Ethnicity/Race: Arab-Berber 99.1%, other 0.7%, Jewish 0.2%
Language: The
official language is Arabic, Berber and French
are widely spoken throughout the country, while
Spanish is more predominant in the northern regions.
English is also understood particularly in the
north and around Agadir.
Currency: Moroccan
Dirham (DH) = 100 centimes. Notes are in denomination
of DH 200, 100, 50, 20 and 10. Coins are in denomination
of DHS 5 and 1 and 50, 20, 10 and 5 centimes.
Credit cards: Major credit cards are accepted
(Visa, MasterCard, JCB, Eurocard, Amex, Diners
Club.)
Religion: Predominantly
Muslim with Jewish and Christian minorities. Morocco's
population and culture stems from a cross section
of origins including Berbers, Arabs, Moors and
Jews.
Time: GMT
Electricity:
220 volts AC, 50Hz. Lamp sockets are screw-type,
and there is a wide range of wall sockets.
Geography:
Morocco is located on the westernmost tip of north
Africa, bordering Algeria to the east and Mauritania
to the west. Running through the middle of the
country is the Atlas mountains range, which leads
to the fertile plains and sandy beaches of the
Atlantic coast. The Middle Atlas range sweeps
up from the south, rising to over 3000 m (9850
ft), covered with woodlands of pine, oak and cedar,
open pastureland and small lakes. The Rif Mountains
run along the north coast. The ports of Ceuta
and Melilla on the north coast are administered
by Spain.
Climate: The
coast as a warm, Mediterranean climate tempered
on the eastern coast by southwest trade winds.
Inland areas have a hotter, drier, continental
climate. In the South of the country, the weather
is very hot and dry throughout most of the year,
with the nights coolest in the months of December
and January. Rain falls from November to March
in coastal areas. Mostly dry with high temperatures
in summer. Cooler climate in the mountains. Marrakech
and Agadir enjoy an average temperature of 21
C the winter.
Morocco ... Spirit Of World
A Beautiful Video About Morocco(Video in French)
Morocco is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 36 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara. It is part of the Maghreb region, in addition to Tunisia, Algeria, Mauritania, and Libya, with which it shares cultural, historical and linguistic ties.
Morocco is a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. The King of Morocco holds vast executive powers, including dissolving parliament at will. Executive power is exercised by the government but more importantly by the king himself. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of parliament, the Assembly of Representatives and the Assembly of Councillors. The king can also issue decrees called dahirs which have the force of law. Parliamentary elections were held in Morocco on 7 September 2007, and were considered by some neutral observers to be mostly free and fair; although voter turnout was estimated to be 37%, the lowest in decades. The political capital is Rabat, and the largest city is Casablanca; other large cities include Marrakesh, Tetouan, Tangier, Salé, Fes, Agadir, Meknes and Oujda.
As in other Muslim countries, a traditional Moroccan
wedding ceremony lasts from four to seven days.
On her wedding day, it is a Moroccan wedding
custom for the bride to have a ceremonial purification
milk bath before a ritual henna painting (Beberiska)
of her hands and feet. Originally, this purification
and painting was the wedding ceremony in Arab
lands some 200 years ago.
Modern Morrocan brides
continue this tradition by annointing the palm
of guests with a unique smear, called the henna.
Before she is dressed in her wedding dress, another
woman arranges her hair, applies her make-up and
puts on her jewelry. The bride also wears an elaborate
headpiece with a veil.
Once the couples wedding vows have been exchanged,
and before the newlywed Moroccan bride becomes
the mistress of her new home, she walks around
the outside of her house three times.
Mobile telephone:
During the last decade, Moroccan telecommunication
system has undergone major structural transformations.
As it is important to be on the cutting edge of
information and communication technologies (ICTs)
to be globally competitive, the Moroccan government
has thrust ICTs into the forefront of national
socio-economic development. The Moroccan government
has embarked on institutional reform and on genuine
telecommunications policies. In addition, it has
allocated a substantial amount of budget to improve
and promote the progress of ICTs throughout the
country, by upgrading and expanding the telecommunications
infrastructure and also by popularising the use
of the ICTs in the various sectors of the Moroccan
society.
Internet: During
the last decade, Moroccan telecommunication system
has undergone major structural transformations.
As it is important to be on the cutting edge of
information and communication technologies (ICTs)
to be globally competitive, the Moroccan government
has thrust ICTs into the forefront of national
socio-economic development. The Moroccan government
has embarked on institutional reform and on genuine
telecommunications policies. In addition, it has
allocated a substantial amount of budget to improve
and promote the progress of ICTs throughout the
country, by upgrading and expanding the telecommunications
infrastructure and also by popularising the use
of the ICTs in the various sectors of the Moroccan
society.
Post: Air mail
letters normally take at least five days to reach
Morocco.
Press: Maroc Press
Radio Stations:
Radio 2M Morocco, Yabiladi Radio, Radio Medi 1 Morocco
Television & Satellite TV: TV 2M Channel Maroc, TV 2M News in Arabic, Le Journal TV 2M Maroc
