Ouargla Province
ولاية ورقلة
Province
Map of Algeria highlighting Ouargla
Map of Algeria highlighting Ouargla
Coordinates: 31°57′N 5°19′E / 31.950°N 5.317°E / 31.950; 5.317
Country Algeria
CapitalOuargla
Area
 • Total211,980 km2 (81,850 sq mi)
Population
 (2008)[1]
 • Total552,539
 • Density2.6/km2 (6.8/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01 (CET)
Area Code+213 32
ISO 3166 codeDZ-30
Districts6
Municipalities10

Ouargla or Warqla (Arabic: ولاية ورقلة) is a province (wilaya) in eastern Algeria. Its capital is Ouargla. Other localities include Hassi Ben Abdellah and Hassi Messaoud. It borders Ouled Djellal Province, El M'Ghair Province Touggourt Province, and El Oued Province to the north, Tunisia to the east, In Salah Province and Illizi Province to the south, and El Menia Province, Ghardaia Province and Djelfa Province to the west. It contains the Issaouane Erg desert.

History

In the past Ouargla was the center of trading of gold and slaves,[citation needed] as well as being an important center of Ibadi Islam. However, the Ibadis have left for the M'zab valley.

In 1984 Illizi Province was carved out of its territory.

In 2019, Touggourt Province was carved out of its territory.

Administrative divisions

The province is divided into 6 districts (daïras), which are further divided into 10 communes or municipalities.[2]

Districts

District Commune Arabic
El Borma District El Borma اﻟﺒﺮﻣﺔ
El Hadjira District El Allia اﻟﻌﺎﻟﻴﺔ
El Hadjira اﻟﺤﺠﻴﺮة
Hassi Messaoud District Hassi Messaoud حاسي مسعود
N'Goussa District N'Goussa ﻧﻘﻮﺳﺔ
Ouargla District Ouargla ورقلة
Rouissat اﻟﺮوﻳﺴﺎت
Sidi Khouïled District Aïn Beida ﻋﻴﻦ اﻟﺒﻴﻀﺎء
Hassi Ben Abdellah ﺣﺎﺳﻲ ﺑﻦ ﻋﺒﺪ اﷲ
Sidi Khouiled ﺳﻴﺪي ﺧﻮﻳﻠﺪ

Geology

The region lies within the Algerian Triassic Sedimentary basin containing numerous oil and gas fields, including the Alrar gas field.[3] Production is from Triassic sandstones with Andesitic seals and the Gothlandian shale as a source rock.[4] Major fields include the Hassi R'Mel gas field, Haoud-Berkaolu, Ben-Kahla, and the Guellala.[4]

References

  1. ^ Office National des Statistiques, Recensement General de la Population et de l’Habitat 2008 Archived 2008-07-24 at the Wayback Machine Preliminary results of the 2008 population census. Accessed on 2008-07-02.
  2. ^ "Official website of the province of Ouargla - state" (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 16 February 2013. Retrieved 25 February 2013.
  3. ^ Hamouda, A., 1980, Petroleum Potential-Ouargla Region Triassic Basin, Algeria, in Giant Oil and Gas Fields of the Decade: 1968-1978, AAPG Memoir 30, Halbouty, M.T., editor, Tulsa: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, ISBN 0891813063, p. 539
  4. ^ a b Hamouda, A., 1980, Petroleum Potential-Ouargla Region Triassic Basin, Algeria, in Giant Oil and Gas Fields of the Decade: 1968-1978, AAPG Memoir 30, Halbouty, M.T., editor, Tulsa: American Association of Petroleum Geologists, ISBN 0891813063, p. 540
Categories