# Ksar

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{{Short description|Type of fortified village in North Africa}}
{{About||the town and commune in Mauritania|Ksar, Mauritania|the racehorse|Ksar (horse)}}
{{Redirect|Qsar|the QSAR models|Quantitative structure–activity relationship}} {{for|the television and radio stations that used the callsign '''KSAR''' from 1953 to 1972|Ryukyu Broadcasting Corporation}}
[[Image:Aït Benhaddou1 (js).jpg|thumb|Ksar [Aït Benhaddou](/source/A%C3%AFt_Benhaddou), [Morocco](/source/Morocco), a [UNESCO](/source/UNESCO) [World Heritage Site](/source/World_Heritage_Site) since 1987]]
'''Ksar''' or '''qṣar''' ({{Langx|ar|قصر|translit=qṣar}}), in plural '''ksour''' or '''qsour''' ({{Langx|ar|قصور|translit=qṣur|links=no}}), is a type of fortified village in North Africa, usually found in the regions predominantly or traditionally inhabited by [Berbers](/source/Berbers) (Amazigh).<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Golvin |first=Lucien |date=1989 |title=Architecture berbère |url=https://journals.openedition.org/encyclopedieberbere/2582 |access-date=11 September 2023 |journal=Encyclopédie berbère |volume=6 |pages=865–877 |doi=10.4000/encyclopedieberbere.2582 }}</ref> The equivalent [Berber](/source/Berber_languages) term used is ''{{Transliteration|ber|ighrem}}'' (singular) or {{Transliteration|ber|igherman}} (plural).<ref name=":0">{{Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition|volume=12|title=Ḳaṣr|last=Van Staëvel|first=J.-P.}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
The Arabic ''qaṣr'' ({{Lang|ar|قصر}}), frequently pronounced {{Transliteration|ar|qṣar}} in the Maghreb, was probably borrowed from the [Latin](/source/Latin) word {{Lang|la|castrum}}.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{cite book |first1=Hans |last1=Wehr |first2=J. M. |last2=Cowan |title=A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic |edition=Third |location=Ithaca, N.Y. |publisher=Spoken Language Services |page=768 }}</ref>

== Locations ==
Ksour or igherman are widespread among the [oasis](/source/oasis) populations of [North Africa](/source/North_Africa), found in Tunisia,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Flac |first=Ser |date=2026-02-10 |title=Ksar Ouled Soltane |url=http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/ksar-ouleds |access-date=2026-02-15 |website=Atlas Obscura |language=en}}</ref> Algeria,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Guessar |first=Souad |last2=Abdeldjebar |first2=Hadja Mama |date=2023-10-06 |title=Preserving the Old Ksar of Beni-Abbes- Algeria |url=https://migrationletters.com/index.php/ml/article/view/4423 |journal=Migration Letters |language=en |volume=20 |issue=S7 |pages=. 620–628 |doi=10.59670/ml.v20iS7.4423 |issn=1741-8992}}</ref> and Libya,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Samakie |first=Abdulmnam |title=Ksar Nalut {{!}} Archiqoo |url=https://archiqoo.com/locations/ksar_nalut.php |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260202200652/https://archiqoo.com/locations/ksar_nalut.php |archive-date=2026-02-02 |access-date=2026-02-15 |website=archiqoo.com |language=en}}</ref> and are also found on the [Djado Plateau](/source/Djado_Plateau) and in the commune of [Fachi](/source/Fachi) in Niger.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-06-05 |title=Mystery of the desert: The lost cities of the Nigerien Sahara |url=https://www.france24.com/en/video/20230605-mystery-of-the-desert-the-lost-cities-of-the-nigerien-sahara |access-date=2026-02-15 |website=France 24 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Photos: The lost cities of the Nigerien Sahara |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2023/6/4/mystery-of-the-desert-lost-cities-of-the-nigerien-sahara |access-date=2026-02-15 |website=Al Jazeera |language=en}}</ref> They are sometimes situated in mountain locations to make defense easier; they often are entirely within a single, continuous wall.

== Architecture ==
{{Unsourced section|date=September 2023}}
[[File:Ksar of Ighzer 01.jpg|thumb|Ksar Ighzer near [Timimoun](/source/Timimoun), [Algeria](/source/Algeria)]]
[[File:Matmata 00.JPG|thumb|[Ksar Chenini](/source/Ksar_Chenini), an abandoned ksar in southern Tunisia<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Binous |first1=Jamila |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wT7dBAAAQBAJ |title=Ifriqiya: Thirteen Centuries of Art and Architecture in Tunisia |last2=Baklouti |first2=Naceur |last3=Ben Tanfous |first3=Aziza |last4=Bouteraa |first4=Kadri |last5=Rammah |first5=Mourad |last6=Zouari |first6=Ali |publisher=Museum With No Frontiers & Ministry of Culture, the National Institute of Heritage, Tunis |year=2010 |isbn=9783902782199 |edition=2nd |series=Islamic Art in the Mediterranean |location= |pages=269 |language=en |chapter=X.6 Chénini (of Tataouine)}}</ref>]]
Ksour in the Maghreb typically consist of attached houses, often having a [fortified communal granary](/source/Fortified_Granaries_of_Aures) like those in Algeria, or the [ghorfa](/source/ghorfa) and [agadir](/source/agadir_(granary)) types known in Tunisia and Morocco respectively, beside other structures like a [mosque](/source/mosque), [hammam](/source/hammam), oven, and shops.   

The [building material](/source/building_material) of the entire structure usually is [adobe](/source/adobe), or cut stone, desert salt and adobe. The idea of the ksar as a granary is a confused notion of two things: the granary itself, found within a ksar, and the ksar, a village, typically with granaries within it. Ksars form one of the main manifestations of [Berber architecture](/source/Berber_architecture).

==See also==
* [Alcázar](/source/Alc%C3%A1zar)
* [List of ksour in Tunisia](/source/List_of_ksour_in_Tunisia)
* [Ribat](/source/Ribat)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Ksour}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100513091209/http://ksour-tunisiens.com/ www.ksour-tunisiens.com] – complete documentation of all ksour of southern Tunisia, Herbert Popp & Abdelfettah Kassah
{{Ksars of Africa}}
{{Fortifications}}
{{Islamic architecture}}

Category:Ksars
Category:Arabic words and phrases
Category:Arabic fortifications
Category:Berber architecture
Category:Fortifications by type
Category:Sahara
Category:Castles
Category:Ribats

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Ksar](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ksar) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ksar?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.