History of Al Hoceima
The Spanish started to develop Al Hoceima around 1925. General Sanjurjo landed with his troops on the beach of Al Hoceima during the Rif Rebellion and claimed the territory for Spain. He named the territory after himself, namely Villa Sanjurjo. Many locals still call the city "Villa" in addition to the official Al Hoceima.
The Spanish troops started building houses, schools and hospitals above the beach and it started to look more and more like a small town. In the 1920's and 30's the town had almost no growth in population. It's name changed from Villa Sanjurjo to Villa Alhucemas and the few streets above the beach were still occupied by mainly Spanish soldiers and their families.
After Morocco gained it's independence in 1956, Al Hoceima quickly began to develop. The Moroccan government changed it's name from the Spanish "Villa Alhucemas" to Al Hoceima.
Modern Al Hoceima and it's Spanish influences
Al Hoceima is now a moderate size city with an estimated population of 100.000 and it has the second largest port of the Rif Region, Nador being the largest. The first schools built by the Spanish colonials (a college and an elementary school) and a Spanish catholic church still exist today.
Spanish culture has left its mark on the city, its proof being that the inhabitants of Al Hoceima still have the siesta and the afternoon paseo (walk) around the city square and the downtown shops.
The beach were General Sanjurjo and his troops landed in 1925 is today the most popular beach in Al Hoceima. It's called Playa Quemado and it houses the luxurious Mohammed V hotel, complete with tennis court, a restaurant, cocktail bar and nightbclub.
Economy
The income of the city is based on tourism and fishing. A lot of inhabitants migrated to Europe between the 1960's and 1980's. There is a large amount of Moroccans in the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Spain who have Al Hoceima as their home city. Because a high percentage of these migrants visit the city in summertime, many companies and people have invested in Al Hoceima.
Since the 1990's a lot of western oriented businesses opened, such as pizza parlors, fast food restaurants and clothing stores.
Trivia
- The town and surrounding villages were hit by 2 moderate sized earthquakes within ten years, first Mw 6.0 on May 26, 1994 and later Mw 6.4 on February 24, 2004. More than 560 people were killed during the last one.
- In 1948, a Spanish motion picture called "Alhucemas" came out. It's tells the story of an army official in the time of Franco which transforms from a coward to a hero.
- In the early 1950's and 60's, when many of the city inhabitants were financially poor, The small houses were all painted white and blue, the original colors of the city, which represented the sea and the sky. However, when there was financial growth, people started decorating there houses in bright colors. The mayor of Al Hoceima has stated in 2007 that all (future built) houses are to be painted white and blue (again), to return to the original look of the city.
