Elizabeth (Betsy) Lau

GCU 114

Morocco Settlement Research

Morocco is a country located in North Africa, right below Spain. It is bordered by the

Atlantic Ocean to the west and the Mediterranean Sea to the north. Furthermore, mountains

cover a large part of the country, with the Sahara Desert laying in the southeastern part of this

vast land. Equally important, the Moulouya River runs through the Atlas Mountains—which

monopolize a major part of the country (“morocco geography”). The climate in Morocco is

Mediterranean in nature; hence, it is characterized by dry, hot summers, and the winters are wet

and chilly (“the culture and arts”). The first known people to settle on this land made an

appearance at least four thousand years ago—the Berbers.

Thousands of years ago, the Berbers of Northern Africa settled into the Atlas Mountains

of Morocco. The terrain is unforgiving and difficult to work with, but the Berber quickly adapted

to the rocky, desert landscape. Although often envisioned on the backs of camels, riding though

the Sahara Desert, Berbers’ lifestyle most closely resembled that of an agriculturist. Berbers

practiced sedentary agriculture, and still do to this day; thus, many Berbers would settle in one

place and farm the land without rotating their fields. However, some members of this indigenous

tribe would move frequently with the seasonal patterns in an effort to sustain their flocks.

Furthermore, Berbers that led a sedentary life would raise sheep and goat in small flocks.

Additionally, they would maintain “small irrigated gardens, dry cereal culture, [and]

arboriculture” (Berber). Overall, the Berber lived a very simple life and relied on the land to

sustain their needs.

 In addition to their agrarian lifestyle, the Berbers resided in large tribes comprised of

their family members. These tribes had no recognized government as “tribal Berbers lived

according to the rules of their tribal leaders and the rules of one tribe could be far removed from

the rules of another tribe” (History of morocco). This lack of government left the Berbers

extremely vulnerable to invasion from other empires. The Phoenicians were the first to conquer

Morocco’s indigenous tribe, and the Phoenicians found great success with numerous coastal

settlements. The Phoenicians were followed by the Carthaginians, the Roman Empire, and lastly

the Arabs. In the end, the Arabs grasp on Morocco never weaken, and they still hold a majority

of the power in this country. Consequently, the country found peace and many from Spain

migrated to Morocco and found great success (History of morocco). The combination of all these

cultures, resulted in the extremely diverse community that makes up Morocco.

Currently, the Berbers reside most commonly in the mountain ranges of Morocco, and

their history with the land and invasions proves Jared Diamond’s theory in Guns, Germs, and

Steel. Diamond’s evolutionary theory relies heavily on where settlements lay in relation to

latitude. In order to understand the reasoning behind the tremendous success of some nations and

the lack of advancement in others, Diamond looks at latitude. This is because areas of land that

fall around the same latitude possess similar climatic conditions; hence, as these populations of

people move around the globe—following a similar latitude—they are able to easily conquer the

land, because it so closely resembles their native land. The crops they are so used to growing and

the animals they are familiar with raising, will also be successful in these new lands. Hence past

peoples who decided to move north to south, found defeat and the collapse of societies.

Therefore, the settlement history of Morocco supports Diamond’s widely regarded

hypothesis. The Phoenicians found great success while conquering the Berbers, and this can be
equated to the fact that they stayed at a similar latitude when moving toward Morocco. Similarly,

the Carthaginians and the Roman Empire remained at a similar latitude when entering Morocco,

and both of these empires found great prosperity in the rocky, desert terrain of Morocco. This

triumph of all three empires has the potential to be explained through Diamond’s theory of

evolution. Due to the fact these empires remained at a similar latitude, the climactic condition

would be similar; thus, it would be much easier to set up a civilization. With similar rainfall

patterns and terrain, their crops and animals would be suitable for the environment. Altogether,

the history of settlement in Morocco can be used as supporting evidence for Diamond’s theory.
 References

(2017, April 07). Morocco Geography. Retrieved from

https://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/africa/morocco/maland.htm

The culture and arts of morocco and the berbers. CMES. Retrieved from

https://cmes.arizona.edu/sites/cmes.arizona.edu/files/The%20Culture%20and%20Arts%

20of%20Morocco%20and%20the%20Berbers.pdf

Berber. (n.d.). In Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Retrieved from

http://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/anthropology-and-

archaeology/people/berbers

History of morocco – discover an ancient land. Morocco. Retrieved from

http://www.morocco.com/culture/ancient-morocco/