Houmt El Souk

Coordinates: 33°52′N 10°51′E / 33.867°N 10.850°E / 33.867; 10.850
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Houmt Souk
حومة السوق
UTC+2 (CEST
)

Houmt Souk (

Aghlabid
fortress.

It is located at approximately 20 km (12 miles) from Ajim and 22 km (14 miles) from El Kantara by the Roman road. It is also the chief town and a municipality with 75,904 inhabitants. The city's population is 44,555 inhabitants as of 2005. The city developed on the old site of a Roman city called Gerba or Girba, and was the birthplace of two Roman Emperors, Trebonianus Gallus and his son Volusianus.[1]

History

Bordj el Kebir fort

The city as it is today developed on the site of an ancient

pirates for many years. The Battle of Djerba took place in the northern part of the city. Close to the fort is a large village which served as a market; cattle and woolen cloth were traded there, as were dried grapes. Under the French protectorate (1881–1956) the island was divided into twelve sheikhates.[2] French soldiers entered the town on 28 July 1881, and it remained a garrison until 1890, when its administration passed to civil French authority. In 1956, upon Tunisian independence, it became the capital of Djerba
.

Geography

Houmt Souk is located on a plain on the northern coast of Djerba. There is an artesian well, called Bir Erroumi, 767 m deep, which was dug under French rule. The city is divided into several districts; the three major ones are Taourit, Boumellel and Hara El K' will bira, which in turn includes neighbourhoods such as Fatou, Thouirane, Houmet Eljouamaa and Binibandou. These three districts are located in the northern part of town. The climate of the city is moderate, with a semi-arid tendency, and receives a breeze from the sea in summer.

Architecture

Due to the density of the city center, its architectural character sometimes differs from that of the rest of the island. The typical

souks
like that of Errbaâ, or the more recent Central Market.

Fondouks in town, dating back several centuries, often follow the same building style; a generally square courtyard with a group of stores may be found at ground level, along with a door with a heavy lock. This is sometimes joined by an attic window in the area were goods were stored. Animals, carts and equipment were sheltered in the yard. The first floor, reached by a single staircase, has a gallery supported by columns and arches; this is often the point of access for a number of rooms or storerooms. Many such buildings may still be seen in the downtown area, where they have been turned into hotels and youth hostels; some have even become tourist malls.[3]
The coastal area, formerly deserted, is becoming increasingly urbanized.

Religious buildings

Jewish synagogue

As befits a

zaouia containing the tomb of a saint. These three mosques are classified as historic buildings. Sidi Bouakkazine, located near the public library, is built of centuries-old green tiles, and also houses a zaouia with a saint's tomb. Called Lella Gmira, this is visited most often by women suffering from infertility
; they wash and light a candle there in the hope of gaining a blessing, and perhaps giving birth.

Mosque of the Turks

A little further out of town, on the road to

Mellita
. Jamaâ Echeikh, Jemaâ El Bassi and Jemaâ El Guellal are in the same neighborhood in the south-east of Houmt Souk.

Legends surround a number of the town's mosques. Sidi Zitouni, located not far from Jamaâ Ettrouk and which houses another saint's tomb as well as the Museum of Arts and Popular Traditions, is one of them. According to lore, the mosque is inhabited by

djinns
that appear only in the early evening. Consequently, Djerbians will leave the mosque only at sunset. Another story concerns Jemaâ El Guellal: supposedly a potter in the eighteenth century put his pots, which had taken months to craft, on a cart to be taken to market. While on the road the cart overturned, dropping its contents to the ground. The potter nevertheless decided to save what he could, discovering with great astonishment that all his wares were intact. Upon selling them, and seeing divine intervention in the episode, he chose to build a mosque at the site of the accident.

Jamâa Tajdid, whose construction was begun in the nineteenth century and entrusted to Abou Messeouar, is on the road to Midoun. Messeouar completed the work with the help of his son.[4]

There are several small

Greek Orthodox
structure is located near the port, by the hotel Lottos, one of the island's first hotels.

Borj El K'bir Fort

Main article:
Borj El K'bir Fort
Murs du Borj El K'bir

The Borj El K'bir is a

fort that was constructed on the waterfront in 1432 under Sultan Abû Fâris `Abd Al `Azîz Al-Mutawakkil.[5] It is also known as Borj El Ghazi Mustapha because it was added to significantly between 1560 and 1567, during the reign of the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. A commemorative statue in marble, originally sealed in one of the fort's interior walls, is now on display at the Bardo National Museum in Tunis.[6] Excavations have been made within the structure, revealing much of its history; some of the artifacts discovered are now on display inside one of the rooms of the fort. From the top of the walls may be had a panoramic view over the port; also visible from this location is the nine-meter-high obelisk which indicates the site of Borj-er-Rous, the Tower of Skulls, built using the bones of Dragut's enemies executed after his victory, in July 1560, against a coalition made up of soldiers from Spain, Naples, Sicily, Lombardy, Germany, France, and the Knights of Malta
. The tower was conical in shape, 34 feet in diameter at its base. It was removed in 1848 under orders from the capital. Today the bones are buried in the Christian cemetery of the city. The obelisk which replaced the tower was constructed under the rule of France.

Just opposite the fort, behind the old city hospital, there exists a cistern, dating back to Roman times, which is used for the collection of rainwater.

Other buildings of note

Bordj el Kebir

Among the other characteristic buildings, one can quote the fondouks, lodging warehouses for the goods. The cupola of the combatants (Goubbat El Moujahdine), near Jemaâ Ettrouk, is a small square construction, with wrought iron, which shelters three tombs that of venerated inhabitants of Houmt Souk and is regarded as a zaouïa. There is the Hammam El Barouni, a Turkish bath which goes back to several centuries and which, renovated on several occasions, continues to be used. Old bakeries, workshops of weaving (of which the architecture is particular in Djerba) with their half-vaults and their triangular pediment of Greek style and the old wells (with their large wings) which were useful for the irrigation of the fields of barley, of sorghum and pulses also have a typical architecture.[7] The Errbaâ souk, market hall formed in a labyrinth with the roofs in semi-vaults, gathered the craftsmen tailors, shoe-makers, jewellers. Its doors closed at the falling night and much of stores remained closed on Saturdays taking into account the high number of Jewish tradesmen and craftsmen who had their graves there. The market is currently very popular with tourists.

A large

trade unions
initiative. There is also several small hotels built under the French protectorate.

Demographics

Saint Joseph Catholic Church in Houmt El Souk.

Houmt Souk is the most populated city of Djerba; it only shelters with it more of the third of the population of the island. Houmt Souk and its neighbourhoods have a very high density: it was already of 474 inhabitants per km² in 1956 whereas the average of the island was of 127 inhabitants per km² and that of the remainder of Tunisia of 27 inhabitants per km².

Maliki Sunni
.

Culture

The coexistence of various ethnicities (in particular

Sephardi Jews and black African
) and of various religious beliefs contributed to the richness and the variety of the cultures and traditions of this locality. The island of Djerba is a true mosaic of cultures and traditions and even the accent of its inhabitants varies from one locality to another, thus the Houmt Souk accent is different from the other localities.

Museums

Houmt Souk contains a museum of arts which presents a panorama of Djerba history. Installed in an old a zaouïa built at the end of the 18th century to honour of Sidi Zitouni and Sidi Ameur, not far from the "Mosque from Abroad", it is possible to discover the folklore of the island, its traditions and its economy from jewels and colored glass, pottery, weaving looms, and the traditional costumes of various social groups, kitchen utensils, one workshop of pottery, and jars which were used to preserve foodstuffs such as barley, sorghum, olive oil or dried meat. These earthenware jars bear different names ( sefri, khabia' ' , tass' ' or zir) and their opening depends on the intended products to be preserved there.

Clothes

The inhabitants of Djerba, in particular the women, wear traditional costumes which may also differ between locality. The women of Houmt Souk do not normally wear a

synthetic fibre
. Under this may be embroidered sleeves called hassara or khabbaia. The clothing of the men in Houmt Souk also differs from that of the Djerbiens of the other localities of the island.

Traditions

Much of the practices and the cultural traditions of the city are also different from those of the other localities. These include ceremonies of marriage,

broad beans
. The woman who receives such a dish offers in return a gift of money for the giver.

Marché de Houmt Souk

Economy

ironmongers
, etc. On the island each important locality has its own market day such as, for example, Friday for Midoun or Sunday for Guellala whereas Houmt Souk has two of them: Monday and Thursday.

The Tunisian Craft industry employees many craftsman. If the artisanal activities are varied in the city, those related to

Battles of Djerba said in 1560, according to a book reproduced by Charles Monchicourt “the inhabitants weave with fine wool of very beautiful baracans (covers) out of thin fabric, and decorate silk longer than an ordinary carpet”.[11]

Weaving, performed on the island for over 1,000 years grew during the 19th century which turned it into one of the principal textile centres for wool in North Africa, and remains, in spite of the competition of textile industries an important activity in Houmt Souk [12] The wool industry employs a larger number of families and the activities range from washing in sea water, washing in the sun, then come carding, spinning, dyeing and then weaving followed by marketing. It is an important source of revenue as well for women although carding and the spinning mill of wool are traditionally female activities and dyeing, weaving and marketing traditionally carried out by the men.[13] The manufacture of carpet with embroidery is traditionally a female activity which developed considerably with the rise of tourism. The jewellery, formerly practised exclusively by the Jewish craftsmen (specialised especially in partitioned jewels encrusted with hard stones of various colours) is currently practised by young Muslim craftsmen. The work of leather, and in particular the shoe manufacture and the manufacture of bags in camel skins, as well as the basket making also developed with the new market offered by tourism.

Houmt Souk has one port, primarily oriented towards fishing. There are great quantities of

terra cotta jars which are used for the fishing with octopus, a delicacy of Houmt Souk. The supply of engines and ensuring the traffic of the heavy goods and passengers between Tunis and Sfax
is also performed at the port.

In 1964, Houmt Souk counted 297 boats and 746 "marins".

pink flamingos as well as dolphins which can sometimes be observed off the city coastline. One of the traditions of Houmt Souk is the sale of fish through bidding
and the shouting by the town crier. The fishermen thread fish fished in chains, and deliver them to the town crier after having been informed of the minimum price. The town crier, seated on a high chair, conducts the auction.

Due to the islands strong dependency on tourism, it experienced difficulties following the 2015 Sousse attacks, which saw tourism to the island, and Tunisia as a whole, plummet. Although tourism to Tunisian resorts had since recovered, the island too has been affected by the 2019-2020 COVID-19 pandemic which again has badly impacted the tourism industry.

References

  1. ^ a b Salah-Eddine Tlatli, Djerba. L'île des Lotophages, éd. Cérès Productions, Tunis, 1967, p. 53
  2. ^ René Stablo, Les Djerbiens. Une communauté arabo-berbère dans une île de l'Afrique française, éd. SAPI, Tunis, 1941
  3. ^ Éternelle Djerba, éd. Association de sauvegarde de l'île de Djerba et STAG, Tunis, 1998, p. 55
  4. ^ Charles Tissot, Géographie comparée de la province romaine d'Afrique, éd. Imprimerie nationale, Paris, 1884 cité par Jeannine Berrebi, op. cit.
  5. ^ Éternelle Djerba, p. 60
  6. ^ Éternelle Djerba, p. 21
  7. ^ Les chameaux étaient utilisés pour puiser l'eau dans de grosses gourdes en peau d'animaux appelées delou.
  8. ^ Salah-Eddine Tlatli, op. cit., p. 80
  9. ^ René Stablo, op. cit., pp. 56-61
  10. ^ Jean Servonnet et Ferdinand Laffite, En Tunisie. Le golfe de Gabès en 1888, éd. Challamel et Cie, Paris, 1888
  11. ^ Charles Monchicourt, L'expédition espagnole contre l'île de Djerba, éd. Leroux, Paris, 1913, p. 76
  12. ^ Salah-Eddine Tlatli, op. cit., p. 129
  13. ^ Éternelle Djerba, p. 49
  14. ^ Salah-Eddine Tlatli, op. cit., pp. 114-115

External links

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