CHECHAOUENE

also spelled Chechaouen, or Chefchaouen, French Chaouen, Spanish Xauen, Arabic Shafshawan, Muslim holy city, northern Morocco, in the Rif mountain range. Founded in 1471 by the warrior Abu Youma and later moved by Sidi Ali ibn Rachid to its present site at the base of Mount ech-Chaouene, the city became a refuge for Moors expelled from Spain. A holy city long closed to non-Muslims, it was occupied in 1920 by the Spanish, who restored it to the Moroccan kingdom in 1956. Chechaouene still contains 12 mosques and presents a picturesque appearance, with white houses roofed with round tiles common in southern Europe but rare in Morocco. The city's luxuriant gardens are watered from a constant mountain spring. It is connected by road with Al-Hocema, Ouezzane, and Ttouan. Pop. (1982) 23,563.