Touggourt

Touggourt
تقرت
City
Monument de Citroen, Touggourt
Monument de Citroen, Touggourt
Location of Touggourt commune within Ouargla Province
Location of Touggourt commune within Ouargla Province
Touggourt is located in Algeria
Touggourt
Touggourt
Location of Touggourt within Algeria
Coordinates: 33°06′N 6°04′E / 33.100°N 6.067°E / 33.100; 6.067
Country Algeria
ProvinceTouggourt
DistrictTouggourt
Area
 • Total216 km2 (83 sq mi)
Elevation
62 m (203 ft)
Population
 (2008)[1]
 • Total143,270
 • Density660/km2 (1,700/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
Postal code
30002

Touggourt (Arabic: ﺗﻗﺮت or تڤرت; Berber languages: ⵜⵓⴳⵓⵔⵜ, romanized: Tugurt, lit. 'the gateway' or 'the gate') is a city and commune, former sultanate and capital of Touggourt District, in Touggourt Province, Algeria, built next to an oasis in the Sahara. As of the 2008 census, the commune had a population of 39,409 people,[1] up from 32,940 in 1998,[2] and an annual growth rate of 1.8%.[1] Touggourt's urban area includes the communes of Nezla, Tebesbest and Zaouia El Abidia, for a total population of 146,108.[1]

Touggourt is notable for its date trees. It was formerly surrounded by a moat, which the French filled up.[3] Bradt Travel Guides describe it as "largely a modern town of block architecture" and "largely unattractive. The centre is quiet most of the day due to the heat but is more active at night when people take to the streets."[4]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Population: Ouargla Wilaya" (PDF) (in French). Office National des Statistiques Algérie. Retrieved 24 February 2013.
  2. ^ "Algeria Communes". Statoids. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  3. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Tuggurt" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 27 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 364.
  4. ^ Oakes, Johathan (17 June 2008). Algeria: the Bradt travel guide. Bradt Travel Guides. p. 199. ISBN 978-1-84162-232-3. Retrieved 28 January 2013.