The Strait of Gibraltar has an "end of the world"

Source: Global Times

As the only passage between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, the Strait of Gibraltar is the natural dividing line between Europe and Africa. It is about 90 km long, wide in the east and narrow in the west, 43 km at its widest point and only 10 km at its narrowest point. On a cloudless sunny day, standing at Point Spartel in the northernmost part of Morocco, the city of Tangier, you can see the coastal landscape of Spain's southernmost point.

Gibraltar

Located at the entrance of the Strait of Gibraltar, Cape Spartel, about 300 meters above sea level, stands on it with the high waves and the sound of the Strait of Gibraltar at your feet. Here is the famous Kasbah Lighthouse, which is the best place to admire the Strait of Gibraltar. Next to the Kasbah Lighthouse, not far from the cliffs, stand two wooden plaques that read "Atlantic" and "Mediterranean" in striking Arabic and French. Looking west, the Atlantic Ocean is magnificent; looking east, the Mediterranean Sea is soft and quiet.

As an important geographical presence, there are many myths and legends about the Strait of Gibraltar. Locals told the Global Times that the mountains on both sides of the Strait of Gibraltar, known as the "Pillar of Hercules", are usually believed to be the pillars to the north, referring to the Gibraltar rocks located in British Gibraltar, while the southern pillars are in North Africa, but the exact mountain is said to be different. One is the Jaco Mountain in Ceuta, and the other is the Mount Moses in Morocco. In ancient times, influenced by the Phoenician culture and legends that were active in the Mediterranean, the "Pillar of Hercules" was considered the limit and end of the known world, and nothing else.

Hercules, also translated as Hercules, was the god hercules in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus, the king of the Greek gods, and Hena the Queen of Heaven. It is said that Hercules had to labor 12 times to prove his existence and abilities to people. One of the tasks was to bring Glion's cattle back from the Strait of Gibraltar. The "Pillar of Hercules" marks the difficult route and area he has traveled. The reporter found that in Tangier, even ordinary taxi drivers and tour guides know what is the "Pillar of Hercules". Tour guide Atif even told the Global Times reporter that Hercules (Hercules) created the Strait of Gibraltar in the process of labor.

Another legend of the Strait of Gibraltar is about the lost city of Atlantis. In the ancient Greek philosopher Plato's book "Dialogues", it is mentioned that there was a highly civilized "Atlantis" on the earth, which later sank to the bottom of the water due to violent earthquakes and floods. Some people think it's fictional, but there are still many who believe that this civilization once existed. Not long ago, some explorers and scientists in Britain and France believed that the Strait of Gibraltar was the location of the Atlantean civilization.

Solon (c. 638 BC – c. 559 BC), born in Athens, was a famous reformer and statesman of the Athenian city-state during the ancient Greek period. Solon was a politician, legislator, and poet of ancient Athens, and one of the Seven Sages of Ancient Greece. In the Dialogues, Plato writes: "Around 9,000 years before Solon, opposite the Pillar of Hercules, there was a very large island, from which you could go to other islands, and on the opposite side of those islands was a whole land surrounded by the sea, which was the kingdom of 'Atlantis'. Based on this, scientists have concluded that Atlantis is located in the Strait of Gibraltar after an informative investigation. Although this view has not yet been unanimously endorsed by all parties, this inference adds a little mystery to the Strait of Gibraltar.

The name of the Strait of Gibraltar is derived from arabic. In the 8th century, when the Arab Umayyad dynasty was on a campaign against the outside world, Musa ibn Al-Nusser led an Arab army to invade North Africa, all the way to the northern coast of Morocco and occupying the military fortress of Tangier. Nussar appointed his subordinate Tariq ibn Ziyad as Governor of Tangier. In 711 AD, Tariq was ordered by Nussel to lead a strong army to forcibly cross the Strait of Gibraltar and, led by Berber guides, defeated the Spanish army. To commemorate the victory in this battle, the strait was named "Zhibul Tariq" Strait. In Arabic, "zhibul" means "mountain". In English, it is simplified to the Strait of Gibraltar. Among them, the first half of Gibraltar is taken from the Arabic Jebel (mountain), and the second half of the "tar" is taken from the name of the Arab general Tarik.