Portuguese fishing harbour and centre of argan oil - Medina of Essaouira (formerly Mogador) 753; Argan, practices and know-how concerning the argan tree 00955; Gnawa 01170
What and Why
Essaouira (Tamazight: ⵜⴰⵚⵚⵓⵔⵜ, Taṣṣort) is a fishing port established by the Portuguese during the 16th century CE. In the early 16th century CE, the king of Portugal, Dom Manuel I (né Manuel Aviz), ordered a fortress to be built there and named it Royal Castle of Mogador (Portuguese: Castelo Real de Mogador). Mogador was the ancient name of the city which comes from the Phoenician word migdol, meaning small fortress.
Since the 18th century CE, Essaouira has used its strategic location to reap business and political benefits: Mohammed Ben Abdellah al-Khatib (محمد الثالث بن عبد الله الخطيب) used Essaouira as a strategic seaport to reorient his kingdom for increased exchanges with Europe. One of his objectives was to establish a harbour at the closest possible point to Marrakesh (ⴰⵎⵓⵔⴰⴽⵓⵛ, Murrākuš). The other was to cut off Agadir (ⴰⴳⴰⴷⵉⵔ) and forced them to relocate to Essaouira. The favourable climate of Essaouira certainly helped its rapid growth.
The Jewish influence also came during the same time. Mohammed III encouraged Moroccan Jews to settle in the town and handle the trade with Europe. Jews once comprised 40% of the population of the city. The city flourished until the caravan trade died, and superseded by direct European shipping trade with sub-Saharan Africa. After the First World War, Morocco became a French protectorate and hence the city shows a potpourri of Portuguese, Jewish, French and Arabic cultures.
Essaouira is also the centre of the most important produces from Morocco, the argan (ⴰⵔⴳⴰⵏ).
Toponymy
Essaouira (Arabic: الصويرة) comes from its Moroccan Arabic 'ṣ-ṣwiṛa', meaning 'a beautiful small fortress'.
See
Medina
The medina of Essaouira is an absolute joy to stroll around. While it expresses the normal hustle and bustle of Arabian souqs, it is very clean, bright and orderly, and is a breath of fresh air (literally) compared with all the other souqs in Morocco, as it is breezed with fresh air from the sea. With the European influence and the fact that the city is more recently planned by the French, the medina is also very well and orderly designed. The fort and its remparts is a good example of European-influenced Arabic fort.
The medina has a large variety of shops and eateries.
A more modern and French-influenced alley
Essaouira is also a major art centre of Africa, and there are plenty of designers, painters, fabric artists putting their work on sale around the medina.
Along the streets we witnessed the main cultural landmarks of Essaouira, the gnawa (Arabic: ڭْناوة) performance by some buskers. Gnawa is a form of sub-Saharan African Islamic religious music. The world Gnawa is taken from the Hausa-Fulani demonym 'Kanawa' for the people from the Nigerian city of Kano, which was once under Moroccan influence. Gnawa is such an important cultural element of Essaouira that it is now an UNESCO ICH.
Apparently Essaouira is now the centre of gnawa and an international festival called the Gnawa World Music Festival (مهرجان كناوة وموسيقى العالم) is held annually in the city.
The minaret of the medina at the exit.
Hammam (حمّام)
There are many hammam (Arabic: حمّام) in Morocco, in particular in Essaouira. Hammam includes a bone-cracking 'massage', hot and cold dips and a hard scrub through a luffa (a scrub-glove). Be prepared!
Buy and Do
Argan (ⴰⵔⴳⴰⵏ)
The famous argan oil comes largely from this region, which comes from the argan fruit. Argan oil is both used for culinary and cosmetic purposes, local and abroad. It is one of the main Moroccan produces and is responsible for a major source of income to the country. Having said that the production of argan oil is still very backwards and primitive as shown by the various production plants and museums around the region.
The laborious argan oil production process as shown, and I can attest that this is not a show. Argan oil is such a cultural stamp for Morocco that it got itself inscribed in the UNESCO ICH.
One of the sights of the argan plantations is that goats climb up to the trees and consume the argan fruits, as shown in the main picture above. There are rumours that these goats are actually put onto the tree by humans though. Nevertheless it is a great and interesting photospot.
Essaouira is also renowned for its lacquerware, which is aplenty in the medina.
Eat and Drink
Harira (الحريرة)
While Essaouira is close to the sea and is famous for its seafood, it is generally quite expensive. The local soup harira (Arabic: الحريرة) comes from the region. It is a bean-based thick soup infused with minced meat, egg, and tastes a bit sour.
Getting There and Around
Walk. The medina is a very pleasant market to walk around. A good half-day trip to explore the city. Essaouira is around 2.5 hours away from Marrakesh.
UNESCO Inscriptions
Essaouira is an exceptional example of a late-18th-century fortified town, built according to the principles of contemporary European military architecture in a North African context. Since its foundation, it has been a major international trading seaport, linking Morocco and its Saharan hinterland with Europe and the rest of the world.
The argan tree is an endemic woodland species found in the Arganeraie Biosphere Reserve in south-west Morocco. Rural women and, to a lesser extent, men living in the reserve practise traditional methods to extract argan oil from the fruit of the tree. Different tasks, transmitted by means of imitation and through non-formal education, are required to obtain the oil, which has multiple uses for cooking, medicines and cosmetics. These include harvesting the fruit, drying, pulping, grinding, sorting, milling and mixing. The specific hand mill is manufactured by local craftspeople, and the mixing involves the gradual addition of warm water in exact quantities. All the cultural aspects of the argan tree, including the cultivation of the tree, oil extraction, the preparation of recipes and derived products, and the crafting of traditional tools for the various tasks, contribute to social cohesion, understanding between individuals and mutual respect between communities. Argan oil is given as a wedding gift and is used extensively in the preparation of festive dishes. Traditional know-how specific to the extraction of the oil and its multiple uses is systematically transmitted by ‘argan women’, who teach their daughters from a young age to put it into practice.
Gnawa refers to a set of musical events, performances, fraternal practices and therapeutic rituals mixing the secular with the sacred. Gnawa is first and foremost a Sufi brotherhood music combined with lyrics with a generally religious content, invoking ancestors and spirits. Originally practised by groups and individuals from slavery and the slave trade dating back to at least the 16th century, Gnawa culture is now considered as part of Morocco’s multifaceted culture and identity. The Gnawa, especially in the city, practise a therapeutic possession ritual through all-night rhythm and trance ceremonies combining ancestral African practices, Arab-Muslim influences and native Berber cultural performances. The Gnawa in rural areas organize communal meals offered to marabout saints. Some Gnawa in urban areas use a stringed musical instrument and castanets, while those in rural areas use large drums and castanets. Colourful, embroidered costumes are worn in the city, while white attire with accessories characterize rural practices. The number of fraternal groups and master musicians is constantly growing in Morocco’s villages and major cities, and Gnawa groups – organized into associations – hold local, regional, national and international festivals year-round. This allows young people to learn about both the lyrics and musical instruments as well as practices and rituals related to Gnawa culture generally.
References
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