Tunisia possesses 5,180 km. of roads, of large and medium size, and 2,000 km. of railway lines. The line from Medjerda, built before the French protectorate, is a trunk line of Central North Africa and links Algeria with Tunis; two branches diverge to the north towards Bizerta; they reunite at Mateur, from which a line runs to Tabarka ; in the south, a line reaches Nebeur. From Tunis a line runs parallel to the east coast, passing through Susa, Sfaz and Gabes; three lines linking the interior with the sea join this coastal one, the lines Tunis-Kalaa es-Senan, Susa-Henaghir-Souatir, Sfax-Gafsa, with branches to Tozeur and Metlaoni. The law of April 6, 1902, gave Tunisia the control of its railways; they are managed by two companies, the leaseholding company of the Tunisian railways and the Sfax Gafsa company. The Medjerda and Bizerta lines are broad gauge (1.44m.), the other lines narrow gauge (1.055m.).
The four ports of Bizerta, Tunis, Susa and Sfax are very well equipped, the other ports being of only secondary importance. Of a tonnage of 3,900,000 tons, Tunis takes 1,700,000, Sfax 1,300,000, Susa 390,00o and Bizerta 250,000. The French warehouse stores 900,000 tons.
For a certain number of products, notably cereals, Tunisia, France and Algeria are under one customs union. For other products, notably wines, Tunisia is under a contingent regime, that is to say, its products are allowed free into the metropolis in quantities determined each year. On the other hand, French goods receive privileged treatment in Tunisia. The trade of Tunisia in 1927 rose to 2.798 million fr. (imports 1,772 millions, exports 1,026 millions). The share of France was 1,378 millions (imports 999 millions, 56%, exports 383 millions, 37%) ; that of Algeria 215 millions; that of Great Britain 122 millions (imports 51 millions, especially cotton goods and coal; exports 61 mil lions, especially alfa, phosphates and iron ore) ; that of Italy 36o millions.
Tunisia imports manufactured articles, particularly cotton goods, colonial produce, sugar, tea, coffee, machines (especially motor-cars), coal and petrol. She exports cereals (37 million fr., 81,00o quintals of wheat, i oo,000 of barley, 40,000 of oats), olive oil (269 million fr., 245,000 quintals), sheep (two million fr., 14,000 head), wine (65 million fr., 327,000 hectolitres), alfa (54 million fr., 84,00o tons), fishery products (20 million fr., of which 14 mil lion are sponges), phosphates (201 million fr., 2,956,00o tons), iron ores (6o million fr., 992,00o tons), lead (12 million fr., 9,000 tons), zinc (i7 million fr., 36,00o tons).
The history of Tunisia begins with the establishment of the Phoenician colonies (see PHOENICIA and CARTHAGE). The Punic settlers semitized the coast, but left the Berbers of the interior almost untouched. The Romans entered into the heritage of the Carthaginians and the vassal kings of Numidia, and Punic speech and civilization gave way to Latin, a change which from the time of Caesar was helped on by Italian colonization ; to this region the Romans gave the name of "Africa," apparently a latinizing of the Berber terms "Ifriqa," "Ifrigia" (in modern Arabic, I friqiyah).
Rich in corn, in herds, and in later times also in oil, and possess ing valuable fisheries, mines and quarries, the province of Africa, of which Tunisia was the most important part, attained under the empire a prosperity to which Roman remains in all parts of the country still bear witness. Carthage was the second city of the Latin part of the empire, "after Rome the busiest and per haps the most corrupt city of the West, and the chief centre of Latin culture and letters." In the early history of Latin Chris tianity Africa holds a more important place than Italy. It was here that Christian Latin literature took its rise, and to this province belong the names of Tertullian and Cyprian, of Arno bius and Lactantius, above all of Augustine. Lost to Rome by the invasion of the Vandals, who took Carthage in 439, the pro vince was recovered by Belisarius a century later
and remained Roman till the Arab invasions of 648-669. The con queror, 'Oqba-bin-Nafa, founded the city of Kairwan (673) which was the residence of the governors of "Ifriqiyah" under the Omayyads and thereafter the capital of the Aghlabite princes, the conquerors of Sicily, who ruled in merely nominal dependence on the Abbasids.
The Latin element in Africa and the Christian faith almost disappeared in a single generation; the Berbers of the mountains, who had never been latinized and never really christianized, accepted Islam without difficulty, but showed their stubborn nationality, not only in the character of their Mohammedanism, which has always been mixed with the worship of living as well as dead saints (marabouts) and other peculiarities, but also in political movements. The empire of the Fatimites (q.v.) rested on Berber support, and from that time forth till the advent of the Turks the dynasties of North Africa were really native, even when they claimed descent from some illustrious Arab stock. When the seat of the Fatimite empire was removed to Egypt, the Zirites, a house of the Sanhaja Berbers, ruled as their lieutenants at Mandia, and about 1050 Moizz the Zirite, in connection with a religious movement against the Shiites, transferred his very nominal allegiance to the Ab basid caliphs. The Fatimites in revenge let loose upon Africa about A.D. 1045 a vast horde of Bedouins from Upper Egypt (Beni HMI and Solaim), the ancestors of the modern nomads of Barbary. All North Africa was ravaged by the invaders, who, though unable to found an empire or overthrow the settled government in the towns, forced the agricultural Berbers into the mountains, and, retaining from generation to generation their lawless and predatory habits, made order and prosperity almost impossible in the open parts of the country until its effective occupation by the French. The Zirite dynasty was finally ex tinguished by Roger I. of Sicily, who took Mandia in 1148 and established his authority over all the Tunisian coast. Even Muslim historians speak favourably of the Norman rule in Africa; but it was brought to an early end by the Almohade caliph Abd ul-Mumin, who took Mandia in 1160.