Boumerdès Province

Boumerdès Province ولاية بومرداس
Province
Map of Algeria highlighting Boumerdès
Country	Algeria
Capital	Boumerdès
Area
• Total	1,591 km2 (614 sq mi)
Population  (2008)
• Total	795,019
• Density	500/km2 (1,300/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01 (CET)
Area Code	+213 (0) 24
ISO 3166 code	DZ-35
Districts	9
Municipalities	32

Boumerdès (Arabic: ولاية بومرداس‎, Berber: Bumerdas) is a province (wilaya) of northern Algeria, between Algiers and Tizi-Ouzou, with its capital at the coastal city of Boumerdès (formerly Rocher-Noir) just east of Algiers.

Administrative divisions

It is made up of 9 districts and 32 communes or municipalities.

Districts

1. Baghlia
2. Bordj Ménaïl
3. Boudouaou
4. Boumerdès
5. Dellys
6. Isser
7. Khemis El Khechna
8. Naciria
9. Thénia

Communes

1. Aafir
2. Ammal
3. Baghlia
4. Ben Choud
5. Beni Amrane
6. Bordj Menaiel (Bordj Ménaïl)
7. Boudouaou
8. Boudouaou-El-Bahri
9. Boumerdès
10. Bouzegza Keddara
11. Chabet el Ameur
12. Corso
13. Dellys
14. Djinet
15. El Kharrouba
16. Hammedi
17. Issers
18. Keddara
19. Khemis El-Khechna
20. Larbatache
21. Legata
22. Naciria
23. Ouled Aissa
24. Ouled Hedadj
25. Ouled Moussa
26. Si-Mustapha
27. Sidi Daoud
28. Souk El-Had
29. Taourga
30. Thenia
31. Tidjelabine
32. Timezrit
33. Zemmouri

Geography

The province is largely mountainous, with a long coastline and a number of rivers, notably the Isser and Sebaou. Its western edges have in effect become suburbs of Algiers as the capital has expanded.

History

The three towns of Zemmouri El Bahri (Rusubbicari), Djinet (Cissi), and Dellys (Rusucurium), all of Phoenician foundation, were the province's principal ancient sites, although smaller Roman towns existed inland, as at Taourga; at none do any significant classical ruins remain. Zemmouri El Bahri (under the name of Marsa-d-Dajaj) and Dellys both attained some significance in the Islamic period, beginning with Hammadid times; the largely Ottoman-era casbah of Dellys remains an attraction. Boumerdes itself, called Rocher-Noir in the colonial period, was expanded substantially following the establishment of the new wilaya in 1983. The province was very hard hit by the Algerian earthquake of 2003, whose epicentre was near Zemmouri.