Site archéologique de Tamuda

A few kilometres from Tetouan, on the road to Chefchaouen, the ruins of Tamuda tell a story more than two thousand years old. Founded in the 3rd century BC by Mauretanian Berber tribes, the city adopted an orthogonal, Hellenistic-influenced urban plan, with streets lined by public and private buildings. Destroyed around AD 40–41 during the revolts that followed the Roman annexation of the Mauretanian kingdom, it later saw a small Roman military camp established under Emperor Claudius. The city's name is thought to derive from the Amazigh word "tamda", meaning marsh, in reference to the nearby Martil river. Tamuda is today considered the direct ancestor of Tetouan.