The name Marrakech originates from the Berber words “mur (n) akush”, which means "go and stop" which was said many years ago to visitors and camels on the traffic.

It is the third largest city in Morocco after Casablanca and Rabat, and lies near the foothills of the snow-capped Atlas Mountains and a few hours away from the foot of the Sahara Desert.

 

The city is divided into two distinct parts: the Medina, the old city, (with its historical sites, intertwining narrow passageways, and local shops full of character) and the new European modern district called Gueliz or Ville Nouvelle (with its modern restaurants, fast food chains and big brand stores).

 

The population of Marrakech is 1.06 million.

 

Morocco is composed mainly of Arabs and Berbers or a mixture of the two. Sizeable numbers of Berbers live mainly in the country’s mountainous regions — long areas of refuge for them where they preserve their language and culture.

 

Languages used in Morocco are Arabic (the official language), Berber dialects, and French which is often the language of business, government, and diplomacy.  (Morocco gained its independence from France in 1956).

Just over 33 million people live in Morocco.

 

The major resources of the Moroccan economy are agriculture, phosphates, tourism and textiles.