Miliana
Encyclopedia
Miliana is a town in Ain Defla Province
, northwestern Algeria
. It is approximately 160 km southwest of the Algerian capital, Algiers
. The population was estimated at 40,000 in 2005. The town is located south of the Dahra Massif, on the wooded southern flank of Mount Zaccar Rherbi, five kilometers north of the Chelif River, and overlooking the Zaccar plateau to the west.
The center of Miliana has an Muslim quarter and a French quarter, both of which are surrounded by city walls built on Turkish
and Berber
foundations. The main site in the Muslim quarter is the Mosque
of Sidi Ahmed ben Yousef. Built in the Moorish style
, the mosque is the location of a biannual pilgrimage
. The Muslim quarter also contains a covered marketplace
. The modern section of the town center, known as the Place Cornot (or Place de l’Horloge), is shaded by trees and contains a clock tower
, formerly a minaret
.
Miliana is primarily an agricultural
town. Its vineyards, orchards and gardens, which lie below the town center, are fed by water from nearby mountains that usually have snow in winters. Hydroelectricity
is used to power tile factories
, flour mills
and other light industries
.
on the site of an ancient Roman
city, Zucchabar (Succhabar). In the 1830s, the town came under the control of Abd al-Qadir in opposition to the increasing French occupation of Algeria
. In 1840, al-Qadir ordered Miliana to be burned down instead of surrendering it to the French
. The town eventually fell under French control in 1842, and was rebuilt in the French Colonial
architectural
style.
province of Mauretania Caesariensis
. It was constituted as a Roman colony (Colonia Iulia Augusta Zucchabar) under Augustus
. In late antiquity it was an episcopal see
and has been a titular see
of the Catholic Church since 1967.
Zucchabar is featured in the film Gladiator
, where it is falsely introduced as the name of a Roman province.
and other places prior to French colonization
. Similar to association football, the game was played during the spring and times of extreme drought
because it was believed to bring rain. After French colonization, Europe
an sports, especially association football, became more popular.
The town is home to Algerian club football team
S.C. Miliana.
Aïn Defla Province
Aïn Defla is a wilaya in northern Algeria. It is located to the southwest of Algiers, the capital. Localities in Ain Delfa include Miliana, Hammam Righa, and Aïn Torki.-Administrative divisions:...
, northwestern Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
. It is approximately 160 km southwest of the Algerian capital, Algiers
Algiers
' is the capital and largest city of Algeria. According to the 1998 census, the population of the city proper was 1,519,570 and that of the urban agglomeration was 2,135,630. In 2009, the population was about 3,500,000...
. The population was estimated at 40,000 in 2005. The town is located south of the Dahra Massif, on the wooded southern flank of Mount Zaccar Rherbi, five kilometers north of the Chelif River, and overlooking the Zaccar plateau to the west.
The center of Miliana has an Muslim quarter and a French quarter, both of which are surrounded by city walls built on Turkish
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
and Berber
Berber people
Berbers are the indigenous peoples of North Africa west of the Nile Valley. They are continuously distributed from the Atlantic to the Siwa oasis, in Egypt, and from the Mediterranean to the Niger River. Historically they spoke the Berber language or varieties of it, which together form a branch...
foundations. The main site in the Muslim quarter is the Mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
of Sidi Ahmed ben Yousef. Built in the Moorish style
Moorish architecture
Moorish architecture is the western term used to describe the articulated Berber-Islamic architecture of North Africa and Al-Andalus.-Characteristic elements:...
, the mosque is the location of a biannual pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
. The Muslim quarter also contains a covered marketplace
Marketplace
A marketplace is the space, actual, virtual or metaphorical, in which a market operates. The term is also used in a trademark law context to denote the actual consumer environment, ie. the 'real world' in which products and services are provided and consumed.-Marketplaces and street markets:A...
. The modern section of the town center, known as the Place Cornot (or Place de l’Horloge), is shaded by trees and contains a clock tower
Clock tower
A clock tower is a tower specifically built with one or more clock faces. Clock towers can be either freestanding or part of a church or municipal building such as a town hall. Some clock towers are not true clock towers having had their clock faces added to an already existing building...
, formerly a minaret
Minaret
A minaret مناره , sometimes مئذنه) is a distinctive architectural feature of Islamic mosques, generally a tall spire with an onion-shaped or conical crown, usually either free standing or taller than any associated support structure. The basic form of a minaret includes a base, shaft, and gallery....
.
Miliana is primarily an agricultural
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
town. Its vineyards, orchards and gardens, which lie below the town center, are fed by water from nearby mountains that usually have snow in winters. Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...
is used to power tile factories
Factory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
, flour mills
Gristmill
The terms gristmill or grist mill can refer either to a building in which grain is ground into flour, or to the grinding mechanism itself.- Early history :...
and other light industries
Light industry
Light industry is usually less capital intensive than heavy industry, and is more consumer-oriented than business-oriented...
.
History
Miliana was founded in the 10th century by Buluggin ibn ZiriBuluggin ibn Ziri
Bologhine ibn Ziri was the first ruler of the Zirids in Ifriqiya .Bologhine was already given responsibility under the governorship of his father Ziri ibn Manad, during which time he founded the cities of Algiers, Miliana and Médéa. After Ziri's death in battle against renegade Berbers, Bologhine...
on the site of an ancient Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
city, Zucchabar (Succhabar). In the 1830s, the town came under the control of Abd al-Qadir in opposition to the increasing French occupation of Algeria
French Algeria
French Algeria lasted from 1830 to 1962, under a variety of governmental systems. From 1848 until independence, the whole Mediterranean region of Algeria was administered as an integral part of France, much like Corsica and Réunion are to this day. The vast arid interior of Algeria, like the rest...
. In 1840, al-Qadir ordered Miliana to be burned down instead of surrendering it to the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. The town eventually fell under French control in 1842, and was rebuilt in the French Colonial
French Colonial
French Colonial a style of architecture used by the French during colonization. Many French colonies, especially those in South-East Asia, have previously been reluctant to promote their colonial architecture as an asset for tourism, however in recent times, the new-generation of local authorities...
architectural
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
style.
Zucchabar
Zucchabar (located at 36°15′57"N 2°17′50"E, near present day Miliana) was an ancient town in the RomanAncient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
province of Mauretania Caesariensis
Mauretania Caesariensis
Mauretania Caesariensis was a Roman province located in northwestern Africa. It was the easternmost of the North African Roman provinces, mainly in present Algeria, with its capital at Caesarea , now Cherchell.-Historical background:In the first century AD, Roman...
. It was constituted as a Roman colony (Colonia Iulia Augusta Zucchabar) under Augustus
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
. In late antiquity it was an episcopal see
Episcopal See
An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
and has been a titular see
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 bishop", "titular metropolitan", or "titular archbishop"....
of the Catholic Church since 1967.
Zucchabar is featured in the film Gladiator
Gladiator (2000 film)
Gladiator is a 2000 historical epic film directed by Ridley Scott, starring Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Ralf Möller, Oliver Reed, Djimon Hounsou, Derek Jacobi, John Shrapnel and Richard Harris. Crowe portrays the loyal Roman General Maximus Decimus Meridius, who is betrayed...
, where it is falsely introduced as the name of a Roman province.
Recreation
The game of El Koura is a traditional game that was played in Miliana, LaghouatLaghouat
Laghouat is the capital city of the Laghouat Province, Algeria, 400 km south of the Algerian capital Algiers in the Atlas Mountains. As of 2005, the population of the city was 126,291 inhabitants. Nearby, in Hassi R'Mel, there is the largest natural gas reserve in Africa.The city was founded in...
and other places prior to French colonization
French colonial empire
The French colonial empire was the set of territories outside Europe that were under French rule primarily from the 17th century to the late 1960s. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the colonial empire of France was the second-largest in the world behind the British Empire. The French colonial empire...
. Similar to association football, the game was played during the spring and times of extreme drought
Drought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
because it was believed to bring rain. After French colonization, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an sports, especially association football, became more popular.
The town is home to Algerian club football team
Football team
A football team is the collective name given to a group of players selected together in the various team sports known as football.Such teams could be selected to play in an against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an All-star team or even selected as a...
S.C. Miliana.
Notable people from Miliana
- Mustapha Ferroukhi, resistant.
- Mohamed Bouras, founder of the Algerian Muslim Scouts.
- Ali Ammar said Ali La Pointe, resistant.
- Augustin Ferrando (1880–1957), Orientalist painter, director of the School of Fine Arts in OranOranOran is a major city on the northwestern Mediterranean coast of Algeria, and the second largest city of the country.It is the capital of the Oran Province . The city has a population of 759,645 , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately 1,500,000, making it the second largest...
. - Marcello Fabri (1889–1945), poet and Orientalist painter, essayist, philosopher, art critic, playwright, founder of two journals.
- Sidi Ahmed Benyoucef Errachidi (1435–1524), whose mausoleum was classified a historic monument in 1978.