Tingis was the ancient name ofTangier inMorocco and an importantCarthaginian,Mauretanian, andRoman port on the Atlantic Ocean. It was eventually granted the status of a Romancolony and made the capital of theprovince ofMauretania Tingitana and, afterDiocletian's reforms, thediocese of Hispania.
TheGreeks claimed that Tingis had been named fora daughter of thetitanAtlas, who was supposed to support thevault of heaven nearby. They claimed that theBerberlegendscomported with the stories ofHercules'slabors, which carried him toNorth Africa and theNorth Atlantic to retrieve thegolden apples of theHesperides. Having killed her husbandAntaeus and again condemned her father to eternally supporting thefirmament, Hercules slept withTinja and fathered the Berber heroSyphax. Syphax supposedly founded the port of Tingis and named it his mother's honor after her death.[1] The gigantic skeleton and tomb of Antaeus were tourist attractions for ancient visitors.[1] TheCaves of Hercules, where he supposedly rested onCape Spartel, remain one today.
A settlement in Tingis began, at the earliest, in the 10th century BC[2] by Phoenecians, before being settled around the beginning of the 6th century BC byCarthaginiancolonists,[3] who variously recorded the name of their settlement asTNG (Punic:𐤕𐤍𐤂),TNGʾ (𐤕𐤍𐤂𐤀), andTYNGʾ (𐤕𐤉𐤍𐤂𐤀).[4] The town is sometimes connected to the voyages ofHanno the Navigator.
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After thePunic Wars,Carthage lost control of the colony to theRoman-allied kings ofMauretania. Its name during this time appears in Greek and Roman sources variously asTenga,Tinga,Titga, &c.[5] It maintained strong ties to its Carthaginian heritage, issuing bronze coins with Punic legends reading "City of Titga" (𐤁𐤏𐤋𐤕 𐤕𐤕𐤂𐤀,BʿLT TTGʾ), "City of Tinga" (𐤁𐤏𐤋𐤕 𐤕𐤉𐤍𐤂𐤀,BʿLT TYNGʾ), or "people of Tinga" (𐤌𐤁𐤏𐤋 𐤕𐤉𐤍𐤂𐤀,MBʿL TYNGʾ). These boreBaal or (viainterpretatio Graeca)Demeter's headobverse andwheatreverse.[6]
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The town came under Roman rule in the 1st century BC.Q. Sertorius, took and held Tingis for a number of years in the 70s BC as part ofhis war againstSulla'sregime in Rome. Tingis grew in importance as a free city[clarification needed] underAugustus and then as acolony underClaudius, who made it the capital ofMauritania Tingitana.[5] As a Roman colony, it bore the formal nameColonia Iulia Tingi,[7] the "Julian colony of Tingis". Under the early empire, it began to use Latin script, issuing its bronze coins with the legendIVL TIN; these bore Augustus andAgrippa's headsobverse andBaal's headreverse.[6]
Called Colonia Iulia Tingi on its coins, governed most likely under Latin law and at first attached administratively to Spain, it became under Claudius a Roman colony and chief city of the province of Mauretania Tingitana after it was set up. In 297 the city probably served Maximianus as a base during his campaign against theMoorish rebels, and it was very likely about this time that the Christians Marcellus and Cassienus were put to death. The former belonged to a Spanish community, the latter, however, probably to a local church which funerary inscriptions show existed in the 4th-5th c. although there is no mention of a bishopric until the 6th c. The limits of the ancient settlement are clearly marked by the necropolis discovered to the northwest (that of Marshan and Avenue Cenario), to the west (Mendoubia) and south (Bou Kachkach). Nothing remains of the substructures, which could still be seen on the seashore at the beginning of the century. There were also some baths underneath theCasbah, and confused remains of a monument—apparently a Christian basilica—have been uncovered in the Rue de Belgique. So far as the rest of the city is concerned one can only presume that the forum was situated on the site of thePetit Socco and what was perhaps a temple on the site of the Great Mosque, and that the decumanus maximus corresponded roughly to the Zenga Es Siaghine. Among the few antiquities that have been discovered, the only noteworthy finds, aside from inscriptions and a few mosaic fragments, are a statue of a woman of indifferent workmanship and a mutilated head of the emperor Galba.[8]
As a provincial capital, Tingis developed and prospered. In the 4th century, it surpassedVolubilis when that city was left south of theRoman lines and unprotected byRoman legions. Tingis at its peak reached 20,000 inhabitants, all thoroughlyromanized and mostlyChristian. Tingis was famed throughout the Roman Empire for its fishing conserve industry. UnderSeptimius Severus, twoRoman roads were constructed from Tingis: one on the Atlantic coast toSala Colonia and the second into the mountainous interior toward Volubilis.
DuringDiocletian's reform of Roman governmental structures in AD 296, Mauretania Tingitana became part of theDiocese of Hispania. Tingis remained the capital of the larger territory, maintaining its status and development.
TheVandals conquered and occupied Tingis around AD 425 before sweeping across the Roman Maghreb.
Between 534 and 682, Tingis was restored toByzantinecontrol. Tingis was fortified and a new church erected. However, its commercial strength had waned, a change attested by its decreased issuance of coins.
Tingis fell under the control of theUmayyad Caliphate as part of theMuslim conquest of North Africa in 702, after which it was reduced to a small town more commonly discussed under the nameTangier.Tariq ibn Ziyad organized theconquest of Spain from Tingis and nearbySeptem in 706.
TheChristian history of Tingis started during the second half of the first century, underClaudius's rule.[9] Originally, the city was part of the larger province ofMauretania Caesariensis, which included most of the Roman Maghreb. Later the area was subdivided, with the eastern part keeping the former name and the newer part receiving the name of Mauretania Tingitana. It is not known exactly at what period there may have been an episcopal see at Tangier in ancient times, but in the late Middle Ages Tangier wasa titular see (i.e., an honorific fiction for the appointment of curial and auxiliary bishops). For the historical reasons given above, one official list of the Roman Curia places the see in Mauretania Caesariensis.
Towards the end of the third century, Tingis was the scene of the martyrdom ofSt Marcellus, mentioned in the Roman Martyrology on 30 October, and ofSt. Cassian, mentioned on 3 December. Indeed, according to tradition, the martyrdom of St Marcellus took place on 28 July 298.
A small Christian community survived in Tangier as late as the 10th century. Due to its Christian past, Tangier—under the name Tingis—is still a titular see of theRoman Catholic Church.
Romano-Berber cities in Roman North Africa | ||
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| Egypt | ||
| Spain | ||
| Kingdoms and provinces | ||
| Related articles | ||
1 UNESCO World Heritage Sites2 Proposed | ||