, at the extremity of an island in Lake Menzaleh, near the Suez Canal. There are ...

(1952.06.06 – 1953.06.17) & Auxiliary Bishop of Diocese of Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Bolivia) (1952.06.06 – 1953.06.17), then Bishop of Oruro (Bolivia) (1953.06.17 – 1956.07.28); later last suffragan Bishop of Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Bolivia) (1958.05.22 – 1975.07.30), Military Vicar of

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

(Bolivia) (1961.07.26 – 1975.07.30), promoted first Metropolitan Archbishop of Santa Cruz de la Sierra (1975.07.30 – 1991.02.06), also President of Episcopal Conference of Bolivia (1980 – 1985) * Luigi Oldani (1961.10.31 – 1976.08.05) * Antonio María Rouco Varela (1976.09.17 – 1984.05.09) as Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela (Galicia, Spain) (1976.09.17 – 1984.05.09) and as

Apostolic Administrator An apostolic administration in the Catholic Church is administrated by a prelate appointed by the pope to serve as the ordinary for a specific area. Either the area is not yet a diocese (a stable 'pre-diocesan', usually missionary apostolic admi ...

of Santiago de Compostela (1983.06.11 – 1984.05.09); next succeeded as Metropolitan Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela (1984.05.09 – 1994.07.28), Metropolitan Archbishop of

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

(Spain) (1994.07.28 – retired 2014.08.28), created

Cardinal-Priest A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. ...

of S. Lorenzo in Damaso (1998.02.21 998.10.11– ...), President of Episcopal Conference of Spain (1999.03.02 – 2005.03.08 & 2008.03.04 – 2014.03.12), Member of Council of Cardinals for the Study of Organisational and Economic Problems of the Apostolic See (2004.12.16 – 2014.02.24) * Patricio Infante Alfonso (1984.08.07 – 1990.12.12) as Auxiliary Bishop of Archdiocese of Santiago de Chile (

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

) (1984.08.07 – 1990.12.12); later Metropolitan Archbishop of

Antofagasta Antofagasta () is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2015 census, the city has a population of 402,669. Once claimed by Bolivia follo ...

(Chile) (1990.12.12 – 2004.11.26) * Jurij Bizjak (2000.05.13 – 2012.05.26) as Auxiliary Bishop of Diocese of Koper (

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

) (2000.05.13 – 2012.05.26); next succeeded as Bishop of Koper (2012.05.26 – ...) :BIOs to ELABORATE *

Sérgio de Deus Borges Bishop Sérgio de Deus Borges (born 4 September 1966) is a Brazilian Roman Catholic prelate, who served as an Auxiliary bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of São Paulo and the Titular Bishop of Zarzis, Gergis since 27 June 2012 and was an ...

(2012.06.27 – ...),

of Archdiocese of São Paulo (Brazil)

Economy

Economic activity of Zarzis is mainly based on

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

, fishing and agriculture; in industry, the food sector dominates with 55 of 89 firms. The

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'' ("European olive"), is a species of Subtropics, subtropical evergreen tree in the Family (biology), family Oleaceae. Originating in Anatolia, Asia Minor, it is abundant throughout the Mediterranean ...

occupies a special place in Zarzis . Production of the campaign 1999 - 2000 reached tons olives, equivalent to tons of

olive oil Olive oil is a vegetable oil obtained by pressing whole olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea'', a traditional Tree fruit, tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin) and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking for frying foods, as a cond ...

. This production is processed through the 57 mills of the delegation and provides more than direct jobs. In 2011, the city is the scene of stowaway to Europe. "But why do they still leave Tunisia? "Time'' this'', TSR, 23 June 2011 The local economy is diverse—agriculture, mainly olives, oil and tourism.

People from Zarzis

Abid Briki Abid Briki (born 20 June 1957; ''Arabic'': عبيد البريكي) is a Tunisian trade unionist and politician. He served as Minister of Civil Service, Governance and the Fight against Corruption in the Chahed Cabinet. Early life Briki was bor ...

(born 1957), trade unionist and politician

Gallery

Zarzis May 07.JPG ResidenceSoltanaZarzis.JPG Tunesien Zarzis 1 retouched.jpg Ibarostar Safira Palms - panoramio.jpg Zarzis2007 img 5867.jpg Zarzis - panoramio.jpg Chatt Sonia.jpg Blue door Chatt Amira.jpg Chatt Amira.jpg Chatt Amira Souihel Zarzis.jpg Chatt Amira, Souihel Zarzis.jpg El-Ogla Zarzis.jpg Chatt Amira sunrise.jpg Chatt Amira Souihel.jpg Zarzis Amira.jpg

References

Sources and external links

GCatholic, with titular incumbent bio links
; Bibliography - ecclesiastical history * Anatole-Joseph Toulotte, ''Géographie de l'Afrique chrétienne. Byzacène et Tripolitaine'', Montreuil-sur-mer, 1894, pp. 247–251 * J. Mesnage, ''L'Afrique chrétienne'', Paris, 1912, p. 170 {{Authority control Ports and harbours of the Arab League Transport in the Arab League Populated coastal places in Tunisia Communes of Tunisia Populated places in Medenine Governorate