The Wilaya of Setif

ولاية سطيف
—  Province  —
Map of Algeria highlighting Sétif
Coordinates: 36°11′N 5°24′ECoordinates: 36°11′N 5°24′E
Country	Algeria
Capital	Sétif
Government
• PPA president	Naima Farhi (2007-2012)
• Wāli
Area
• Total	6,504 km2 (2,511 sq mi)
Population (2008)[1]
• Total	1,496,150
• Density	230/km2 (600/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+01)
Area Code	+213 (0) 36
ISO 3166 code	DZ-19
Districts	20
Municipalities	60

Sétif (Arabic: سطيف‎, formerly Latin: Sitifis Colonia or Colonia Sitifis) is a town in northeastern Algeria. It is thecapital of Sétif Province and it has a population of 288,461 inhabitants as of the 2008 census. Setif is located to the east of Algiers and is the second most important Wilaya after the country's capital. It is 1,096 m (3,596 ft) above sea level, making it the second highest capital of a Wilaya in Algeria. The streets are tree-lined with a fountain and theater, giving the town a Frenchfeel.^[1]

Sétif is one of the coldest regions in Algeria. Sétif is connected by rail as well as the main national highway. It is a university town located approximately 190 miles east of Algiers on the highway to Constantine.

History

Sétif lay in the region of the Numidiankingdom of Massaesyles. It was near Sétif that Jugurtha campaigned and lost against Marius in 105 BC. Overcome by Marius, he was taken to Rome where was executed in the prison of Tullianum. No remains of this period have been found.

Sitifis was founded by the Romans, during the reign of Nerva, as a colony for veterans. Although no buildings of this period are known, a cemetery excavated in the 1960's seems to have contained tombs from the early colony.^[2] The Romans built a circus at Sitifis, which aerial photographs show survived substantially intact until the 20th century; today only a small part of the curved end continues visible; the remainder has been destroyed or built over. As the town grew, around 297 AD, the province of Mauretania Sitifensis was established, with Sitifis as its capital. In the newly prosperous town a bath building was built, decorated with fine mosaics: its restoration in the fifth century had a cold room (frigidarium) paved with a large mosaic showing the birth of Venus.^[3]. On the northwest edge of the town two great Christian basilicas were built at the end of the fourth century, decorated, again, with splendid mosaics.

Climate

Because of Sétif's location on the High Plateaus at an elevation of 1,096 metres, it is one of the coldest regions during winter in Algeria. The Wilaya frequently sees an annual snowfall of up to 40 centimeters. Flash floods are rare but have recently occurred around the spring and fall seasons. The summer is fairly hot where extreme heat waves are common around the month of July where temperatures can sometimes even reach 40°C.