Setif

views updated Jun 11 2018

SETIF

City southwest of Constantine in northeastern Algeria.

Setif is located at the site of the ancient Roman city of Sitifis. Near Setif in 1152 the Almohads defeated the Banu Hilal tribe. The city declined during the Ottoman Empire. During France's colonial administration, the city was the site of bloody riots and retributions (the Setif Revolt) in May 1945, which galvanized Algerian nationalism. The estimated population in 1998 was 212,000.


Bibliography


Abun-Nasr, Jamil M. A History of the Maghrib in the Islamic Period. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987.

phillip c. naylor

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