Annaba

Annaba (Arabic: عنّابة, lit “Place of the Jujubes”; Berber languages: Aânavaen), formerly known as Bon, Bona and Bône, is a seaport city in the northeastern corner of Algeria, close to Tunisia. Annaba is close to the small Seybouse River, and it is in the Annaba Province. With a population of about 464,740 (2019) and 1,000,000 for the metropole, Annaba is the 3rd largest city in Algeria. It is the leading industrial center in Algeria.

Annaba is a coastal city that underwent significant growth during the 20th Century. Annaba has a metropolitan area with a higher population density than the other metropolitan areas of the Algerian coastline, such as Oran and Algiers. Much of eastern and southern Algeria uses the services, equipment, and infrastructure of Annaba. Economically, it is the centre for various economic activities, such as industry, transportation, finance, and tourism.

Names

Present-day Annaba grew up on the site of Aphrodisium, the seaport of the Roman city Hippo Regius. (The modern city has since expanded south over Hippo’s ruins as well.) Its former names Bône and Bona derived from “Ubbo”, a local form of the name Hippo. Its informal name “Land of the Jujubes” (بلد العناب, Balad al-‘Unnāb) derives from that abundance of that fruit in the region.

History

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (April 2012)