Nador

Nador (Arabic: الناظور or الناضور; Riffian-Berber: ⵏⴰⴷⵓⵔ) is a coastal city and provincial capital in the northeastern Rif region of Morocco with a population of about 161,726 (2014 census). Nador city is separated from the Mediterranean Sea by a salt lagoon named Rbḥar Ameẓẓyan in Berber (Mar Chica in Spanish) and is south of the Spanish city of Melilla. Nador was founded in the 19th century by local Berber tribes and was under Spanish occupation from 1912 until Morocco's independence in 1956. The Nador Province has over 600,000 inhabitants, predominantly of Rif-Berber ethnicity. Nador is considered the second largest city in the Oriental East after Wejda. The city name originated from the local Berber tribes of Has Nador, which was a small village near the Nador lagoon. The economy of Nador and Nador province includes fishery, agriculture, some light and heavy industry. In the summer months of June to August thousands of people originating from the Nador area and living in Europe return to the city. The total of these annual visitors may exceed 250,000. They mainly stay with relatives or in rented or owned apartments, rather than staying in Nador's hotels. The location of the city on the Mediterranean coast and proximity of the Spanish town Melilla mean there is significant international trade, particularly evident in the widespread sale of Spanish manufactured foodstuffs and household goods in Nador. Nador was infamous as a centre of smuggling cheap Spanish and Chinese duty-free goods. Currently the smuggling has declined but it still alive competing with a smuggling stream from Algeria. Many used consumer goods from Europe and China find their way to Morocco and Africa via Melilla and Nador, both legally and illegally. The goods range from conserved food, clothes, shoes, electric home appliances, up to sophisticated hardware. It has recently become a fast-growing city, despite experiencing a population drop with the departure of the Spanish, when the population decreased from 23,000 in the early 1950s to less than 5,000 in 1960.