Morocco

Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the <a href="/facts/Maghreb/oIcU24Mz">Maghreb</a> region of <a href="/facts/North_Africa/ItxQAfs7">North Africa</a>. It has coastlines on the <a href="/facts/Mediterranean_Sea/Vr2pzVbM">Mediterranean Sea</a> to the north and the <a href="/facts/Atlantic_Ocean/EI4uChIb">Atlantic Ocean</a> to the west, and has land borders with <a href="/facts/Algeria/UXDF4Tj6">Algeria</a> to <a href="/facts/Algeria%25E2%2580%2593Morocco_border/AIsT1N75">the east</a>, and the disputed territory of <a href="/facts/Western_Sahara/xAmSkuJl">Western Sahara</a> to <a href="/facts/Morocco%25E2%2580%2593Western_Sahara_border/ndlMmhfh">the south</a>. Morocco also claims the <a href="/facts/Spain/bIyrB8EY">Spanish</a> <a href="/facts/Enclave_and_exclave/AFKB4LW6">exclaves</a> of <a href="/facts/Ceuta/lnXoy5Nh">Ceuta</a>, <a href="/facts/Melilla/RpWlj2Ce">Melilla</a> and <a href="/facts/Pe%25C3%25B1%25C3%25B3n_de_V%25C3%25A9lez_de_la_Gomera/uU8Kropf">Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera</a>, and several small <a href="/facts/Plazas_de_soberan%25C3%25ADa/FdHKh4FK">Spanish-controlled islands</a> off its coast. It has a population of approximately 37 million. Islam is both the official and predominant religion, while Arabic and Berber are the official languages. Additionally, French and the Moroccan dialect of Arabic are widely spoken. The <a href="/facts/Culture_of_Morocco/wLI7bp6U">culture of Morocco</a> is a mix of <a href="/facts/Arab_culture/fn8Jkj2w">Arab</a>, <a href="/facts/Berbers/kuN9pFNf">Berber</a>, <a href="/facts/Culture_of_Africa/JP5T9JeG">African</a> and <a href="/facts/Culture_of_Europe/HyRmCYRq">European</a> cultures. Its capital is <a href="/facts/Rabat/oPcxFY9g">Rabat</a>, while its largest city is <a href="/facts/Casablanca/f6dhYws1">Casablanca</a>.
The region constituting Morocco has been inhabited since the <a href="/facts/Paleolithic/I48SMHo5">Paleolithic</a> era over 300,000 years ago. The <a href="/facts/Idrisid_dynasty/AUvqgxuk">Idrisid dynasty</a> was established by <a href="/facts/Idris_I_of_Morocco/potHXKHq">Idris I</a> in 788, and Morocco was subsequently ruled by a series of other independent dynasties, reaching its zenith as a <a href="/facts/Regional_power/5sEzSjCx">regional power</a> in the 11th and 12th centuries, under the <a href="/facts/Almoravid_dynasty/vkyHTAak">Almoravid</a> and <a href="/facts/Almohad_Caliphate/L9Xkck7b">Almohad</a> dynasties, when it controlled most of the <a href="/facts/Iberian_Peninsula/ztFXI8zt">Iberian Peninsula</a> and the Maghreb. Centuries of <a href="/facts/Arab_migration_to_the_Maghreb/FhDV0aIE">Arab migration to the Maghreb</a> since the 7th century shifted the demographic scope of the region. In the 15th and 16th centuries, Morocco faced external threats to its sovereignty, with <a href="/facts/Portuguese_Empire/nxn2wnHj">Portugal</a> seizing some territory and the <a href="/facts/Ottoman_Empire/6QvfTRsg">Ottoman Empire</a> encroaching from the east. The <a href="/facts/Marinid_Sultanate/gUzBNVwh">Marinid</a> and <a href="/facts/Saadi_Sultanate/JLrz9b3Q">Saadi</a> dynasties otherwise resisted foreign domination, and Morocco was the only North African nation to escape Ottoman dominion. The <a href="/facts/%2527Alawi_dynasty/JVUoW47D">'Alawi dynasty</a>, which rules the country to this day, seized power in 1631, and over the next two centuries expanded <a href="/facts/Diplomatic/Uur9nszq">diplomatic</a> and commercial relations with the <a href="/facts/Western_world/UQl4e7du">Western world</a>. Morocco's strategic location near the mouth of the Mediterranean drew renewed European interest; in 1912, France and Spain divided the country into respective protectorates, reserving an <a href="/facts/Tangier_International_Zone/KjroxQC1">international zone in Tangier</a>. Following intermittent riots and revolts against colonial rule, in 1956, Morocco regained its independence and reunified.
Since independence, Morocco has remained relatively stable. It has the <a href="/facts/List_of_African_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)/nX3S8qhf">fifth-largest economy</a> in Africa and wields significant influence in both Africa and the <a href="/facts/Arab_world/F8Jouq98">Arab world</a>; it is considered a <a href="/facts/Middle_power/ku44qNYY">middle power</a> in global affairs and holds membership in the <a href="/facts/Arab_League/15f9WWWM">Arab League</a>, the <a href="/facts/Arab_Maghreb_Union/2TaDakk6">Arab Maghreb Union</a>, the <a href="/facts/Union_for_the_Mediterranean/EJ7puIQB">Union for the Mediterranean</a>, and the <a href="/facts/African_Union/Pz1DVnDN">African Union</a>. Morocco is a <a href="/facts/Unitary_state/HAxK1eMM">unitary</a> semi-<a href="/facts/Constitutional_monarchy/C0TtVRq8">constitutional monarchy</a> with an elected parliament. The <a href="/facts/Executive_(government)/fPCCh3VU">executive branch</a> is led by the <a href="/facts/King_of_Morocco/ypYf2Tlt">King of Morocco</a> and the <a href="/facts/Prime_Minister_of_Morocco/75kKpt78">prime minister</a>, while <a href="/facts/Legislature/ycUCe91S">legislative power</a> is vested in the two chambers of parliament: the <a href="/facts/House_of_Representatives_(Morocco)/J716coeh">House of Representatives</a> and the <a href="/facts/House_of_Councillors_(Morocco)/YEgUGC1F">House of Councillors</a>. Judicial power rests with the Constitutional Court, which may review the validity of laws, elections, and referendums. The king holds vast executive and legislative powers, especially over the <a href="/facts/Royal_Moroccan_Armed_Forces/y9Qn9sPr">military</a>, foreign policy and religious affairs; he can issue <a href="/facts/Moroccan_Dahir/6tt7pEm3">dahirs</a>, decrees which have the force of law, and he can also dissolve the parliament after consulting the <a href="/facts/List_of_heads_of_government_of_Morocco/75kKpt78">prime minister</a> and the president of the constitutional court.
Morocco claims ownership of the <a href="/facts/United_Nations_list_of_non-self-governing_territories/zjXdgekp">non-self-governing territory</a> of <a href="/facts/Western_Sahara/xAmSkuJl">Western Sahara</a>, which it has designated its <a href="/facts/Southern_Provinces/ooeFh9HJ">Southern Provinces</a>. In 1975, after Spain <a href="/facts/Madrid_Accords/SNbzameN">agreed to decolonise the territory</a> and cede its control to Morocco and <a href="/facts/Mauritania/JcP8EJku">Mauritania</a>, a <a href="/facts/Western_Sahara_War/s0adU66R">guerrilla war</a> broke out between those powers and some of the <a href="/facts/Sahrawi_people/376dThRV">local inhabitants</a>. In 1979, Mauritania relinquished <a href="/facts/Tiris_al-Gharbiyya/Wdfb34QJ">its claim</a> to the area, but the war continued to rage. In 1991, a ceasefire agreement was reached, but the issue of sovereignty remained unresolved. Today, Morocco occupies two-thirds of the territory, and <a href="/facts/Western_Sahara_peace_process/zPw3FsDr">efforts to resolve the dispute</a> have thus far failed to break the political deadlock.

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Morocco