Mellah

Mellah

Overview:

• Al-Mallah is one of the old neighborhoods in Marrakesh. Its foundation dates back to 1557 AD, during the era of "Al-Ghalib Billah Al-Saadi".

• It is considered the second Mellah in Morocco, as the Fez Mellah is the first in terms of the history of its establishment.

Its Name:

• Al-Mallah of Marrakesh also bears the name “Hayy al-Salam” since 1983 AD. It is said that the reason for calling it “Al-Mallah” is due to the fact that the process of salting the heads of the revolutionaries is carried out by the Jews.

Historical overview:

• It used to be a Jewish neighborhood that includes more than 40,000 Jews, and 42 synagogues, but now there is only one synagogue in it, and the number of citizens is currently 119 people.

• The presence of the Jews dates back to 2500 years after successive waves of migrations of refugees from Andalusia to escape from the Catholic Kings, thus the fifteenth century knew the influx of a significant number of Jews to Morocco.

• To this day, Marrakesh still knows the coexistence of about 200 Jewish people with their Muslim neighbors, and the traditions of cooking and crafts preserve the history of the "mellah" neighborhoods in all the major cities of the kingdom.

Architectural Description:

• The old Jewish quarter "El Mellah" is based on the Bahia Palace, which dates back to the ninth century, the Dar Si Said Museum, and the musée Bert Flint, which still preserves the Moroccan heritage in general and the Amazigh heritage in particular.

• There is also in the neighborhood the old Al-Rahba Square - the former slave market - today surrounded by many spice shops, and there are also synagogues and a Jewish cemetery, exploits that tell incoming visitors about the previous Jewish occupation.

• The area of the neighborhood is 8 hectares, consisting of houses known for their private balcony and various kiosks located in their narrow alleys, surrounded by a tall wall separating Jews and Muslims in respect of their freedom.

Recourses:

Visitmarrakech website

Tripadvisor website

Elaph website

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