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Coordinates: 35°56′N, 0°05′E
Mostaganem is a port city in and capital of Mostaganem province, in the northwest of Algeria. The city, founded in the 11th century lies on the Gulf of Arzew, Mediterranean Sea and is 72 km ENE of Oran. It has 130,288 inhabitants as of the 1998 census.
The city was founded in the 11th century as Murustage but has origins going back to Punic and Roman times, when it had the name Cartenna. In 1516 it was captured by the pirate Barbarossa and became a centre for Mediterranean sea piracy, as well as a commercial port. By 1700 it had come under Ottoman rule and in 1833 the city was taken by France and a garrison established. Algeria became independent in 1962.
The city is divided in two by a ravine of the river Aïn Sefra, with the modern town to southwest, and the old Muslim city, Tidgit, to the northeast.
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