ملاحظات حول مناخ المغرب القديم

Abstract EN

Research on climatic history has gained increased attention lately, and fits into an overall trend which sees "microhistory" and social history replace an older, Rankian-empirical school which focused solely on official documents and diplomatic writings.

In this regard, the latter are replaced by evidence based on the observations of the daily life of citizens who lived in the past.

This work has not been free from controversy, especially concerning the Maghreb.

Controversy surrounds the methods used and the quality of the sources referenced, as well as the ideologies informing the research published during the protectorate era in Morocco.

This study consists of a historiographical overview of research on the Maghreb climate in ancient times.

It monitors the field’s methodological and documentation shortcomings, reveals its ideological background (primarily connected to the colonial era), and critiques its sources (Greek, Roman, and Archaeological).

Its goal is to establish a new history of climate which can then be used in the context of closely related issues such as the history of agriculture, water, water conflicts, and migration and settling patterns around water sources.

The paper confirms the existence of a humid climate in ancient Maghreb, compared to today’s climate which is marked by aridity and drought.

This is based on evidence taken from a number of literary, archaeological, and geological sources