Souk Ahras
| Souk Ahras بلدية سوق أهراس |
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| — Municipality — | |||
| Commune of Souk Ahras | |||
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 Souk Ahras
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| Coordinates: 36°17′11″N 7°57′4″E / 36.28639°N 7.95111°ECoordinates: 36°17′11″N 7°57′4″E / 36.28639°N 7.95111°E | |||
| Country |  Algeria |
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| Province | Souk Ahras (seat) | ||
| District | Souk Ahras (coextensive) | ||
| Government | |||
| • PMA Seats | 23 | ||
| Elevation | 699 m (2,293 ft) | ||
| Population (2011) | |||
| • Total | 156,745 | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+01) | ||
| Postal code | 41000 | ||
| Area code(s) | +213 (37) | ||
| ONS code | 4101 | ||
| Website | www.soukahrastourisme.com | ||
Souk Ahras (Arabic: سوق أهراس; Chaoui: 
) is a municipality in Algeria. It is the capital of Souk Ahras Province. The Numidian city of Thagaste (or Tagaste), on whose ruins Souk Ahras was built, was the birthplace of Augustine of Hippo and a center of Berber culture.[1][2] It was a city of great culture, described as the very hub of civilization[3].
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[edit] Etymology
The name derives from the Arabic word "souk" which means market, and the Chaoui Berber word ahra (plural ahras) which means lion, in reference to the Barbary lions which existed in the neighboring forests until their extinction in 1930; hence Souk Ahras means market of lions (see also Oran (Wahran) and Tahert for names with a related etymology).
| Year | 1877 | 1878 | 1879 | 1880 | 1881 | 1887 | 1891 | 1892 |
| Lions | 3 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 1 | ? | 1 | ? |
| Leopards | 2 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 4 |
The old name of the Numidian city of Thagaste, derives from the Berber Thagoust, which means the bag, given that the site of the town is located at the foot of a mountain surrounded by three peaks in the form of a bag containing the city. Subsequently, when the Arabic language entered in the region it was called Soukara. In other sources it is cited as the Palace of the African, according to Al-Masudi.
[edit] History
The Numidian city of Thagaste (or Tagaste), on whose ruins Souk Ahras was built, was situated in the north-eastern highlands of Numidia, shortly afterwards, it became a Roman municipium[4]. It was about sixty miles from Hippo Regius, now called Annaba, and about 150 miles from Carthage (on the coast of present day Tunisia). It was the birthplace of Augustine of Hippo.[5] The city was mentioned by Pliny the Elder. As a municipium, Thagaste was not settled by Italian immigrants and was inhabited by Romanized Berbers.[6]
In the nineteenth century it was a French colonial settlement. In the twentieth century mining and the railway brought some signicance and prosperity to the town. Today, Tagaste is in the province of Souk Ahras in Eastern Algeria. Thagaste is known as the birth place of highly influential early Christian philosopher, Saint Augustine.
[edit] Geography
[edit] Relief and hydrography
The town of Souk Ahras is located in a basin surrounded by wooded mountains as the Djebel Beni Salah or Djebel Ouled Moumen.
Souk Ahras is crossed by a major North African river, the Medjerda.
Three dams exist in the region of Souk Ahras, that of Ain-Edalia supplies the town of Souk Ahras and its region with 76 million cubic meters. Dams of Oued Charef and Djedra, provide a capacity of 153 and 35 million cubic meters, respectively. Dam Djedra is intended to supply the town of Souk Ahras with a quantity of 12 million cubic meters of potable water, while 2 million cubic meters will be pumped for irrigation.
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Souk Ahras topographic map
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the Medjerda river
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the Ain-dalia dam
[edit] Districts of Souk Ahras
- Souk Ahras
- An-Nasser
- Diar Ezzarga
- 1er Novembre 1954
- 5 Juillet
- 17 Octobre
- 20 Août
- 26 Avril 1958
- El-Allaouia
- Ibn Rochd
- Kouicem Abdelhak
- Sidi Messaoud
- Sidi Okba
- Et-Tagtaguia
[edit] Climate
Algiers has a Mediterranean climate with warm summers and mild winters. Its proximity to the Mediterranean Sea aids in moderating the city's temperatures. As a result Souk Ahras usually does not see the extreme temperatures that are experienced in the adjacent interior deserts. The climate of Algiers, like that of other Atlas cities, features wet "winters" and dry summers. Souk Ahras on average receives roughly 840.74 mm (33.1 in.) of precipitation per year, the bulk of which is seen between October and April.
| Climate data for Souk Ahras | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 13.9 (57.0) |
15 (59) |
17.8 (64.0) |
20.6 (69.1) |
25 (77) |
30 (86) |
35 (95) |
35 (95) |
30.6 (87.1) |
25.6 (78.1) |
20 (68) |
15 (59) |
22.8 (73.0) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 8.9 (48.0) |
10 (50) |
11.7 (53.1) |
13.9 (57.0) |
17.8 (64.0) |
21.7 (71.1) |
25.6 (78.1) |
26.7 (80.1) |
22.8. (73.0) |
18.9 (66.0) |
13.9 (57.0) |
10 (50) |
16.7 (62.1) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 3.9 (39.0) |
3.9 (39.0) |
5.6 (42.1) |
6.7 (44.1) |
10.6 (51.1) |
13.9 (57.0) |
16.7 (62.1) |
17.8 (64.0) |
15.6 (60.1) |
11.7 (53.1) |
7.8 (46.0) |
5 (41) |
10 (50) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 111.76 (4.4) |
81.28 (3.2) |
101.6 (4) |
71.12 (2.8) |
45.72 (1.8) |
22.86 (0.9) |
2.54 (0.1) |
10.16 (0.4) |
45.72 (1.8) |
104.14 (4.1) |
109.22 (4.3) |
137.16 (5.4) |
840.74 (33.1) |
| Source: World Meteorological Organization (UN)[7] | |||||||||||||
[edit] Demographics
The inhabitants of the town of Souk Ahras are of Berber origin. They are mainly from the different regions of the wilaya of Souk Ahras and neighboring wilayas. The first tribes having established in Souk Ahras were known as the Papiria[8], or Babiria from the name of Berber. They were composed of Causses and Syliactae[9].
The tribes of Mousoulami and Kirina lived there. Including the other tribes: the Hnanchas that grew the most and the Hrakta all of them have Berber origins. These tribes lived in tents and practiced nomadism. They have established later and founded cities for each of them, including the town of Souk Ahras, the old Thagaste.
| Year | 1901 | 1926 | 1948 | 1954 | 1960 | 1966 | 1974 | 1977 | 1987 | 1998 | 2010 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 7500 | 10600 | 17025 | 20700 | 22800 | 34400 | 52100 | 57173 | 80015 | 115882 | 157329 |
[edit]
- Augustine of Hippo, philosopher
- Martianus Capella, author
- Apuleius, author
- Alypius of Thagaste, bishop celebrated the 15th august
- Tacfarinas, resisted roman invasions
- Ahmad al-Tifashi, author
- Kateb Yacine, author
- Tahir Wattar, author
- Salah Tabet, boxer
- Guy Bedos, french pied-noir artist
[edit] References
- ^ "A Berber, born in 354 at Thagaste (now Souk-Ahras) in Africa...", Fernand Braudel, A history of civilizations (1963), Penguin Books, 1995, p.335
- ^ "...he grew up in an area which was a center of Berber culture.", Augustinian studies, Volumes 7-8, Villanova University Press, 1976, p.134
- ^ Time and Chance: Elbert Hubbard's Selected Writings By Fra Elbert Hubbard, p.435 online version
- ^ A municipium was an existing city on which the citizenship had been conferred while a colony was a new foundation or a community to which Roman settlers had been added
- ^
"Thagaste". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913. - ^ Nacéra Benseddik, Thagaste. Souk Ahras, ville natale de saint Augustin, Ed. Inas, Alger, 2005, p.25
- ^ "Weather Report for Souk Ahras". http://www.weatherreports.com/Algeria/Souk_Ahras.
- ^ Enciclopedia italiana di scienze, lettere ed arti, Volume 33, Giovanni Gentile, Calogero Tumminelli, Istituto Giovanni Treccani, Rome online version
- ^ Vita Augostino di H'sen Dardour online version
[edit] Bibliography
- Nacéra Benseddik, Thagaste. Souk Ahras, ville natale de saint Augustin, Ed. Inas, Alger, 2005.
- Serge Lancel, Saint Augustine, Hymns Ancient & Modern Ltd, 2002, Chapter I, pp.3-7
- THE MARTYRS OF MADAURA, A.D. 180
[edit] External links
- Panoramio Image gallery about Souk Shras and its region
- Falling Rain Genomics, Inc. "Geographical information on Souk Ahras, Algeria". http://www.fallingrain.com/world/AG/37/Souk_Ahras.html. Retrieved 2008-04-27.
- Souk Ahras Info
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Guelma | Annaba | El Kala | |
| M'Daourouch |  |
Ghardimaou (Tunisia) | ||
 Souk Ahras  |
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| Oum El Bouaghi | Tebessa | El Kef (Tunisia) |
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