CASABLANCA, a seaport on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, in 33° 27' N., 7° 46' W. The town is built on the site of the ancient city of the same name, is rectangular in shape, with its base toward the sea. The central point of the city is the Place de France, from which all the main routes of the city radiate. In recent years Casablanca has become a considerable port, and har bour developments have made it one of the busiest towns of northern Africa, while ships of the greatest tonnage can be accommodated at the quay.
Casablanca is now the second town of Morocco, with a popu lation of 106,608 (71,624 natives-52,134 Muslims and 19,490 Jews—and 34,984 Europeans, of whom 20,183 are French). The town was originally founded by the Portuguese, on the site of the ancient Anfa, which they destroyed in 1465. It was occupied by the French in Aug. 1907, in consequence of the murder of a num ber of French and Spanish workmen engaged on the harbour works. In 1924 large electric power works, erected 'in connection with the electrification of the railways, were completed, and further extensions of the harbour works undertaken in 1925 are now completed.