We are used to thinking of Europe at that time as densely populated areas, and Africa as an untamed land of Tuareg and Arab nomads wandering from oasis to oasis. Or Gaul or Germania or what-have you.Īnd this is a medieval map. If you wanted to see the towns in Europe you could flip to the Europe page. This map shows fewer cities in Europe than in Africa.Īlmost like this map was specifically about medieval Barbary and not medieval Europe. Tebessa's one of the southern-most cities on this map and it's still got Djebel Chambi national park south of it.
Ancient cities of africa full#
Northern Algeria and Tunisia are full of forested mountains that capture rainwater from the Mediterranean climate. Some river branches were renamed and there's some big dams in the way but you can still see how it all works.Īnd everything is now in the sands and only in the mountainous areas in Morocco you can still find some green? I found my way from Tunis to Tebessa in google maps using this historical map. These maps are listing ports where a captain could take on supplies and maybe trade, but you don't need a 10,000+ population to operate those ports.īut what happened that many cities have disappearedĪctually you can still trace some of these rivers. It's almost like some cities became less important and shrank over the course of 450 years. The cities were not destroyed here (otherwise, I don't think they are draw it on the map). The map shows the era after all the Arab conquests.
Ancient cities of africa code#
What is also interesting is that these are cities standing on rivers.Īs much as I want to believe in ancient bridge-cities, that's probably just code for "the town is visible at this point in the river and you don't need a more accurate map".Īs you can see, the river network was large in northern Africa at the time. Use of material from the article for youtube channels only with the permission and agreement of the author (c). This map shows fewer cities in Europe than in Africa. But what happened that many cities have disappeared and everything is now in the sands and only in the mountainous areas in Morocco you can still find some green? As you can see, the river network was large in northern Africa at the time. What is also interesting is that these are cities standing on rivers. And you can see all these towns even more clearly on it. I found a map of Barbaria in good resolution: an atlas by Ortelius (1570), where the Barbary territory (or country) in the atlas is given an entire sheet. There you can also look at many other cities that have hardly changed their name. In general, you can see this comparison for yourself by this link. The comparison will be with the 1787 map of Africa on : I suggest comparing an old medieval map with modern geography to see how many ancient cities have survived to the present day. Some of them look like Eastern Europeans in their national costumes. The Berber self-appellation is Imazighen (free people). On Slavic-language maps, the name is spelt "Варварiя", but it sounds like "Warwaria". The name Barbaria is consonant with the name of the people living in Morocco: the Berbers. Today these are now the territories of: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt
But how could the climate have changed so much in a few hundred years? There are no hints of endless sands there. On ancient maps of northern Africa, the Sahara looks like a blooming land.