Casablanca

Casablanca (/ka.za.blɑ̃.ka/, in Spanish: /kasaˈβlaŋka/; in Amazigh: ⵜⴰⴷⴷⴰⵔⵜ ⵜⵓⵎⵍⵉⵍⵉⵜ (taddart tumlilt); en arabe: الدار البيضاء, ad-Dār al-Bayḍā’, /adˈdaːru ɫbajdˤaːʔ/) est une ville. Elle est située dans le nord-ouest du Maroc, sur la côte atlantique. La ville est à environ 80 km au sud de Rabat, the administrative capital. It is the country’s economic capital. It’s the seat of the Casablanca-Settat region. It’s the largest city in the Maghreb by its population. In the 2014 census, its population was 4,359,818. This made it the most populous city in the kingdom. Its metropolitan area had 4,570,750 people.

In this place, people call themselves Bidawa, Casawa, or Casaoui in Moroccan Arabic.

On the administrative plan, its territory differs from the agglomeration. The agglomeration includes its suburbs. It covers 384 km². This is the same as the municipality of Casablanca. Casablanca has divided itself into 16 arrondissements. They are in eight préfectures. Le Méchouar de Casablanca où siège un palais royal forme sa propre micro-municipalité.

The city has important modern architecture. It has this because of the variety of architecture it had in the 20th century. This variety made it the “laboratory of modernity” for a new generation of architects. They studied at the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts de Paris.

Casablanca has one of the world’s largest mosques. It is the Hassan II Mosque. The mosque’s minaret is over 200 meters tall and is an architectural symbol.

Casablanca has a turbulent past. Four centuries after the Portuguese razed it, the French ravaged it in 1907. They’ve bombed the city during the Casablanca uprising, causing thousands of deaths. This was the start of the Morocco campaign.

During King Hassan II’s years of rule, the army besieged the city during the 1981 riots. The siege caused hundreds of victims.

Casablanca is now in a time of economic growth. It’s marked by major construction projects to improve the city. These include clearing slums. They also include building a tram system. And, they include expanding the highway and rail networks. The city is also building Africa’s first high-speed rail line. They are also building a new business center, Casa-Anfa.

Casablanca is one of the top five global cities in Africa. It’s a beta global city, like Cape Town and Nairobi. The three cities are all below Cairo (beta+) and Johannesburg (alpha-)