This article is about a region of Morocco. For the 11th-century Talmudist known as The Rif, see Isaac Alfasi. For other uses, see RIF (disambiguation).
The Rif has been inhabited by Berbers since prehistoric times.[3] As early as the 11th century BC, the Phoenicians began to establish trading posts with the approval of or partnership with the local Berbers; had started interbreeding and creating a Punic language on the Mediterranean and the Atlantic coasts; and had founded cities such as Tetouan, Rusadir (now Melilla) and (in the 5th century BC) Tingi (now Tangier).
After the Third Punic War, the coast of North Africa came under the control of Rome, and the Rif became part of the Kingdom of Mauretania. When Mauretania was divided during the rule of Emperor Claudius, Tangier became the capital of Mauretania Tingitana.[4] In the 5th century AD, the Roman rule came to an end, and the region was later reconquered and partly controlled by the Byzantine Empire.[5]
The Hispano-Moroccan War broke out in 1859 in Tetouan, and Morocco was defeated.[8] The Spanish-Moroccan conflicts continued in the 20th century, under the leadership of Abd el-Krim, the Berber guerrilla leader who proclaimed the Republic of the Rif in 1921.[9] The Riffian Berbers won several victories over the Spanish in the Rif War in the 1920s before they were eventually defeated; the war saw extensive use of chemical weapons by Spanish forces.[10] The Spanish region was decolonised and restored to Morocco by Spain in April 1956, a month after the French region gained its independence from France.[11] Shortly afterward, a revolt broke out in the north against the Moroccan king by Riffian insurgents in 1958, but it was easily suppressed.[12]
Farmers in the Rif produce most of Morocco's supply of cannabis. The region is economically underdeveloped.[13]
Environment
Rif mountains in the province of Ashawen Moroccan Mediterranean coast – aerial view west from Bades over El Jebha to Tétouan with Rif mountains, Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima (2014)
According to C. Michael Hogan, there are between five and eight separate subpopulations of the endangeredprimateBarbary macaque, Macaca sylvanus.[14] The Rif mountains are also home to the honey bee subspecies Apis mellifera major.
The Rif region receives more rainfall than any other region in Morocco, with some portions receiving upwards of 2,000 mm (78.74 in) of precipitation a year.[citation needed] The western and central portions are more rainy and are covered in forests of Atlas cedar, cork oak and holm oak, as well as the only remaining forests of Moroccan fir, a subspecies of the Spanish fir.[citation needed] The eastern slopes receive less rainfall, and there forests consist mainly of pines, particularly the Aleppo pine and the maritime pine, as well as tetraclinis.[citation needed]
Massive deforestation due to overgrazing, forest fires, and forest clearing for agriculture, particularly for the creation of cannabis plantations, has taken place since the 1950s. This deforestation has led to soil degradation due to the washing away of topsoil, which has aggravated the process.[15]
Tribes
The Rif is home to tribal people belonging to different tribes which are usually subdivided in even smaller groups. Following is a list of tribes:[16]
^Mário Curtis Giordani, História da África. Anterior aos descobrimentos. Editora Vozes, Petrópolis (Brasil) 1985, pp. 42f., 77f. Giordani references Bousquet, Les Berbères (Paris 1961).
Le Bohec, Yann (2015) [2011]. "The "Third Punic War": The Siege of Carthage (148–146 BC)". In Hoyos, Dexter (ed.). A Companion to the Punic Wars. Chichester, West Sussex: John Wiley. pp. 430–446. ISBN978-1-1190-2550-4.
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