Rif Rif Warszawa (car) Category="Berber"Category="Geography of Morocco"Category="History of Morocco"Category="Rif"
This is about a region in Morocco: RIF is also an acronym/initialism.

[image] The Rif (Arif in Berber, er-Rif الريف in Arabic) is a mainly mountainous region of north Morocco, from Cape Spartel and Tangier in the west to Cape Tres Forcas and Melilla in the east, and from the Mediterranean Sea in the north to the river of Ouargha in the south.

The people of the Rif include Rifains (the Berber people of north Morocco who call themselves: "Imazighen" or "Irifyen") and Arabs (Arabised Rifains and authentic Arabs).

Major Rif cities include Al Hoceima and Nador, while Melilla, though in Spanish hands, is geographically a part of it. Chefchaouen is worth visiting, but Ketama (also known as Issaguen) is known as the center of the Hashish trade and is likely not an ideal destination.

History

In the Middle Ages, it was the home of the Kingdom of Nekor. In the twentieth century, under the leadership of Abd el-Krim el-Khattabi, a Moroccan national hero, it declared independence as the Republic of the Rif and withstood a Spanish invasion for several years.

Neighboring groups include Ghomara on the east, Senhaja on the southeast, and Aith Iznacen on the southwest, in addition to Algeria to the east. The principal spoken language of the region is Tarifit.

Tribes

Traditionally, the principal Rif tribes of the region are:

Environment

The Rif mountains are home to the honeybee Apis mellifera major.

See also

External links

Berber Ethnic groups
Chaouis | Chenouas | Chleuhs | Kabyles | Mozabites | Rifains | Siwis | Tuareg