Ghardaïa

Taghardaïat غرداية / taƔerdayt
city
City of Ghardaïa
Panoramic view of Ghardaïa (Tagherdayt) with the dry bed of Wadi Mzab on the right side.
Location of the city of Taghardaïat within Taghardaïat Province
Taghardaïat Location of Taghardaïat within Algeria
Coordinates: 32°29′N 3°40′E / 32.483°N 3.667°E / 32.483; 3.667Coordinates: 32°29′N 3°40′E / 32.483°N 3.667°E / 32.483; 3.667
Country	Algeria
Province	Taghardaïat (seat)
District	Taghardaïat (coextensive)
Founded	1048
Government
• PMA Seats	15
Area
• Total	590 km2 (230 sq mi)
Elevation	572 m (1,877 ft)
Population (2008)
• Total	142,913
• Density	240/km2 (630/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+01)
Postal code	47000
ONS code	4701

UNESCO World Heritage Site

M'zab Valley
Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List
Location	Algeria
Type	Cultural
Criteria	ii, iii, v
Reference	188
UNESCO region	A
Inscription history
Inscription	1982 (6th Session)

Ghardaïa (Arabic: غارداية‎‎, Mzab-Berber: ', ') is the capital city of Ghardaïa Province, Algeria. The commune of Ghardaïa has a population of 93,423 according to the 2008 census, up from 87,599 in 1998, with an annual growth rate of 0.7%. It is located in northern-central Algeria in the Sahara Desert and lies along the left bank of the Wadi Mzab. The M'zab valley in the Ghardaïa Province (Wilaya) was inscribed under the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1982, as a cultural property evaluated under the criteria II (for its settlement affecting urban planning even to the present century), III (for its Ibadi cultural values), and V (a settlement culture which has prevailed to the present century).

Ghardaïa is part of a pentapolis, a hilltop city amongst four others, built almost a thousand years ago in the M’Zab valley. It was founded by the Mozabites, a Muslim Ibadi sect of non-Arabic Muslims, including the Berbers. It is a major centre of date production and the manufacture of rugs and cloths. Divided into three walled sectors, it is a fortified town. At the centre is the historical Mʾzabite area, with a pyramid-style mosque and an arcaded square. Distinctive white, pink, and red houses, made of sand, clay and gypsum, rise in terraces and arcades. In her 1963 book, La force des choses the French existentialist philosopher Simone de Beauvoir described Ghardaïa as "a Cubist painting beautifully constructed".

The name of Ghardaïa has its origins in a female saint named Daïa who lived in a cave (ghār) in the area before it blossomed into a town inhabited by Ibadite Muslims who came to escape persecution from Fatimite Muslims in the north.