Messaâd
Appearance
Messad | |
---|---|
Commune and town | |
Coordinates: 34°10′0″N 3°30′0″E / 34.16667°N 3.50000°E | |
Country | Algeria |
Province | Djelfa Province |
Population (2008 Census)[1] | |
• Total | 97,091 |
Time zone | UTC+1 (West Africa Time) |
Messad (sometimes Messaad; Arabic: مسعد) is a town in Algeria. It was the Roman Castellum Dimmidi.
History
[edit]It is about 290 km (180 mi) south of Algiers. During the Roman period it was known as Castellum Dimmidi after the Romans under emperor Septimius Severus seized the settlement.[2] It is unclear if the second part of the name, Dimmidi, was a native name transliterated into Latin, or a new name given by the Romans.
As the Castellum (castle) implies, the settlement was a fortress along the Limes Tripolitanus, the southern border of the province of Numidia. It was a prosperous village and hosted a Roman garrison from roughly 198 to 240 AD.[3]
Messaad has a population of nearly 120,000 inhabitants.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "World Cities with 110,000 to 125,000 people in 2005", Mongaboy.com. URL last accessed on 8 May 2006.
- ^ Francois Decret, Early Christianity in North Africa (James Clarke & Co, 2011) p. 6
- ^ (in French) Dr. Rebound, "Notes Archéologiques sur les Ruines de Djelfa", php4arab.com. URL last accessed on 8 May 2006. Archived 27 September 2005 at the Wayback Machine