Zemmouri

Zemmouri is a town and commune in the Bordj Menaïel District of Boumerdès Province, Algeria. As of 2008, the population of the municipality is 26,408.[1]

Zemmouri زموري
Commune and town
Zemmouri
Coordinates: 36°47′N 3°36′E
Country	Algeria
Province	Boumerdès Province
Population  (2008)
• Total	26,408
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)

Villages

The villages of the commune of Zemmouri are:

• B
  • Ben Younes

• E
  • El Bor

• H
  • Hadj Ahmed

• O
  • Ouled Bendou
  • Ouled Bouhmed
  • Ouled Hocine

• Z
  • Zaatra
  • Zemmouri El Bahri

History

The coastal site of Zemmouri El-Bahri was a Phoenician and later Roman settlement named Rusubbicari.[2] In the medieval period, it became a small port named Marsā al-Dajāj (literally "chicken port"). Archeological research there has uncovered medieval structures and pottery, as well as Roman coins.[3]

By the 19th century the main village, slightly further inland, was known as Zemmouri (usually spelled Zamouri or Zemouri at the time). In 1872 the French government established a colonial settlement there using land confiscated from the Isser el-Ouidan tribe and from private individuals in the wake of the Mokrani Revolt;[4] in 1886 it was renamed Courbet, after Admiral Amédée Courbet.[5] Following Algeria's independence in 1962, the name Zemmouri was restored.

Geology

The disastrous 2003 Boumerdès earthquake led to the discovery of a thrust fault; it was subsequently named after the town. The fault has since been incorporated into seismic hazard maps, which will serve as an important guideline for public safety.[6]

Nature

To the northwest of the town, the Sahel Forest and the coastal dunes on which it grows are dominated by Aleppo pine and other Mediterranean maquis flora, and constitute a tourist attraction.[7]

Notable people

• Abdelhafid Benchabla, boxer
• Ali Rial, footballer

References

2. Salama, Pierre. Sites commerciaux antiques sur le littoral de l’Algérois. In: Mélanges de l'École française de Rome. Antiquité, vol. 118, n°2. 2006. pp. 527-547.
3. Le site archéologique de Zemmouri El-Bahri continue de surprendre : De nouvelles découvertes de l’époque médiévale et romaine, Liberté 23-09-2017
4. Alain Mahé, 2001, Histoire de la Grande Kabylie, XIXe-XXe siècles, p. 583; Bulletin officiel du gouvernement général de l'Algérie, Volume 16, p. 136, arrété du 19 juillet 1875
5. Notre village Courbet (Algérie), ch. III. IV
6. Curtis L. Edwards, ed. (2004). Zemmouri, Algeria, Mw6.8 Earthquake of May 21, 2003. Reston, VA: ASCE, TCLEE. ISBN 9780784407462.
7. Programme d’Aménagement Côtier (PAC) "Zone côtière algéroise", p. 9