Ariana (Tunisia)

Ariana أريانة
City
Statue for martyrs in Ariana
Ariana Location in Tunisia
Coordinates: 36°51′45″N 10°11′44″E / 36.86250°N 10.19556°E / 36.86250; 10.19556
Country	Tunisia
Governorate	Ariana Governorate
Delegation(s)	Ariana Medina
Government
• Mayor	Fadhel Moussa (Independent)
Area
• Total	209 sq mi (542 km2)
Population  (2014[1])
• Total	123,079
Time zone	UTC1 (CET)

Ariana (Arabic: أريانة Ariana^ⓘ) is a coastal city in north-eastern Tunisia, part of the agglomeration of Tunis, also called "Grand Tunis". It is located at the north of Tunis city center, around 36°51′45″N 10°11′44″E / 36.86250°N 10.19556°E / 36.86250; 10.19556. It is the capital of Ariana Governorate and the country's eighth largest city.

The city's name seems to date back to the period of the Vandal Kingdom in pre-Islamic North Africa: the Vandals, in fact, were of Arian faith. It could also be a reference to Persian settlers from the Islamic invasion of the Maghreb as Persians refer to themselves as "Aryan".

The city's origins date back to the Zirid dynasty. Under the Hafsid sultan Muhammad I al-Mustansir, Ariana became the residence of the Sephardi Jews and Muslim Andalusians, who sought refuge in Ifriqiya in the thirteenth century.

The city, whose area covers 18,000 hectares, and is the pole of an agglomeration covering seven districts for a population basin of 160,000 inhabitants. It is located in the middle of a vast plain bordered by the beaches of Raoued and Gammarth as well as the city of Carthage and the hill of Sidi Bou Saïd.

Ariana owes its fame to its agricultural development and to its production of flowers, mainly roses.

The Rose Garden, located in Bir Belhassen Park, covers some 3000m² and is home to 16,000 rosebushes and cuttings, 90% of which belong to the variety known as the “Ariana rose". This variety was introduced in 1637 by the Andalusians. The garden is extended by the Galerie de la Rose which develops the historical, natural and cultural aspects of the flower. A rose festival takes place every year in the spring.

In Ariana, the climate is warm and temperate. In winter there is much more rainfall than in summer. The Köppen-Geiger climate classification is Csa. The average annual temperature in Ariana is 18.0 °C (64.4 °F). About 449 mm (17.68 in) of precipitation falls annually.

Top to bottom: Hedi Berrekhissa Mural in Ariana, painted in December 2020, Avenue Hédi Nouira, view from the city from the Nouvelle Ariana bridge, Ariana Governorate Building.

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