OUEZZANE

city, north-central Morocco. It lies at the southwestern edge of the Rif Mountains. Ouezzane is situated on the northern slope of Mount Bouhelal, at an elevation of 1,066 feet (325 m). It was founded in 1727 as a religious community on the site of a village named Dechra Jebel er-Rihan (Village of the Mount of Myrtles) by Moulay 'Abd Allah, a descendant of Idris II. It has served as a zawiyah (monastic complex) of the Taiba (a Sufi [mystical] brotherhood). Ouezzane is considered to be one of the sacred cities of the Maghrib, the region in North Africa comprising the Atlas Massif and the Mediterranean coastal plain of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, and is hence a pilgrimage centre. In 1920 the city was occupied by the French. Cereals and cattle are raised in the vicinity of Ouezzane, and the city also serves as a local market centre. Pop. (1982) 40,485.