Morocco

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For other uses, see Morocco (disambiguation).
Coordinates 32N 6W

Kingdom of Morocco
??????? ???????? (Arabic)
??????? ? ?????? (Standard Moroccan Tamazight)
Flag of Morocco
Flag
Coat of arms of Morocco
Coat of arms
Motto
???? ?????? ????? (Arabic)
Allah, Al Watan, Al Malik
????, ????, ?????? (Berber)

God, Homeland, King

Anthem
?????? ?????? ??????? (Arabic)
???? ?????? ? ?????? (Berber)
Cherifian Anthem
MENU000
Dark green Internationally recognized territory of Morocco.Lighter green Western
Sahara, a territory claimed and mostly controlled by Morocco as its Southern
Provinces
Dark green Internationally recognized territory of Morocco.
Lighter green Western Sahara, a territory claimed and mostly controlled by Morocco
as its Southern Provinces
Location of Morocco
Capital Rabat
3402'N 651'W
Largest city Casablanca
3332'N 735'W
Official languages
Arabic Berber
Native languages
Moroccan Arabic
Berber
Hassaniya Arabic
Other languages French[Notes 1]
Ethnic groups (2014[2])
Arab-Berber 99%
other 1%
[1]
Religion Sunni Islam[a] (official)[3]
Demonym Moroccan
Government Unitary parliamentary
constitutional monarchy[4]
King
Mohammed VI
Prime Minister
Saadeddine Othmani
Legislature Parliament
Upper house
House of Councillors
Lower house
House of Representatives
Moroccan statehood
 Idrisid dynasty (first)
789
Alaouite dynasty (current)
1666
Protectorate established
30 March 1912
Independence
7 April 1956
Area
Total
710,850 km2 (274,460 sq mi)
or 446,550 km2[b] (40th or 57th)
Water (%)
0.056 (250 km2)
Population
1 September 2014 census
33,848,242[5]
Density
73.1km2 (189.3sq mi)
GDP (PPP) 2015 estimate
Total
$274.53 billion[6]
Per capita
$8,194[7]
GDP (nominal) 2015 estimate
Total
$103.08 billion[8]
Per capita
$3,077[9]
Gini (2007) 40.9[10]
medium
HDI (2015) Increase 0.647[11]
medium 123th
Currency Moroccan dirham (MAD)
Time zone GMT[12] (UTC?)
Summer (DST)
GMT+1 (UTC+1)
Drives on the right
Calling code +212
ISO 3166 code MA
Internet TLD .ma
^ Official religion.
^ The area 446,550 km2 (172,410 sq mi) excludes all disputed territories, while
710,850 km2 (274,460 sq mi) includes the Moroccan-administered parts of Western
Sahara (claimed as the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic by the Polisario Front).
Morocco (m?'r?ko? (About this sound listen); Arabic ?????????, translit. al-magrib,
lit. 'place the sun sets; the west'?; Standard Moroccan Tamazight ???????,
translit. Lme?rib?; French Maroc), officially known as the Kingdom of Morocco
(Arabic ??????? ?????????, translit. al-Mamlakah al-Maghribiyah?, lit. The Western
Kingdom; Standard Moroccan Tamazight ??????? ? ???????, translit. Tageldit n Lma?
rib?), is a sovereign country located in the Maghreb region of North Africa.
Geographically, Morocco is characterised by a rugged mountainous interior, large
tracts of desert and a lengthy coastline along the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean
Sea.

Morocco has a population of over 33.8 million and an area of 446,550 km2 (172,410
sq mi). Its capital is Rabat, and the largest city is Casablanca. Other major
cities include Marrakesh, Tangier, Sal, Fes, and Meknes. A historically prominent
regional power, Morocco has a history of independence not shared by its neighbours.
Since the foundation of the first Moroccan state by Idris I in 789, the country has
been ruled by a series of independent dynasties, reaching its zenith under the
Almoravid and Almohad dynasty, spanning parts of Iberia and Northwestern Africa.
Marinid and Saadi dynasties continued the struggle against foreign domination, and
Morocco remained the only North African country to avoid Ottoman occupation. The
Alaouite dynasty, the current ruling dynasty, seized power in 1666. In 1912 Morocco
was divided into French and Spanish protectorates, with an international zone in
Tangier, and regained its independence in 1956. Moroccan culture is a blend of
Arab, indigenous Berber, Sub-Saharan African, and European influences.

Morocco claims the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara as its Southern

Provinces. Morocco annexed the territory in 1975, leading to a guerrilla war with
indigenous forces until a cease-fire in 1991. Peace processes have thus far failed
to break the political deadlock.

Morocco is a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. The King of

Morocco holds vast executive and legislative powers, especially over the military,
foreign policy and religious affairs. Executive power is exercised by the
government, while legislative power is vested in both the government and the two
chambers of parliament, the Assembly of Representatives and the Assembly of
Councillors. The king can issue decrees called dahirs which have the force of law.
He can also dissolve the parliament after consulting the Prime Minister and the
president of the Constitutional court.

Morocco's predominant religion is Islam, and the official languages are Arabic and
Berber. The Moroccan dialect, referred to as Darija, and French are also widely
spoken. Morocco is a member of the Arab League, the Union for the Mediterranean,
and the African Union. It has the fifth largest economy of Africa.

Contents [hide]
1 Etymology
2 History
2.1 Prehistory and antiquity
2.2 Early Islamic era
2.3 Berber dynasties
2.4 Sharifian dynasties
2.5 French and Spanish protectorates
2.6 Post-independence
3 Geography
3.1 Climate
3.2 Biodiversity
4 Politics
4.1 Legislative branch
4.2 Military
4.3 Foreign relations
4.4 Western Sahara status
4.5 Administrative divisions
4.6 Human rights
5 Economy
5.1 Tourism
5.2 Agriculture
5.3 Energy
5.4 Narcotics
5.5 Transport
5.6 Water supply and sanitation
6 Science and technology
7 Demographics
7.1 Religion
7.2 Languages
8 Culture
8.1 Architecture
8.2 Literature
8.3 Music
8.4 Media
8.5 Cuisine
8.6 Sport
9 Education
10 Healthcare
11 See also
12 Notes
13 Sources
14 References
15 External links
Etymology
The full Arabic name al-Mamlakah al-Maghribiyyah (??????? ????????) translates to
Kingdom of the West; although the West in Arabic is ????? Al-Gharb. For historical
references, medieval Arab historians and geographers sometimes referred to Morocco
as al-Maghrib al-Aq? (?????? ??????, meaning The Farthest West) to distinguish it
from neighbouring historical regions called al-Maghrib al-Awsa? (?????? ??????,
meaning The Middle West) and al-Maghrib al-Adn (?????? ??????, meaning The Nearest
West).[13]

The basis of Morocco's English name is Marrakesh, its capital under the Almoravid
dynasty and Almohad Caliphate.[14] The origin of the name Marrakesh is disputed,
[15] but is most likely from the Berber words amur (n) akush (???? ? ????) or Land
of God.[16] The modern Berber name for Marrakesh is M??akc (in the Berber Latin
script). In Turkish, Morocco is known as Fas, a name derived from its ancient
capital of Fes. However, this was not the case in other parts of the Islamic world
until the middle of the 20th century, the common name of Morocco in Egyptian and
Middle Eastern Arabic literature was Marrakesh (?????);[citation needed] this name
is still used in some languages such as Persian, Urdu, Punjabi and Pashto. The
English name Morocco is an anglicisation of the Spanish Marruecos.

History