Medinas, Souks, Mellahs, Foundouks, Casbahs, and Ksour
The word medina means “town” in Arabic. It refers to Morocco’s old pre-20th century cities, many of them enclosed within defensive walls. A medina has several monumental gates through which it can be entered, and—always—a mosque at its heart. Medinas are separated into quarters according to social and commercial hierarchies, with each quarter having its own communal oven, hammam (steam bath), and grocery shops within its network of streets and alleys.
Designated quarters: Craftsmen work in the areas of the medina known as souks, which were laid out according to the commodities being made and sold, with the most valuable products (such as gold and manuscripts) in the center and lesser goods radiating out from there. Today, little has changed, with each souk still named after the products sold there. For much of their history, Moroccan Jews lived in segregated mellahs—Jewish quarters—where they built homes, synagogues, markets, hammams, playgrounds, and cemeteries. The first one was established in a saline area of Fes in 1438 and named after the Arab word for salt: mellah. Subsequently, all Moroccan Jewish quarters were called mellahs. We’ll visit the souks and mellah in Fes, and have another opportunity to explore souks in Marrakesh.
Outside the cities: Before the 20th century, a foundouk was a caravansary, or roadside inn, used by traveling merchants. They slept upstairs, and on the ground level was a courtyard surrounded by stables for their camels, donkeys, and other livestock, as well as their goods for sale. We’ll see this layout at the Nejjarine Museum we visit on Day 4; it’s a restored foundouk. A casbah is a fortress-style building with crenellated defensive towers. In rural Morocco, representatives of the ruler lived in and governed from casbahs; a casbah can be inside a ksar (plural ksour), which is a fortified rural village surrounded by walls. Ait Ben Haddou, which we explore on Day 10, is a spectacular example of a ksar.
