Oasis, southeastern Morocco.
The country's largest Saharan oasis, it covers 533 sq mi (1,380 sq km). It comprises six fortified villages and palm groves stretching for some 30 mi (50 km) along the Wadi Ziz. Its old capital was the prosperous Berber stronghold of Sijilmassa, founded in AD 757 on the Saharan caravan route and finally destroyed in the 19th century. The oasis is noted for its groves of date palms.