Musa ibn Nusayr
Musa bin Nusayr served as a governor and general under the Umayyad caliph Al-Walid I. He ruled over the Muslim provinces of North Africa, directed the Islamic conquest of the Visigothic Kingdom in Hispania. Various suggestions have been made as to his ancestry; some say his father belonged to the Lakhmid clan of seminomads who lived east of the Euphrates and were allies of the Sassanians, while others claim he belonged to the Banu Bakr confederation. The most detailed account is that of at-Tabari who stated that Musa's father was taken captive after the fall of the Mesopotamian city of Ayn al-Tamr. According to this account, he was a Christian Persian, one of a number being held hostage there. However, al-Baladhuri, relating the same events, states he was an Arab of the Balī tribe, from Jabal al-Jalīl in Syria; as a slave, Musa's father entered the service of Abd al-Aziz ibn Marwan. He returned to Syria where Musa was born at a place called Kafarmathra; the date of his birth has been given as 640.
Musa was made co-governor of Iraq by the caliph Abd al-Malik, together with the caliph's brother Bishr ibn Marwan. There was some quarrel over missing tax money, Musa was given the choice: pay a huge fine, or pay with his head, his father's patron, Abd al-Aziz ibn Marwan, had a high opinion of Musa, paid the ransom. Hasan ibn al-Nu'man was sent to continue the Islamic conquest in North Africa all the way to Morocco. However, his policies were quite strict and he did not tolerate Berber traditions, he was relieved of his command for allowing continuing Byzantine attacks. Musa bin Nusayr was sent to renew the attacks against the Berbers, but he did not impose Islam by force, rather, he respected Berber traditions and used diplomacy in subjugating them. This proved successful, as many Berbers converted to Islam and entered his army as soldiers and officers including Tariq bin Ziyad who would lead the Islamic expedition in Iberia. In 698 Musa was made the governor of Ifriqiya and was responsible for completing the conquest of North Africa and of the Balearic Islands and Sardinia.
He was the first governor of Ifriqiya not to be subordinate to the governor of Egypt. He was the first Muslim general to occupy it, he had to deal with constant attacks from the Byzantine navy and he built a navy that would go on to conquer the islands of Ibiza and Menorca. Muslim and Christian sources quote that while Musa bin Nusayr was eager to cross the Straits of Gibraltar to Hispania, he determined to do so only when a Visigoth nobleman, Count of Ceuta, had encouraged him to invade Iberia, telling him of the people's sufferings and the injustice of their king, while giving him cause for conquest by telling him of the riches that would be found, of the many palaces and beauties of Hispania. Legend tells that Julian wished the fall of the Visigothic kingdom because his daughter had been raped by Roderic. After a successful minor raid on the Spanish coast at Tarifa, the raiding force returning with a booty they captured without any reported resistance, Musa decided to land a larger invasion force.
Tariq bin Ziyad crossed the strait with 7,000 Berbers and Arabs, landed at Gibraltar. The expedition's purpose must have been to explore the territory. Tariq's army contained. Three weeks after his landing, the Muslims were faced with a superior Visigoth royal army of 100,000 troops under Roderick. Led by King Roderic; the Muslims won the Battle of Guadalete, the entire Visigoth nobility was all but exterminated at the battle. The Muslims marched towards Córdoba, bypassing several strong fortifications; the well-defended city fell, Tariq established a garrison there consisting of the city's Jews who welcomed the invaders, having been subjected to extermination from the Visigoths for centuries. Tariq continued on his way to Toledo. Musa, learning of Tariq's successes, landed in Iberia with an army of 18,000 Arabs, he planned to rendezvous with Tariq at Toledo, but first proceeded to take Seville, which Tariq had bypassed, where Musa met stiff resistance, succeeded after three months of siege. He campaigned in the province of Lusitania, eliminating the remaining Gothic resistance there.
His last destination before meeting Tariq was to subdue capital of Lusitania. After five months of siege and inconclusive fighting, a group of Ceutans pretended to be Christian reinforcements and managed to convince the guards into opening the gates. Once inside, the "reinforcements", nearly 700, overwhelmed the guards and managed to keep the gates open for the Muslims to enter the city and capture it. After Mérida, Musa divided his forces, taking the majority with him to meet Tariq at Toledo where he would remain for winter; the remainder of his forces were led by his son'Abd al-Aziz, who would return to Seville to deal with an uprising.'Abd al-Aziz made short work of the rebellion. He conducted several campaigns on the return journey in the territories of Lusitania. Coimbra and Santarém were captured in the spring of 714.'Abd al-Aziz campaigned in Murcia. The Duke of Murcia, Theodemir, or
Morocco
Morocco the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country located in the Maghreb region of North West Africa with an area of 710,850 km2. Its capital is the largest city Casablanca, it overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Morocco claims the areas of Ceuta, Melilla and Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera, all of them under Spanish jurisdiction. Since the foundation of the first Moroccan state by Idris I in 788 AD, the country has been ruled by a series of independent dynasties, reaching its zenith under the Almoravid and Almohad dynasties, spanning parts of Iberia and northwestern Africa; the Marinid and Saadi dynasties continued the struggle against foreign domination, allowing Morocco to remain the only northwest African country to avoid Ottoman occupation. The Alaouite dynasty, which rules to this day, seized power in 1631. In 1912, Morocco was divided into French and Spanish protectorates, with an international zone in Tangier, it regained its independence in 1956, has since remained comparatively stable and prosperous by regional standards.
Morocco claims the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara Spanish Sahara, as its Southern Provinces. After Spain agreed to decolonise the territory to Morocco and Mauritania in 1975, a guerrilla war arose with local forces. Mauritania relinquished its claim in 1979, the war lasted until a cease-fire in 1991. Morocco occupies two thirds of the territory, peace processes have thus far failed to break the political deadlock; the unitary sovereign state of Morocco is a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. The King of Morocco holds vast executive and legislative powers 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. He can dissolve the parliament after consulting the Prime Minister and the president of the constitutional court.
Morocco's predominant religion is Islam, its official languages are Arabic and Berber. E; the Moroccan dialect of Arabic, referred to as Darija, French are widely spoken. Moroccan culture is a blend of Berber, Sephardi Jews, West African and European influences. Morocco is a member of the Union for the Mediterranean and the African Union, it has the fifth largest economy of Africa. The full Arabic name al-Mamlakah al-Maghribiyyah translates to "Kingdom of the West". For historical references, medieval Arab historians and geographers sometimes referred to Morocco as al-Maghrib al-Aqṣá to distinguish it from neighbouring historical regions called al-Maghrib al-Awsaṭ and al-Maghrib al-Adná; the basis of Morocco's English name is Marrakesh, its capital under the Almoravid dynasty and Almohad Caliphate. The origin of the name Marrakesh is disputed, but is most from the Berber words amur akush or "Land of God"; the modern Berber name for Marrakesh is Mṛṛakc. In Turkish, Morocco is known as 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. The English name Morocco is an anglicisation of the Spanish "Marruecos", from which derives the Tuscan "Morrocco", the origin of the Italian "Marocco"; the area of present-day Morocco has been inhabited since Paleolithic times, sometime between 190,000 and 90,000 BC. A recent publication may demonstrate an earlier habitation period, as Homo sapiens fossils discovered in the late 2000s near the Atlantic coast in Jebel Irhoud were dated to 315,000 years before present. During the Upper Paleolithic, the Maghreb was more fertile than it is today, resembling a savanna more than today's arid landscape. Twenty-two thousand years ago, the Aterian was succeeded by the Iberomaurusian culture, which shared similarities with Iberian cultures. Skeletal similarities have been suggested between the Iberomaurusian "Mechta-Afalou" burials and European Cro-Magnon remains.
The Iberomaurusian was succeeded by the Beaker culture in Morocco. Mitochondrial DNA studies have discovered the Saami of Scandinavia; this supports theories that the Franco-Cantabrian refuge area of southwestern Europe was the source of late-glacial expansions of hunter-gatherers who repopulated northern Europe after the last ice age. Northwest Africa and Morocco were drawn into the wider emerging Mediterranean world by the Phoenicians, who established trading colonies and settlements in the early Classical period. Substantial Phoenician settlements were at Chellah and Mogador. Mogador was a Phoenician colony as early as the early 6th century BC. Morocco became a realm of the Northwest African civilisation of ancie
Comarcas of Spain
In Spain traditionally and some autonomous communities are divided into comarcas. Some comarcas have a defined status, are regulated by law and their comarcal councils have some power. In some other cases their legal status is not formal for they correspond to natural areas, like valleys, river basins and mountainous areas, or to historical regions overlapping different provinces and ancient kingdoms. In such comarcas or natural regions municipalities have resorted to organizing themselves in mancomunidad, like the Taula del Sénia, the only legal formula that has allowed those comarcas to manage their public municipal resources meaningfully. There is a comarca, the Cerdanya, divided between two states, the southwestern half being counted as a comarca of Spain, while the northeastern half is part of France. In English, a comarca is equivalent to a district, area or zone. Alto Almanzora Poniente Almeriense Níjar Los Vélez Levante Almería Bahía de Cádiz Bajo Guadalquivir called Costa Noroeste Campo de Gibraltar La Janda Campiña de Jerez called Marco de Jerez Sierra de Cádiz Alto Guadalquivir Campiña de Baena Campiña Este - Guadajoz Campiña Sur Los Pedroches Subbetica Valle del Guadiato Valle Medio del Guadalquivir Granadin Alpujarra Comarca de Alhama Comarca de Baza Comarca de Guadix Comarca de Huéscar Comarca de Loja Granadin Coast Los Montes Lecrin Valley Vega de Granada Andévalo Condado de Huelva Cuenca Minera de Huelva Costa Occidental de Huelva Huelva Sierra de Huelva Alto Guadalquivir - Cazorla La Campiña El Condado Área Metropolitana de Jaén La Loma Las Villas Norte Sierra Mágina Sierra de Segura Sierra Sur de Jaén Antequera Axarquía Costa del Sol Occidental Málaga Serranía de Ronda Valle del Guadalhorce Aljarafe Bajo Guadalquivir Campiña Estepa Marisma Sierra Norte Sierra Sur La Vega Alto Gállego Bajo Cinca called Baix Cinca Cinca Medio Hoya de Huesca called Plana de Uesca Jacetania La Litera called La Llitera Monegros Ribagorza Sobrarbe Somontano de Barbastro Bajo Martín Jiloca Cuencas Mineras Andorra-Sierra de Arcos Bajo Aragón Comunidad de Teruel Maestrazgo Sierra de Albarracín Comarca, named after the Sierra de Albarracín mountain range Gúdar-Javalambre Matarraña called Matarranya Aranda Bajo Aragón-Caspe called Baix Aragó-Casp Campo de Belchite Campo de Borja Campo de Cariñena Campo de Daroca Cinco Villas Comunidad de Calatayud Ribera Alta del Ebro Ribera Baja del Ebro Tarazona y el Moncayo Valdejalón Zaragoza Avilés Caudal Eo-Navia Gijón / Xixón Nalón Narcea Oriente Oviedo / Uviéu Serra de Tramuntana Es Raiguer Es Pla Migjorn Llevant Menorca Eivissa Formentera Añana Aiara / Ayala Agurain / Salvatierra Vitoria-Gasteiz Zuia Arabako Mendialdea / Montaña Alavesa Arabako Errioxa / Rioja Alavesa Arratia-Nerbioi Busturialdea Durangaldea Enkarterri Greater Bilbao Lea-Artibai Uribe Bidasoa-Txingudi Debabarrena Debagoiena Goierri Donostialdea Tolosaldea Urola Kosta Fuerteventura Lanzarote Las Palmas El Hierro La Gomera La Palma Tenerife Valle de Güímar Valle de la Orotava Icod Daute Isla Baja Isora-Teno Tenerife Sur Tenerife Sur Acentejo Metropolitana-Anaga Comarca de Santander Besaya Saja-Nansa Costa occidental Costa oriental Trasmiera Pas-Miera Asón-Agüera Liébana Campoo-Los Valles Alt Penedès Anoia Bages Baix Llobregat Barcelonès Berguedà Garraf Maresme Moianès Osona Vallès Occidental Vallès Oriental Alt Empordà Baix Empordà Baixa Cerdanya Garrotxa Gironès Osona Pla de l'Estany Ripollès Selva Alt Urgell Alta Ribagorça Baixa Cerdanya Garrigues Noguera Pallars Jussà Pallars Sobirà Pla d'Urgell Segarra Segrià Solsonès Urgell Val d'Aran Alt Camp Baix Camp Baix Ebre Baix Penedès Conca de Barberà Montsià Priorat Ribera d'Ebre Tarragonès Terra Alta Llanos de Albacete Campos de Hellín La Mancha del Júcar-Centro La Manchuela Monte Ibérico–Corredor de Almansa Sierra de Alcaraz y Campo de Montiel Sierra del Segura Campo de Montiel.
Alcarria conquense. La Mancha de Cuenca. Manchuela conquense. Serranía Alta. Serranía Baja. Serranía Media-Campichuelo. Campiña de Guadalajara Campiña del Henares La Alcarria La Serranía Señorío de Molina-Alto Tajo Campo de San Juan La Jara La Campana de Oropesa Mancha Alta de Toledo Mesa de Ocaña Montes de Toledo La Sagra Sierra de San Vicente Tierras de Talavera Torrijos La Moraña Comarca de Ávila Comarca de El Barco de Ávila - Piedrahíta Comarca de Burgohondo - El Tiemblo - Cebreros Comarca de Arenas de San Pedro Merindades Páramos La Bureba Ebro Odra-Pisuerga Alfoz de Burgos Montes de Oca Arlanza Sierra de la Demanda Ribera del Duero La Montaña de Luna La Montaña de Riaño La Cabrera Astorga El Bierzo Tierras de León La Bañeza El Páramo Esla-Campos Sahagún Cerrato Palentino Montaña Palentina Páramos Valles Tierra de Campos Comarca de Vitigudino Comarca de Ciudad Rodrigo La Armuña Las Villas Tierra de Peñaranda Tierra de Cantalapiedra Tierra de Ledesma Comarca de Guijuelo Tierra de Alba Sierra de Béjar Sierra de Francia Campo de Salamanca An official classification establishes three comarcas: Segovia.
Cuéllar. Sepúlveda.or sometimes four: Tierra de Pinares. Segovia. Sepúlveda. Tierra de Ayllón. However, historic approaches establish six comarcas: Tierra de Pinares. Tierra de Ayllón. Tierras de Cantalejo y
Autonomous communities of Spain
In Spain, an autonomous community is a first-level political and administrative division, created in accordance with the Spanish constitution of 1978, with the aim of guaranteeing limited autonomy of the nationalities and regions that make up Spain. Spain is not a federation, but a decentralized unitary state. While sovereignty is vested in the nation as a whole, represented in the central institutions of government, the nation has, in variable degrees, devolved power to the communities, which, in turn, exercise their right to self-government within the limits set forth in the constitution and their autonomous statutes; each community has its own set of devolved powers. Some scholars have referred to the resulting system as a federal system in all but name, or a "federation without federalism". There are 17 autonomous communities and two autonomous cities that are collectively known as "autonomies"; the two autonomous cities have the right to become autonomous communities, but neither has yet exercised it.
This unique framework of territorial administration is known as the "State of Autonomies". The autonomous communities are governed according to the constitution and their own organic laws known as Statutes of Autonomy, which contain all the competences that they assume. Since devolution was intended to be asymmetrical in nature, the scope of competences vary for each community, but all have the same parliamentary structure. Spain is a diverse country made up of several different regions with varying economic and social structures, as well as different languages and historical and cultural traditions. While the entire Spanish territory was united under one crown in 1479 this was not a process of national homogenization or amalgamation; the constituent territories—be it crowns, principalities or dominions—retained much of their former institutional existence, including limited legislative, judicial or fiscal autonomy. These territories exhibited a variety of local customs, laws and currencies until the mid nineteenth century.
From the 18th century onwards, the Bourbon kings and the government tried to establish a more centralized regime. Leading figures of the Spanish Enlightenment advocated for the building of a Spanish nation beyond the internal territorial boundaries; this culminated in 1833, when Spain was divided into 49 provinces, which served as transmission belts for policies developed in Madrid. However, unlike in other European countries such as France, where regional languages were spoken in rural areas or less developed regions, two important regional languages of Spain were spoken in some of the most industrialized areas, moreover, enjoyed higher levels of prosperity, in addition to having their own cultures and historical consciousness; these were Catalonia. This gave rise to peripheral nationalisms along with Spanish nationalism; therefore and social changes that had produced a national cultural unification in France had the opposite effect in Spain. As such, Spanish history since the late 19th century has been shaped by a dialectical struggle between Spanish nationalism and peripheral nationalisms in Catalonia and the Basque Country, to a lesser degree in Galicia.
In a response to Catalan demands, limited autonomy was granted to Catalonia in 1914, only to be abolished in 1923. It was granted again in 1932 during the Second Spanish Republic, when the Generalitat, Catalonia's mediaeval institution of government, was restored; the constitution of 1931 envisaged a territorial division for all Spain in "autonomous regions", never attained—only Catalonia, the Basque Country and Galicia had approved "Statutes of Autonomy"—the process being thwarted by the Spanish Civil War that broke out in 1936, the victory of the rebel Nationalist forces under Francisco Franco. During General Franco's dictatorial regime, centralism was most forcefully enforced as a way of preserving the "unity of the Spanish nation". Peripheral nationalism, along with communism and atheism were regarded by his regime as the main threats, his attempts to fight separatism with heavy-handed but sporadic repression, his severe suppression of language and regional identities backfired: the demands for democracy became intertwined with demands for the recognition of a pluralistic vision of the Spanish nationhood.
When Franco died in 1975, Spain entered into a phase of transition towards democracy. The most difficult task of the newly democratically elected Cortes Generales in 1977 acting as a Constituent Assembly was to transition from a unitary centralized state into a decentralized state in a way that would satisfy the demands of the peripheral nationalists; the Prime Minister of Spain, Adolfo Suárez, met with Josep Tarradellas, president of the Generalitat of Catalonia in exile. An agreement was made so that the Generalitat would be restored and limited competencies would be transferred while the constitution was still being written. Shortly after, the government allowed the creation of "assemblies of members of parliament" integrated by deputies and senators of the different territories of Spain, so that they could constitute "pre-autonomic regimes" for their regions as well; the Fathers of the Constitution had to strike a balance between the opposing views of Spain—on the one hand, the centralist view inherited from Franco's regime, on the other hand federalism and a pluralistic view of Spain as a "nation of nations".
Peripheral nationalist
Provinces of Spain
Spain and its autonomous communities are divided into fifty provinces. Spain's provincial system was recognized in its 1978 constitution but its origin dates back to 1833. Ceuta and the Plazas de soberanía are not part of any provinces; the layout of Spain's provinces follows the pattern of the territorial division of the country carried out in 1833. The only major change of provincial borders since that time has been the subdivision of the Canary Islands into two provinces rather than one; the provinces served as transmission belts for policies enacted in Madrid, as Spain was a centralised state for most of its modern history. The importance of the provinces has declined since the adoption of the system of autonomous communities in the period of the Spanish transition to democracy, they remain electoral districts for national elections and as geographical references: for instance in postal addresses and telephone codes. A small town would be identified as being in, Valladolid province rather than the autonomous community of Castile and León.
The provinces were the "building-blocks". No province is divided between more than one of these communities. Most of the provinces—with the exception of Álava, Biscay, Guipúzcoa, Balearic Islands, La Rioja, Navarra — are named after their principal town. Only two capitals of autonomous communities — Mérida in Extremadura and Santiago de Compostela in Galicia — are not the capitals of provinces. Seven of the autonomous communities comprise no more than one province each: Asturias, Balearic Islands, Cantabria, La Rioja, Madrid and Navarra; these are sometimes referred to as "uniprovincial" communities. The table below lists the provinces of Spain. For each, the capital city is given, together with an indication of the autonomous community to which it belongs and a link to a list of municipalities in the province; the names of the provinces and their capitals are ordered alphabetically according to the form in which they appear in the main Wikipedia articles describing them. Unless otherwise indicated, their Spanish language names are the same.
List of Spanish provinces by population List of Spanish provinces by area Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces Autonomous communities of Spain Comarcas of Spain ISO 3166-2:ESGeneral: Political divisions of Spain Maps of the provinces of Spain Maps of Spain's Provinces List of municipalities of Spain listed by province from the Spanish INE
Tunis
Tunis is the capital and the largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis referred to as Grand Tunis, has some 2,700,000 inhabitants. Situated on a large Mediterranean Sea gulf, behind the Lake of Tunis and the port of La Goulette, the city extends along the coastal plain and the hills that surround it. At its core lies its ancient medina, a World Heritage Site. East of the medina through the Sea Gate begins the modern city, or Ville Nouvelle, traversed by the grand Avenue Habib Bourguiba, where the colonial-era buildings provide a clear contrast to smaller, older structures. Further east by the sea lie the suburbs of Carthage, La Marsa, Sidi Bou Said; as the capital city of the country, Tunis is the focus of Tunisian political and administrative life. It has two cultural centres, as well as a municipal theatre, used by international theatre groups and a summer festival, the International Festival of Carthage, held in July. Tunis is the transcription of the Arabic name تونس which can be pronounced as "Tūnus", "Tūna or delata", or "Tūnis".
All three variations were mentioned by the Greek-Syrian geographer al-Rumi Yaqout in his Mu'jam al-Bûldan. Different explanations exist for the origin of the name Tunis; some scholars relate it to the Phoenician goddess Tanith, as many ancient cities were named after patron deities. Some scholars claim that it originated from Tynes, mentioned by Diodorus Siculus and Polybius in the course of descriptions of a location resembling present-day Al-Kasbah. Another possibility is that it was derived from the Berber verbal root ens which means "to lie down" or "to pass the night". Given the variations of the precise meaning over time and space, the term Tunis can mean "camp at night", "camp", or "stop". There are some mentions in ancient Roman sources of such names of nearby towns as Tuniza, Thunusuda and Thunisa; as all of these Berber villages were situated on Roman roads, they undoubtedly served as rest-stations or stops. The historical study of Carthage is problematic; because its culture and records were destroyed by the Romans at the end of the Third Punic War few Carthaginian primary historical sources survive.
While there are a few ancient translations of Punic texts into Greek and Latin, as well as inscriptions on monuments and buildings discovered in Northwest Africa, the main sources are Greek and Roman historians, including Livy, Appian, Cornelius Nepos, Silius Italicus, Dio Cassius, Herodotus. These writers belonged to peoples in competition, in conflict, with Carthage. Greek cities contended with Carthage over Sicily, the Romans fought three wars against Carthage. Not their accounts of Carthage are hostile. Tunis was a Berber settlement; the existence of the town is attested by sources dating from the 4th century BC. Situated on a hill, Tunis served as an excellent point from which the comings and goings of naval and caravan traffic to and from Carthage could be observed. Tunis was one of the first towns in the region to fall under Carthaginian control, in the centuries that followed Tunis was mentioned in the military histories associated with Carthage. Thus, during Agathocles' expedition, which landed at Cape Bon in 310 BC, Tunis changed hands on various occasions.
During the Mercenary War, it is possible that Tunis served as a center for the native population of the area, that its population was composed of peasants and craftsmen. Compared to the ancient ruins of Carthage, the ruins of ancient Tunis are not as large. According to Strabo, it was destroyed by the Romans in 146 BC during the Third Punic War. Both Tunis and Carthage were destroyed; the city is mentioned in the Tabula Peutingeriana as Thuni. In the system of Roman roads for the Roman province of Africa, Tunis had the title of mutatio. Tunis Romanized, was eventually Christianized and became the seat of a bishop. However, Tunis remained modestly sized compared to Carthage during this time; the modern city of Tunis was settled by Arab Muslim troops, around the 7th century AD. The medina of Tunis, the oldest section of the city, dates from this period, during which the region was conquered by the Umayyad emir Hasan ibn al-Nu'man al-Ghasani; the city had the natural advantage of coastal access, via the Mediterranean, to the major ports of southern Europe.
Early on, Tunis played a military role. From the beginning of the 8th century Tunis was the chef-lieu of the area: it became the Arabs' naval base in the western Mediterranean Sea, took on considerable military importance. Under the Aghlabids, the people of Tunis revolted numerous times, but the city benefited from economic improvements and became the second most important in the kingdom, it was the national capital, from the end of the reign of Ibrahim II in 902, until 909 when control over Ifriqiya was lost to the newly founded Fatimid Caliphate. Local opposition to the authorities began to intensify in September 94
Coast
The coast known as the coastline or seashore, is the area where land meets the sea or ocean, or a line that forms the boundary between the land and the ocean or a lake. A precise line that can be called a coastline cannot be determined due to the Coastline paradox; the term coastal zone is a region where interaction of the land processes occurs. Both the terms coast and coastal are used to describe a geographic location or region. Edinburgh for example is a city on the coast of Great Britain. A pelagic coast refers to a coast which fronts the open ocean, as opposed to a more sheltered coast in a gulf or bay. A shore, on the other hand, can refer to parts of land adjoining any large body of water, including oceans and lakes; the somewhat related term "" refers to the land alongside or sloping down to a river or body of water smaller than a lake. "Bank" is used in some parts of the world to refer to an artificial ridge of earth intended to retain the water of a river or pond. While many scientific experts might agree on a common definition of the term "coast", the delineation of the extents of a coast differ according to jurisdiction, with many scientific and government authorities in various countries differing for economic and social policy reasons.
According to the UN atlas, 44% of people live within 150 kilometres of the sea. Tides determine the range over which sediment is deposited or eroded. Areas with high tidal ranges allow waves to reach farther up the shore, areas with lower tidal ranges produce deposition at a smaller elevation interval; the tidal range is influenced by the shape of the coastline. Tides do not cause erosion by themselves. Waves erode coastline. Coastlines with longer shores have more room for the waves to disperse their energy, while coasts with cliffs and short shore faces give little room for the wave energy to be dispersed. In these areas the wave energy breaking against the cliffs is higher, air and water are compressed into cracks in the rock, forcing the rock apart, breaking it down. Sediment deposited by waves comes from eroded cliff faces and is moved along the coastline by the waves; this forms an cliffed coast. Sediment deposited by rivers is the dominant influence on the amount of sediment located on a coastline.
Today riverine deposition at the coast is blocked by dams and other human regulatory devices, which remove the sediment from the stream by causing it to be deposited inland. Like the ocean which shapes them, coasts are a dynamic environment with constant change; the Earth's natural processes sea level rises and various weather phenomena, have resulted in the erosion and reshaping of coasts as well as flooding and creation of continental shelves and drowned river valleys. The coast and its adjacent areas on and off shore are an important part of a local ecosystem: the mixture of fresh water and salt water in estuaries provides many nutrients for marine life. Salt marshes and beaches support a diversity of plants and insects crucial to the food chain; the high level of biodiversity creates a high level of biological activity, which has attracted human activity for thousands of years. More and more of the world's people live in coastal regions. Many major cities have port facilities; some landlocked places have achieved port status by building canals.
The coast is a frontier that nations have defended against military invaders and illegal migrants. Fixed coastal defenses have long been erected in many nations and coastal countries have a navy and some form of coast guard. Coasts those with beaches and warm water, attract tourists. In many island nations such as those of the Mediterranean, South Pacific and Caribbean, tourism is central to the economy. Coasts offer recreational activities such as swimming, surfing and sunbathing. Growth management can be a challenge for coastal local authorities who struggle to provide the infrastructure required by new residents. Coasts face many human-induced environmental impacts; the human influence on climate change is thought to contribute to an accelerated trend in sea level rise which threatens coastal habitats. Pollution can occur from a number of sources: industrial debris. Fishing has declined due to habitat degradation, trawling and climate change. Since the growth of global fishing enterprises after the 1950s, intensive fishing has spread from a few concentrated areas to encompass nearly all fisheries.
The scraping of the ocean floor in bottom dragging is devastating to coral and other long-lived species that do not recover quickly. This destruction alters the functioning of the ecosystem and can permanently alter species composition and biodiversity. Bycatch, the capture of unintended species in the course of fishing, is returned to the ocean only to die from injuries or exposure. Bycatch represents about a quarter of all marine catch. In the case of shrimp capture, the bycatch is five times larger, it is believed that melting Arctic ice will cause sea levels to rise and flood coas
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Spain
Andalusia
