This concise and readable guide to the history and culture of Morocco, Tunisia, Libya and Algeria, relates the history of the region from its earliest beginnings to its politics and life at the turn of the new century. North Africa is surrounded by the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, and to the south, the sands of the Sahara. It has seen wave upon wave of invasion, from the Carthaginians in the 5th century BC to the French in the 20th century. The North African peoples have assimilated what suits them and remained entirely aloof to what does not. Onto this complex cultural background, Barnaby Rogerson weaves a cast of memorable characters from Dido to Hannibal and St Augustine, alongside local heroes such as the Berber queen Kahina and the horseback Muslim conqueror Oqba Ibn Nafi'. "A Traveller's History of North Africa" is an invaluable guide to this fascinating region and its people.
