A L G 



A L G 



ALGIABARII, a Mahometan fecft of prededinarlans, 

 whcr* attiibute all the aftions of men, good or evil, to the 



agency or influence of God. * 



The Alffiabaiii iland oppofed to the Alkadarii. 



ALG113ARR0TA, or Aljubarrota, in Geography, 

 a fmall town of Portncval, in Ellremadina, containing two 

 pariflics and 1600 inhabitants. Kins^ John I. obtained in 

 this place a viftory over the Caftillans in 1385. 



AI^GIDUM, in ^m'utit Geography, a town of I-alinm 

 cr Italy, between Prenefte to the north-eafl, and Alba to 

 the fouth-welt:, near the mountains. It belonged to ihe 

 yEqui, according to Dionyfius Hal. (lib.xi. lorn. i. p. 672. 

 td. Oxon.), and Livy, (lib. iii. c. 3S. torn. i. p. 6^3. ed. 

 Burman.) and liad a temple of Diana on tl>e top of a hii-h 

 runintain, called by the lame name. This temple was in 

 Greek denominated Arteniilia, and hence tlie mountain was 

 called by the fame name. It has been fnppofed tliat Al^n- 

 dimi or Algiihis was derived from gelhliiSy cold or freczin<r, 

 on acco\mt of the (juality of its air. Horace refers to this 

 mountain, (lib. i. od. 21.) " Qiixcunque aut gelido pronilnet 



Algido," — and (lib. iii. od. 23.) " Q^x nivali pafeilur 



Algido," Jtc. 



ALGIERS, in Geography, a kingdom of Africa, com- 

 prehends part of the ancient Mauritania, partieuhuly 

 that which was called Mauritania CTfarienfis, and the an- 

 cient Numidia, and forms one of the moll confiderable dif- 

 tricls of that part of Africa which lies on the northern coaft, 

 and which in later ages has been denominated Barbary. 

 The country derives its name from its metropolis, called by 

 the Turks Algezair, Al Jezair, or Al Jezirah, in Arabic, 

 fignifying the IJIarid, becaufe there was an iiland before the 

 city, to which it hath been fince joined by a mole. The 

 extent of this kingdom has been varioufly affigned by dif- 

 ferent writers. Sanfon, who marks its boundaries by the 

 rivers Mullooiah or Malva, and the Zaine, gives it a length 

 from eaft to weft of 900 miles, De La Croix, 720, Luyls, 

 reckoning 48^ miles for one degree of longitude, 6^0; but 

 if with Dr. Shaw, we make tlie bouiidaiy of Algiers to the 

 well the Trara mountains, which feparate it from the do- 

 minions of the emperor of Morocco, or Twunt, which lies 

 40 miles to the eailward of the Mullooiah, and that to the 

 eaft the river Zaine, formerly called Tufea, it will be found 

 to extend 460 miles, or from o" 1 6'. W. long, to 9° 1 6'. E. 

 longitude. The breadth of Algiers is very unequal in dif- 

 ferent parts ; for near Tlemfan it is not more than 40 miles, 

 from the Sahara to the fea-coall ; near the fonrces of the 

 rivers Sigg and ShtlifT, it is about 60 miles, and thij, in the 

 vveftern part, inay be taken at a medium for tlie extent of v.'hat 

 the Arabs call Tell, or land proper for tillage. But to the 

 eaft of Algiers, its breadth is much more confiderable ; par- 

 ticularly in the meridians of Boujeiah or Bugia, and Bona, 

 where it extends above 100 miles, efpecially under that of 

 Jigeri or Gigeri, in lat. 36° ^^' to Luolajah, fuuate among 

 the mountains of Atlas, in lat. 44° 50'. The Algerine do- 

 minions beyond the Tell, or more advanced parts of Atlas, 

 are very precarious and not eafdy defined, fo that the' nor- 

 thern ikirts of the Sahara, or Defert, feem to be the proper 

 boundaiies on that fide. Accordingly, Algiers may be con- 

 fidered, in general, as bounded on the north by the Medi- 

 teiTanean, on the eaft by the river Zaine, which divides it 

 from Tunis, on the' weft by the Mullooiah, or by Twunt, 

 and the mountains of Trara, which feparate it from Mo- 

 rocco, and on the fouth by the Sahara, or Numidian defert. 

 If we take the medium difference of latitude to be 2° 30', 

 and the difference of longitude to be 9° 30', the fuperficial 

 extent of the v^holc kingdom would amount to about 42 18, 

 Vol. I. 



or according to a more accurate aflronomical calculation of 

 M. Von Zach, 4262 geographical fquarc miles. 



This kingdom lias been divided by geographers info 

 many provinces, according to the fevcral royalties into which 

 it was cantoned, at different periods, before and after llic 

 time of the Turkiftt conquclls. At prefent it contains, ac- 

 cording to Shaw, three principal diviiions, vh.. the province 

 of Tlemsan to the well, called by others Tremecen, and 

 Mascara ; that of Titeri or Titterie to the fouth ; and 

 that of CoNSTANTiNA to the eaft ; to which fome have 

 added, as a diftinft province, (he terriloiT of the city of 

 Algiers. The weftern province comprehends the towns of 

 Oran, MusTvGASNiM, Tlemsas Or Trcmeccn, Mas- 

 cara, Shf.rshi-ll, Tennis, bcfides fcveral other more 

 inconfiderabic places. In this province, coafling from the 

 Trara mountains, we meet with Twunt, Cape Hone, 

 Tackumbreet, at the mouth of tht river Tafna, the iiland 

 of AcRA or Harlligoone, &c. I'he principal rivers arc the 

 Malva, Salt -river, I'afna, Sigg, Hebrah, Maffafraiijand Shc- 

 lifT. The mountains are Atlas and Trara. See Mascara. The 

 fouthein province has no towns along the coaft ; but in the 

 interior of the country the two chief towns are Belida and 

 Medea ; the mountains are branches of the Atlas, the Boo- 

 jereah, the Anwall mountains on the river Yiffer, and thofe 

 of Jurjnraand Fcli'/.la ; and the rivers are the Harateh, Ha- 

 maefe, Regya, Budwowe, Corfoe, Merdafs, and the Vilfcr, 

 of wliich the lall is tlie moll cimfiderable. See Titeri. 



The caftern province, called tiie I^evantine government, 

 is the largell and rieheft. See Constantina. 



The territory of Algiers is principally dillinguifhed by its 

 caiiital, the metropolis of tiic kingdom. Within about half 

 a mile to the north-t.ift of the city commences the plain of 

 Mettijiah, called by Abulfcda Bledeah Kibc'-ih, /'. e. a i-aji 

 cnuiitryi which ilretches 50 Englifli miles in length and 20 

 in breadth, as far as the branch of mount Atlas, at the foot 

 of which lies the town of Belida. This plain is better cul- 

 tivated than the other diftrifls of the kingdom. It is wa- 

 tered by fevcral fprings and rivulets ; ■particularly by the 

 Maftafran, which at its entrance into the lea is a very con- 

 iiderable river, and little inferior to the Sheliff, the Shiffa, 

 and the Harateh. The country feats and Mafharcas, as 

 they call the farms of tlie principal inhabitants of Algiers, 

 are found in thefe plains ; and it is chiefly from them that 

 the metropolis is fuppUed with provillons. I lax, alhenna, 

 roots, potherbs, rice, fru-.t, and grain of all kuids, are pro- 

 duced here to Inch perfeftion, that the Mettijiah may be 

 juftlv reckoned the garden of the whole kingdom. For the 

 nature of the foil, productions, inhabitants, population, 

 government, commerce, &c. of the kingdom in general, we 

 refer to the fequel of this article. 



After the expulfion of the Greeks from Africa by the 

 Saracens, towards the clofe of the feventh centuiy, (fci: 

 Africa), the country was divided into a number of fmall 

 kingdoms and ftates, under chiefs of their own nation and 

 choice. This government continued till the year 1051, wlun 

 they were expelled by Abubeker ben Omar, or as the Spa- 

 niards call him, Abul Texetien, an Arab of theZinhagian 

 tribe, with the affiftance of fome powerful Manibouts ; the 

 conqueror aflumed the title of Amiral Mimiiiin, or chief of 

 the faithful, and his fubjedls were denouiiiiated Morabites, 

 and corruptly Almoravides. Texefien, having fuceeeded in 

 driving the Arab tyrants out of Numidia and Libya, and ail 

 the weftern parts, reduoed under hl.s dominion the whole 

 province of Tingitania. He was fuceeeded by his foil Joftph, 

 who laid the foundation of the city of Morocco, wliich he 

 intended for the capital of his empire ; but whilft he was 

 4 Q_ building 



