About Tangier

Tangier ( tan-JEER(Z); Arabic: طنجة, Berber languages: ⵟⴰⵏⵊⴰ, romanized: Ṭanja, Spanish: Tánger) is a city in northwestern Morocco. It is on the Maghreb coast at the western entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar, where the Mediterranean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Spartel. The town is the capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah prefecture of Morocco. Many civilisations and cultures have influenced the history of Tangier, starting from before the 10th century BCE. Between the period of being a strategic Berber town and then a Phoenician trading centre to Morocco's independence era around the 1950s, Tangier was a nexus for many cultures. In 1923, it was considered as having international status by foreign colonial powers and became a destination for many European and American diplomats, spies, bohemians, writers and businessmen. The city is undergoing rapid development and modernisation. Projects include tourism projects along the bay, a modern business district called Tangier City Centre, an airport terminal, and a football stadium. Tangier's economy is set to benefit greatly from the Tanger-Med port. == Names == The Carthaginian name of the city is variously recorded as TNG (Punic: 𐤕𐤍𐤂), TNGʾ (𐤕𐤍𐤂𐤀), TYNGʾ (𐤕𐤉𐤍𐤂𐤀), and TTGʾ (𐤕𐤕𐤂𐤀); these appear in Greek and Roman sources as Tenga, Tinga, Titga, &c. The old Berber name was Tingi (ⵜⵉⵏⴳⵉ), which Ruiz connects to Berber tingis, meaning "marsh".